The inaugural CERE Observatory seminar was held on August 28, 2025, bringing together over 40 participants for the first event in the new CERE Expert Seminar series—an in-depth session titled “Russian TVET: Contexts, Reforms, and Labour Market Linkages.”

Russian TVET in Focus: Highlights from the First CERE Expert Seminar Series, August 2025

One notable focus was the multi-layered governance of Russian TVET, where state, regional, and industry actors shape curriculum and quality assurance.

The current reform wave (2014–2025) was discussed, spotlighting equipment upgrades, new partnerships, and the flagship “Professionalitet” project, which strategically aligns college capacity with real labor market needs.

Stay tuned for the upcoming CERE seminar in September, which will open a comparative lens onto China’s evolving TVET landscape.

The full recording of the seminar is now available for viewing:

The seminar featured a report by Vera Maltseva, Director of the Center for Skills Development and Vocational Education at HSE University, and was moderated by Stephanie Alais, Research Chair of Skills Development at the Centre for Researching
Education and Labour at Wits University.

Prof. Maltseva’s presentation delved into the evolving landscape of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) in Russia. Key highlights included the major demographic shifts affecting enrolment, the persistent qualification gap, and the dynamics between expanding higher education aspirations and increasing demand for mid-skilled workers.

The report underscored how VET enrolment now outpaces demographic trends and forecasted a peak intake in the 2030s, before a subsequent decline following demographic projections.

5 September 2025

Vera Maltseva

True change in vocational education depends not just on education policy, but on deeper economic and institutional reforms

CERE Co-Founder