Progress in implementation of ECVET

The European Commission, on the basis of the Copenhagen declaration mandate, published on 24 September 2004 a document presenting the principles and a reference framework for the implementation of ECVET ("European Credits Transfer System for VET -ECVET- principles and reference framework for implementation") and appointed a Working Group, the Credit Transfer Technical Working Group, to define concretely the new transfer credit system.
 
This was done in a report from the Working Group on 28 June 2005: "European Credit System for VET (ECVET), Technical Specifications".
 
On this basis, on 31 October 2006, the Commission launched a consultation - the Commission Staff Working Document: "European Credit System for vocational Education and Training (ECVET)", A system for the transfer, accumulation and recognition of learning outcomes in Europe". The Commission consulted countries participating in "Education & Training 2010", social partners, relevant European Associations and Networks, sectoral organisations and so on, during the period November 2006 to March 2007.
 
The consultation process was concluded in Munich, during the German presidency, on 4-5 June 2007 with a Conference entitled "Realising the European Learning Area". There was a global agreement on the positive developments that could be expected from EVCET in Europe, but participants also expressed the need for more clarification on some crucial points (such as credit points), for articulation and complementarity and not fusion with ECTS, and for the improvement of ECVET.
 
Following these generally agreed responses , the Commission appointed a Technical Working Group which worked from July 2007 to September 2007 to work on a revised version. Following that the final version will be prepared for adoption by the Commission in March 2008. On the basis of that decision, testing and experimentation, will be launched, on a voluntary basis, to contribute to the decision process by the Council and by the European Parliament. The decision process will also be informed by the emerging results from projects funded by the Commission in 2006 and 2007.