Participation in continuing education

Long term trends

Lifelong learning has gained increasing importance in recent years. According to the definition of the European Council, it includes “all learning activity undertaken throughout life, with the aim of improving knowledge, skills and competences within a personal, civic, social and/or employment-related perspective”. The “lifelong learning” structural indicator was developed to measure participation in training and further education. This indicator measures the proportion of the population aged between 25 and 64 that participates in training and further education activities.

In particular, participation in continuing education courses has increased significantly in recent years. One of the most important factors in the willingness to participate in continuing education is the existing level of basic education, with more frequent participation in courses and training being observed as the level of education increases.

Current results

The “lifelong learning” structural indicator was 13.7% in 2010 (annual average) (EU-15: 10.8%; EU-27: 9.3% - comparative figures of 2009). In 2010, around 10% of the total population aged 15 and over had taken part in a vocational or private course in the four weeks prior to the survey. Around 22% participate in a vocational or private course within the space of a year (“Lifelong learning” survey, 2003).

Please consult our German website for tables and charts containing further information.

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Results (overview): life-long learning

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