EU policies to ensure food safety are based in finding effective and integrated solutions and developing better ways of assuring microbiological security in food, in this context, an essential aspect to ensure food safety is the performance of quality based analytical controls. The European Regulation for the microbiological criteria (2073/2005 and modifications) is aimed for the harmonization in most aspects of safety and health regulations within Europe, establishing safety criteria and reference official methods for testing . This regulation clearly states the need of proficiency in the performance of the analysis and as consequence testing laboratories need to adopt actions for their recognition by official bodies and entities. The implementation and the maintenance of the ISO/IEC 17025 quality assurance system in a laboratory requires of technical competence to achieve all the necessary milestones in the areas of management; training of technicians; equipment certification; systematic for methods validation and extensive documentation. The drawbacks of developing and maintaining an efficient quality assurance system, such as the time-consuming efforts, the increased expenses and the bureaucracy, impair laboratories from achieving this goal and in most cases the process is elongated from what was originally planned, increasing costs and postponing the benefits achieved by the accreditation or recognition of the laboratory proficiency. MicroQLab main objective is to develop an innovative E-learning programme on Quality Systems for food microbiological laboratories, providing knowledge acquisition and specialisation in the analytical area of food microbiology. As it has been expressed by the EU commission, there is an important need to modernize higher education and quality in VET, in order to keep up with the globalization and technological developments all over Europe. MicroQLab attends to the need of professional development for staff in line with industry and organization needs and objectives, that requires more and more, higher level of quality in their results. The methodology for obtaining the course will be first conducting a Needs Analysis at a European level, to access the level of difficulty encountered by laboratory workers when facing the implementation of a Quality System in their laboratories. This information will be analysed to obtain the specific contents of the course. In a second stage, the design of an E-learning programme will be created in an open platform, interactive and attractive for the user and before the release there will be a third stage in which a pilot study will be done with trainees from different parts of Europe, in order to evaluate the adequacy, acceptance and to implement corrections before obtaining the final version. MicroQLab will use the latest ICT tools, making more modern, attractive and flexible the process of learning, adapted to today’s preferences for the youth. The course will be presented in modules that can be obtained independently so, making even more flexible for the trainees the knowledge acquisition, with interactive exercises, practical situations that will prepare then better to apply the methods learnt in a real situation. The learning process will be aid with virtual laboratories, presenting scenarios with a particular situation (e.g. evaluation of a calibration equipment). Other audiovisual elements, such as videos and games, will encourage the trainee to complete the course. The main impact of MicroQLab, for the target groups, will be the access to a more efficient and cost-effective way of implementing a quality system in a laboratory in the analytical area of food microbiology. This will improve skills and qualifications to facilitate personal development and employability for trainees that are seeking for jobs and need to acquire practical competence to access to the labour market The course will be also very beneficial for the trainees that are already working and need the acquisition of new knowledge and skills to achieve new responsibilities in the work place, allowing to have competence in new areas that are every time more in demand. These trainees will benefit saving time and efforts when confronted to the tasks involved in the implementation of a quality system, making then more motivated and satisfied at their jobs. For the stakeholder the impact of MicroQLab will be also important and can be measured by the improvement of the competitiveness of the food sector by building the abilities of employees to better practices in food control, assurance of quality and increasing growth and internationalization. Apart from the benefits obtained by the target groups, long term result of the project can be envisaged by the transference of the concept and methodology to other sectors and by transferring the course to new or existing VET or University courses for their official recognition to public curriculum.