PURPOSE OF THE PROJECT

The present project focuses on short-cycle higher education (SCHE) in Europe and the United States and its contribution to social and economic development at the regional, state, national and international levels. The project aims at stimulating discussions and exchange of experience and best practices in three critical policy areas concerning SCHE: recognition and quality assurance of SCHE programs and degrees, interface between SCHE institutions and industry, and the contribution of SCHE to life-long and life-wide learning systems.

OECD's definition of SCHE:

• "...a level or stage of studies beyond secondary education which can lead to a qualification recognized on the labor market."
• "It is undertaken in formal tertiary education institutions- universities, polytechnics, colleges; public and private- but also in a wide variety of other settings, including secondary schools, at work sites, via free-standing information technology-based offerings and a host of private and publics entities."

Reference

OECD. (2004). Education Policy Analysis. OECD.