Context/background of the project For several years the European Commission has stressed in each of its communiqués the importance of vocational education and training (VET) for the employability of (young) people as well as for the competitiveness and growth of the economy. In many countries strategies to foster VET focus, however, largely on initial VET. Higher VET, that is, VET leading to qualifications on EQF-levels 5 to 8, are often neglected or underestimated in such policies. This is due to the fact that in many countries the HiVET sector is often very heterogeneous with a great variety of providers, assessment procedures, qualification standards, etc. This distinguishes this sector from the higher academic education area that – thanks to the Bologna process – has a largely uniform structure (Bachelor, Master, PhD) and common standards of quality assurance (QA). Though QA mechanisms are in place in HiVET as well, there are no European reference guidelines/principles, nor are they uniformly defined on the national level. The absence of such common QA guidelines has become evident during the implementation of national qualifications frameworks in the countries. As a consequence HiVET qualifications are often underrated, i.e. there is no parity of esteem between qualifications from the higher academic sector and the HiVET sector. Main objectives A main objective of this project is to contribute to the creation of more parity of esteem between these two educational sectors that should supplement each other. This contribution should be reached by defining “European Guidelines and Principles on Quality Assurance in Higher VET”, which should serve as a European reference for all HiVET providers and qualification awarding bodies. In order to strengthen cooperation among these stakeholders, a “European Network on Quality Assurance in Higher VET” should be established that should keep the subject matter on the political agenda also beyond the project and develop the guidelines further. Participants/partner institutions A partnership of six institutions has been formed to reach the objectives of this project. Five national institutions from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Greece as well as one European organisation (UEAPME, headquartered in Brussels) have agreed to work together on this three-year-project to develop the products and contribute to the political work in this area by disseminating information about the project and its deliverables. The core partnership is strongly supported by national experts in each country as well as by the Vocational Training Committee of UEAPME, the European organisation that plays a key role in European VET. Activities and methodology The activities to be carried out in this project are divided into four work packages (wp). The work thus begins with the analysis of the national situation in each country, i.e. what is already being done in terms of QA, that is, what instruments, tools, processes, etc. are being applied. In order to be able to compare the national reports, a template will be developed by the core partners in a first step which will be structured along quality dimensions/fields (for instance, involvement of social partners in curricula design, qualification of trainers, recognition of prior learning, etc.). In a second step the different national reports will be subject to a comparative analysis that should bring out similarities and differences in the participating countries. On the basis of this comparative analysis a first draft of the QA guidelines will be developed. This draft will not only be discussed and critically reviewed with the experts and evaluated in national multiplier events. The feedback collected will be considered for drawing up the final version of the guidelines. As a complement to the guidelines a paper on a review and audit methodology will be produced to support VET providers and qualification awarding bodies to monitor their own QA system and implement improvements. At the end of this project the QA network will be set up in order to guarantee sustainability. Results The main results of this project are: - European Guidelines and Principles on Quality Assurance in Higher VET - Paper on review and audit method for the implementation and improvement of QA mechanisms/systems - European Network on Quality Assurance in Higher VET Impact and sustainability The national QA systems should be improved on the basis of the European guidelines defined. In order to support process of improvement, the review and audit methodology paper shall support the institutions. The QA network should help to sustain the results also beyond the project period. Its members shall also further develop the guidelines after the end of this project. All these efforts should lead to a better visibility and recognition of HiVET and to more parity of esteem between HiVET and higher academic education.