BackgroundMany European businesses & industries are facing enormous challenges to remain competitive in the global arena. One of these challenges is skills needs. At the same time, it is difficult for today's providers in vocational education & training to recruit students & many programs lack quality. The project GoEUVET 2 has been initiated to address some of these challenges:Vocational training less valued by young peopleIn a recent survey, McKinsey & Company found that nearly 2/3 of the young people who participated in the study agreed that vocational training was less valued by society. Fewer than 40% of those who said they preferred vocational work actually sought out this type of training. In Sweden, only 28% of young people apply for vocational education. At the same time, youth unemployment in Sweden is 25%.Many companies can't fill their vacancies There are a large number of young, educated people available for work, but many companies still can't fill their vacancies. In the above mentioned McKinsey & Company survey, 43% of the employers stated that candidates don't possess the skills they need. Yet 72% of educators believe new graduates are qualified to land jobs in the real world. In conclusion, educators don’t seem to be aware of what employers are looking for & students may have skills, but not the right ones. For instance, international experience is highly appreciated by the employers. Still few VET students are provided a transnational learning opportunity as part of their education.ECVET – still a well-kept secretFew VET providers in Europe have discovered ECVET as a mean to quality assure non-formal learning (eg work placement) & for VET development. Few projects utilizing ECVET in practice have been conducted making it difficult to communicate the ‘real’ added value of ECVET. ECVET needs further investigation, eg it remains a challenge for training professionals to describe & assess learning outcomes (knowledge, skills & competencies) achieved in the workplace and/or live projects in cooperation with the outside world. ECVET is a suitable tool for this.Aim & objectivesAccording to the European growth strategy EU 2020, the EU member states should aim to deliver high levels of employment, productivity & social cohesion. In order to respond to this strategy, a new framework - Education & Training 2020 - has been created including strategic objectives, two of them concerning mobility opportunties & VET quality.The aim of the GoEUVET project is to organise transnational mobility & develop a common concept for quality-assured transnational mobility so that the non-formal learning experience becomes transparent, transferable, and possible to communicate to potential employers. In this way, the project contributes to the fulfillment of a number of priority objectives at local, regional, national as well as European level.Overall objectives- Transnational mobility of students in vocational education- Concept development & quality assurance utilizing EQAVET, EQF, ECVET & EuropassActions- Introduction to the EQF, ECVET & Europass for involved personnel- Recruitment of vocational students for trans. mobility- Preparation for trans. mobility- Transnational mobility- Evaluation of trans. mobilities- Recognition of learning outcomes achieved during trans. mobility- Concept development for trans. national mobility- Project coordination- Communications & disseminationExpected results, effects & long-term benefits of the project- Upskilling (acheving extended VET competences), improved linguistic and intercultural competence, and personal development for VET students - Increased number of VET programs offering increased number of transnational VET mobility opportunities- Improved outcomes & increased motivation for VET students- Reduced youth unemployment & increased mobility regionally, nationally & at European level between VET programs/systems & labor markets- Increased attractiveness of the VET programs involved- Increased experience & preparedness for international cooperation among staff involved in vocational programs- Improved quality of the VET programs involved- Dissemination & continued experimentation on the European frameworks ECVET, EQF, EQAVET and Europass.In conclusion, the GoEUVET 2 project will contribute to the fulfillment of the aims & objectives at local, regional, national, & European level. Ultimately it promotes a European identity, European labor mobility, & European cohesion.