Recent news fromEuro App Mobility (EAM) confirms a fundamental trend: the international mobility of apprentices is gradually becoming a strategic issue for vocational education and training (VET), directly linked to the construction of a genuine European Learning Area.
Raising awareness among employers: a key condition
On December 7, 2025, in partnership with the CCCA-BTPEAM organized at CFA BTP Marne in Reims the 6th meeting of the Employers' Club for a European learning area. This meeting, bringing together key players in the construction industry, aimed to raising employers' awareness of integrating periods of international mobility into learning pathwaysThe challenge is clear: without the support and involvement of businesses, apprentice mobility cannot become a structuring practice. The Employers' Club thus provides a forum for dialogue between apprenticeship training centers (CFA), professional sectors, and European stakeholders, in order to anchor mobility in the economic realities of local areas. The Club's next meeting will be held on March 3rd at the MFR of Neuvy-le-Roy (Centre-Val de Loire), confirming the integration of this dynamic as close as possible to the establishments.
Making the voice of learners heard by European institutions
On January 30th, Jean Arthuis participated in the launch of the “VET Student Advisory Board”, an advisory body created by the European Member of Parliament Brigitte van den BergThis initiative aims to reduce the gap between VET learners and the European policies that concern them. It marks a growing recognition of the role of young people in vocational training in the development of European policiesTo make vocational education and training (VET) more international and attractive, cooperation between apprentices, training centers, businesses, and public authorities must be strengthened. European Coalition for Apprentice Mobility, supported by EAM, acts precisely within this logic of advocacy and European coordination.
European recommendations that reinforce the actions of the networks
Le CedefopThe European agency for vocational training recently published an analysis of apprenticeship incentive schemes. The study identifies three key levers for promoting the international mobility of apprentices:
- Encourage employers with non-financial arguments (attractiveness, skills, international openness);
- Simplify regulatory frameworks to facilitate access to financing;
- Prioritize targeting sectors and public groups experiencing strain.
These guidelines align with the concerns of vocational education and training (VET) networks, particularly in rural areas, where mobility can be a lever for attractiveness, skills development and responding to local economic needs.
Towards a genuine European Learning Area
On October 15th, the event “Towards the European Apprenticeship Area,” held at the Sorbonne as part of the closing ceremony of the Mona project, reiterated the European ambition to structure a common learning area, linking mobility, skills recognition, and strengthened cooperation between Member States. For institutions and networks involved in vocational training—including the MFRs (Rural Family Homes)—these developments open up concrete prospects:
- strengthen European partnerships;
- structuring apprentice mobility within career paths;
- to position rural areas as full-fledged actors in European VET.
