2025
Upcoming reforms not yet decided.
2024
Social Care and Nursing - training in the VET school system and in dual training
Implementation of new types of training
Status:
School projects since 2020/21; part of regular schooling starting with 2023/24
Sources:
.
Description:
Due to demographic developments in combination with family changes, the need for care will increase. As a contribution to reducing the need in the nursing sector Austria started a new type of training in the 2020/21 school year (entrance at grade 9):
- 5-year college for nursing and social care with the degree of nursing assistant or diploma in social care
- 3-year school for social professions with preparation for nursing, leading to the degree of nursing assistant
.
National curricula were decreed in 2023.
VET colleges: The school trials will be transferred to the regular school system. From the 2023/24 school year, 24 school locations will offer the training courses. By 2030, around 8,000 training places in the nursing and social care professions will be available.
Nursing apprenticeship: From 2023/24, apprenticeship training in the care assistant professions will be possible. Duration of apprenticeship training is 3 to 4 years.
Benefits for the education system: A training gap that has existed for decades will be closed. Until now, it has not been possible to start the training before the age of 17. The new form of training makes it possible to start training immediately after completing compulsory schooling.
Funding: part of the ministry's budget.
Monitoring and involved bodies:
Higher Vocational Education
Regulation and legislative documents
Status: implementation starts in 2024
Sources:
Description:
Around 1.6 million people have an apprenticeship diploma as their highest level of completed education.
The government wants to offer new prospects to apprenticeship graduates and graduates of vocational schools and colleges (BMHS) with new job-oriented continuing education formats. A draft law on higher vocational education and training aims to create the basis for courses that for example will enable roofers to qualify as photovoltaic or solar thermal specialists, or chimney sweeps to become energy efficiency consultants.
This is to be achieved by including the qualifications in the National Qualifications Framework, which has so far only been fully populated for general educational qualifications.
There should be more than the already existing master craftsman and qualification exams afterwards. However, the draft law only creates the framework for this. The new formats will then have to be implemented by further education providers - they will also take the exams. To do so, they must also have expertise in the professional field of activity.
No titles will be awarded, but degree designations will be. In the future, the individual educational levels will be called "Higher Professional Qualification" (level 5), "Specialized Diploma" (level 6) and "Higher Specialized Diploma" (level 7). As a rule, one level must be completed before a qualification for the next can be acquired - although there will be exceptions to this, for example in the case of appropriate professional experience,
There will not be corresponding offers in all of the 230 or so apprenticeship professions right away. However, they will be created gradually, the first ones in the fall of next year at the earliest.
This will be documented in the register of educational attainment as data on higher vocational education.
Funding: Budget of BMA
Monitoring and involved bodies: BMA and BMBWF
See also: Reform of Nursing
2023
Austrian National Implementation Plan for the 2020 Council Recommendation on VET and Osnabrück Declaration
National strategy
Status: ongoing implementation
Sources:
Description:
Austria modernises its VET system. In response to the 2020 Council recommendation on VET and the Osnabrück Declaration, Austria has prepared a national implementation plan addressing the European priorities and its national objectives in VET and lifelong learning. The plan aims at counteracting the shortage of skilled labour, improving the attractiveness of VET, making non-formal qualifications visible and responding to internationalisation, greening and digitisation of the economy. An essential aim of the plan remains tackling inequalities and ensuring equal access to education.
Austria’s VET supports sustainability and targets the green transition. To identify and close green skills gaps, Austria launched the project GREENOVET in 2022 and provides initial and continuous education and training for the green transition also to secondary teachers within the Green-Tech Academy (GRETA). The Academy promotes cooperation and networking in the knowledge triangle of research-economy-education in which regional vocational schools are also integrated.
Funding: (no data available)
Monitoring and involved bodies: BMBWF
.