Successful launch of Europass

The official launch of Europass took place in Luxembourg on 31 January and 1 February 2005 at a conference organised by the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union, in the presence of Ján Figeľ, European Commissioner, and Mady Delvaux-Stehres, Luxembourg Minister for Education and Vocational Training.

Europass is the new single framework for the transparency of qualifications and competences; it aims at facilitating the employment and mobility of citizens across Europe by increasing the transparency of their qualifications and competences. Europass comprises five documents developed at European level since the late 1990s: the Europass Curriculum Vitae (CV), the Europass Language Passport, Europass Mobility, the Europass Certificate Supplement and the Europass Diploma Supplement.

Europass is based on a decision (1) prepared by the European Commission and adopted by the European Parliament and the Council on 15 December 2004.

Citizens can access Europass through an Internet portal developed by Cedefop in close collaboration with the Commission. This site, which is currently available in English and French and will soon cover 25 languages (EU, EEA and candidate countries), gives citizens access to five instruments:

Two instruments used directly by the citizens: the CV and the Europass Language Passport:

The Europass CV, an upgraded version of the European CV downloaded by over two million people since its launch in 2002, is the central Europass document. The CV gives citizens the opportunity to present their skills and qualifications acquired within the context of formal training schemes or in a non-formal context (associations, etc.).

The Europass CV can be completed online via the Europass portal. Detailed instructions (examples, help function) are provided. The CV created can then be downloaded by the user in the format of their choice.

The Europass Language Passport, a supplement to the CV, provides citizens with an opportunity to describe their language skills. Developed by the Council of Europe on the basis of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, the passport is one of the three elements of the Europass Language Portfolio (passport, language biography and dossier).

Like the Europass CV, the Europass Language Passport may also be completed online via the Europass portal.

The incorporation of the Europass portal into the Europass framework and Internet access to the Europass Language Passport will help contribute to the acceptance of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages as a standard tool for the description of language skills.

Three instruments issued to the citizens by the competent authorities: Europass Mobility, the Europass Certificate Supplement and the Europass Diploma Supplement

The Europass portal provides information (presentation, examples, links and resources) on the three other Europass instruments:

Europass Mobility is a formal detailed record of competences acquired by a person - irrespective of age, level of education or occupational status - in the course of any organised period of time spent in another European country (European Union/EFTA/EEA and candidate countries) for the purpose of learning or training.

The Europass Mobility experience presupposes a partnership between a home and a host organisation (university, training centre, enterprise, etc.). It replaces the Europass Training, launched in 2000. The structure of the new document in particular offers the opportunity for a more detailed description of mobility experience and acquired competences and to expand the circle of beneficiaries (higher education, non-formal learning).

The Europass Certificate Supplement adds information to the details already included in the official certificate, making it more easily understood, especially by employers or institutions outside the issuing country.
The Supplement describes the vocational qualification to which it refers and is in principle identical for all persons holding the relevant certificate. The Europass portal is to feature links to national inventories of Europass Certificate Supplements as soon as they are activated.

The Europass Diploma Supplement is issued to graduates of higher education institutions along with their degree or diploma. It helps to ensure that higher education qualifications are more easily understood, especially outside the country where they were awarded. The Europass Diploma Supplement was developed jointly with Unesco and the Council of Europe.

The Europass Diploma Supplement is a personal document containing information about the holder's specific academic history. It is filled in by the institution issuing the diploma in question. Its inclusion in the Europass framework does not change either the structure of the diploma or the procedures according to which it is issued.

Other Europass resources

The Europass portal gives access to a number of further resources (links, contact points), in particular the network of National Europass Centres, currently under construction, which is to coordinate all activities related to the Europass documents. Further links lead to other mobility and transparency initiatives.

(1) Decision No 2241/2004/EC of the European Parliament and the Council of 15 December 2004 on a single framework for the transparency of qualifications and competences (Europass), Official Journal of the European Union L 390, 31 December 2004.

Further information at: http://europass.cedefop.eu.int
Contact: Philippe Tissot (pht@cedefop.eu.int)

Source: Cedefop/pht