Competency development in vocational training and further education

The conditions and consequences of societal change are the focal point of current debates concerning competency development in vocational training and further education. There is a consensus that intellectual capital (understood as human capital) contributes to the economic, social and cultural development of a society. Since the 1970s, therefore, service and industry have promoted the concepts of life long learning and competency development. In this context, it is of interest to society to have an insight into existing competency potential, particularly in comparison between states. This objective, however, requires as a prerequisite a clarification of the term "competency" and the development of innovative methods of capturing such information on competencies. The long path from various models of competency development in vocational training and further education to (inter)national competency balances will be presented in this contribution.