{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T16:49:12Z","timestamp":1764262152094,"version":"3.46.0"},"reference-count":34,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1764201600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Information"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Vocational education and training (VET) is a strategic driver of national education and skills development systems. It covers both Initial VET (IVET), which provides young people with vocational qualifications before they enter the labor market, and Continuing VET (CVET), which supports adults in updating or expanding their skills throughout their working lives. VET provides individuals with essential skills for employment and supports economies in adapting to technological, labor market, and social changes. Within the European Union (EU), VET plays a central role in addressing labor market transformation, the green and digital transitions, the rise of artificial intelligence, and the pursuit of social equity. This paper presents a data-driven analysis of VET in the EU countries. It reviews the relevant literature and outlines the role of Cedefop, the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, together with its main VET performance indicators. The analysis draws on publicly available Cedefop data on key VET indicators, filtered for reliability and systematically processed to ensure robust results. This research focuses on a selected set of key indicators covering participation in IVET at upper- and post-secondary levels, adult participation in both formal and non-formal learning, government and enterprise expenditure on training, the gender employment gap, and adult employment rates. These indicators are derived from Cedefop data spanning the period 2010\u20132024, with coverage varying across indicators. This study applies descriptive analysis to identify outlier countries, correlation analysis to explore relationships between indicators, and cluster analysis to group countries with similar VET profiles. It also compares the largest EU countries using common indicators. The results suggest key patterns, differences, and connections in VET performance across EU countries, offering insights for policy development and future research in VET.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/info16121037","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T16:31:52Z","timestamp":1764261112000},"page":"1037","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Vocational Education and Training in the European Union: A Data-Driven Comparative Analysis"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0005-1455-3225","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alicia","family":"Vila","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Computer Science Department, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, 08018 Barcelona, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8425-1381","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Laura","family":"Calvet","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Systems Engineering & Telecommunication, Universitat Aut\u00f2noma de Barcelona, 08202 Sabadell, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7532-0437","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Josep","family":"Prieto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Computer Science Department, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, 08018 Barcelona, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1392-1776","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Angel A.","family":"Juan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"CIGIP\u2013ValgrAI, Universitat Polit\u00e8cnica de Val\u00e8ncia, 03801 Alcoy, Spain"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"364","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2023.2215749","article-title":"Innovation, technician skills, and vocational education and training: Connecting innovation systems and vocational education and training","volume":"77","author":"Lewis","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1734","DOI":"10.11594\/ijmaber.04.05.34","article-title":"Assessment of Employability skills of Technical-Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates: Basis for an enhancement program","volume":"4","author":"Mariano","year":"2023","journal-title":"Int. J. Multidiscip. Appl. Bus. Educ. Res."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"95","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2019.1698643","article-title":"Getting there from here: A literature review on vocational education and training reform implementation","volume":"73","author":"Caves","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"329","DOI":"10.5430\/jct.v11n8p329","article-title":"Vocational education in the context of modern problems and challenges","volume":"8","author":"Kovalchuk","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Curric. Teach."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"434","DOI":"10.1177\/14749041221151189","article-title":"Vocational education and training systems in Europe: A cluster analysis","volume":"23","year":"2024","journal-title":"Eur. Educ. Res. J."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"185","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2020.1847566","article-title":"International transfer of vocational education and training: A literature review","volume":"75","author":"Li","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2154496","DOI":"10.1080\/2331186X.2022.2154496","article-title":"Dual vocational education and training and policy transfer in the European Union policy: The case of work-based learning and apprenticeships","volume":"9","year":"2022","journal-title":"Cogent Educ."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"197","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2020.1863451","article-title":"The development and cultural foundations of dual apprenticeships\u2013a comparison of Germany and Switzerland","volume":"73","author":"Deissinger","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_9","first-page":"235","article-title":"Scenarios for vocational education and training in Europe in the 21st century","volume":"12","author":"Markowitsch","year":"2022","journal-title":"Hung. Educ. Res. J."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Milmeister, P., Rastoder, M., and Houssemand, C. (2022). Mechanisms of participation in vocational education and training in Europe. Front. Psychol., 13.","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2022.842307"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"629","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2021.1931946","article-title":"Labour market success of initial vocational education and training graduates: A comparative study of three education systems in Central Europe","volume":"75","author":"Hoidn","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"316","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2021.1889645","article-title":"Europeanisation of VET\u2013the Spanish Vocational Education and Training system and the influence of European education policy","volume":"73","author":"Fischer","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_13","first-page":"14","article-title":"A reflective overview: European vocational education and training reform: The Copenhagen process 2002 to 2024","volume":"7","author":"Bainbridge","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Adult Contin. