This Spotlight presents data and analysis on vocational education and training (VET) from Education at a Glance 2023. VET is a key component of most education systems in OECD countries. About one in three 25-34 year-olds have a vocational qualification as their highest level achieved, whether at upper secondary, post-secondary non-tertiary or short-cycle tertiary level.

The first part of the Spotlight focuses on upper secondary programmes, analysing their components and outlining the main challenges to countries aiming to improve their quality, while promoting equity and ensuring better labour-market opportunities for their graduates. The second part focuses on progression pathways open to VET graduates and higher-level vocational programmes. Taken together, the two parts of this spotlight demonstrate the huge diversity of OECD country VET programmes.