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Rauner, F. (2024). European vocational education and training. Handbook of Fundamentals of Modern Vocational Education: Shaping the World of Work, Springer.","DOI":"10.1007\/978-981-97-0987-8"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"792","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2024.2320895","article-title":"International organisations in vocational education and training: A literature review","volume":"77","author":"Klassen","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"339","DOI":"10.1177\/17454999211062825","article-title":"Reconstructing policy transfer in adult and vocational education and training","volume":"16","author":"Barabasch","year":"2021","journal-title":"Res. Comp. Int. Educ."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1235","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2024.2442030","article-title":"Researching policy transfer of vocational education and training across the European Union: A systematic literature review","volume":"77","author":"Ciantar","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_18","first-page":"138","article-title":"Research in international transfer of vocational education and training\u2013a systematic literature review","volume":"8","author":"Toepper","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int. J. Res. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"686","DOI":"10.1111\/ijtd.12276","article-title":"Literature review of international empirical research on transfer of vocational education and training","volume":"26","author":"Toepper","year":"2022","journal-title":"Int. J. Train. Dev."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Backes-Gellner, U., and Lehnert, P. (2021). The Contribution of Vocational Education and Training to Innovation and Growth, Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Economics and Finance.","DOI":"10.1093\/acrefore\/9780190625979.013.653"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"596","DOI":"10.1080\/13636820.2017.1322130","article-title":"The VET system and industrial SMEs: The role of employees with VET qualifications in innovation processes","volume":"69","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Vocat. Educ. Train."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Lav\u00eda, C., Otero, B., Albizu, E., and Olazaran, M. (2021). Exploring the Intensity of Relationships with Vocational Education Centres: A Typology of Spanish SMEs. Sustainability, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/su13169287"},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2931","DOI":"10.1007\/s10639-023-11919-x","article-title":"The role of technological resources in the reputation of vocational education schools","volume":"29","author":"Nieves","year":"2024","journal-title":"Educ. Inf. Technol."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Storonyanska, I., Benovska, L., Patytska, K., Ivashko, O., and Chulipa, I. (2025). Redesigning Sustainable Vocational Education Systems to Respond to Global Economic Trends and Labor Market Demands: Evidence from EU countries on SDGs. Sustainability, 17.","DOI":"10.3390\/su17219530"},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"213","DOI":"10.1111\/ijtd.12320","article-title":"From provider to partner? Main elements of the relationship between schools and small-and medium-sized firms in vocational education work placements in the Basque and Navarre regions (Spain)","volume":"28","author":"Otero","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Train. Dev."},{"key":"ref_26","unstructured":"Kero, A.A., and Olana, Z. (2025, October 13). The Role of Big Data Analytics on Improving Technical and Vocational Education Outcomes. Available online: https:\/\/easychair.org\/publications\/preprint\/knhV5."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wu, M., Hao, X., Lv, Y., and Hu, Z. (2022). Design of intelligent management platform for industry\u2013education cooperation of vocational education by data mining. Appl. Sci., 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/app12146836"},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"\u00c7ela, E., Vajjhala, N.R., Eappen, P., and Vedishchev, A. (2025). Artificial Intelligence in Vocational Education and Training. Transforming Vocational Education and Training Using AI, IGI Global Scientific Publishing.","DOI":"10.4018\/979-8-3693-8252-3"},{"key":"ref_29","first-page":"101401","article-title":"Harnessing artificial intelligence to revolutionize vocational education: Emerging trends, challenges, and contributions to SDGs 2030","volume":"11","author":"Prasetya","year":"2025","journal-title":"Soc. Sci. Humanit. Open"},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"37","DOI":"10.61667\/w0efrt90","article-title":"Artificial Intelligence in Vocational Education: Perspectives and Practices from a Literature Study","volume":"3","author":"Azizah","year":"2025","journal-title":"Glob. Synth. Educ. J."},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8415","DOI":"10.24294\/jipd.v8i8.8415","article-title":"Digital skills in vocational education and training: Investigating the impact of Erasmus, digital tools, and educational platforms","volume":"8","author":"Zervas","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Infrastruct. Policy Dev."},{"key":"ref_32","unstructured":"Attwell, G., Bekiaridis, G., Deitmer, L., Perini, M., Roppertz, S., and T\u00fctlys, V. (2020). Artificial Intelligence in Policies, Processes and Practices of Vocational Education And Training, Institut Technik und Bildung (ITB). Technical Report."},{"key":"ref_33","unstructured":"Dewanto, S. (2024, January 10). Vocational Education and AI: Catalysts for Sustainable Green Innovations. Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Education Innovation (ICEI 2024), Online."},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"135","DOI":"10.11591\/csit.v4i2.pp135-142","article-title":"Investigating the impact of data scaling on the k-nearest neighbor algorithm","volume":"4","author":"Pagan","year":"2023","journal-title":"Comput. Sci. Inf. Technol."}],"container-title":["Information"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2078-2489\/16\/12\/1037\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T16:45:52Z","timestamp":1764261952000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2078-2489\/16\/12\/1037"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]]},"references-count":34,"journal-issue":{"issue":"12","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,12]]}},"alternative-id":["info16121037"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/info16121037","relation":{},"ISSN":["2078-2489"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2078-2489","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]]}}}