The career colleges and the vocational training schools in the tiny South European country of Malta or the Republic of Malta is controlled and administered by Vocational Education and Training (VET) that was launched in the mid nineties.

After that, a number of Vocational Schools in Malta like Malta College for Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) were developed over the years under the National Minimum Curriculum.

At present all these institutions act as successors to the various trade schools, besides playing an important role in the development of the Malta Professional and Vocational Qualifications Awards Council (MPVQAC).

92% of the 500 Maltese respondents chosen for the survey said that they had ‘very positive’ impression of VET in Malta. The majority of those surveyed agree that VET offers high quality learning, gives access to modern equipment, still opens the way to University and leads to a well paid job.

General Education: This term is used as in the definition given by UNESCO and is taken to refer to those academic areas of studies within compulsory education as well as at post-compulsory level which lead to further in-depth studies in particular subjects and which lead to entry into University;

Pre-vocational education: This term is not used within the Maltese education

system. There once existed one institution by this name which prepared students for entry into healthcare vocational courses, but the institution was closed as part of the reform in vocational education.

Vocational education in Malta is used similarly to that given by UNESCO to refer to that type of education and training which is related to a trade and which is closely related to the world of work. The main provider of vocational education at post-compulsory level is the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST). There is currently no provision of vocational education at secondary level education although there are plans to provide vocational educational subjects in compulsory education soon.

This term is often used in conjunction with the term vocational education.

However, technical education tends to refer more specifically to particular trades (crafts, carpentry etc.) and electrical areas. The term vocational education is wider than technical education.

Tertiary education:

This term is used similarly to that defined by Cedefop and taken to refer to University studies and leading to University degrees.

Higher education:

This term is often used interchangeably with tertiary education but is wider in that it includes all forms of studies at level 5 and higher on the Malta Qualifications Framework.

Some vocational education courses are often included under Higher Education.

Further education: This term is used to refer to those studies which are at levels

higher than compulsory education in Malta;

Post-secondary non-tertiary education:

This term describes that level of study in general education which is at a higher level than compulsory education and which leads to entry into University studies;

Training: This describes any organised learning experience as part of

formal or non-formal education.

Initial vocational education and training (IVET):

This term is used to refer to that training normally undertaken after full-time compulsory education to promote the acquisition of the necessary knowledge skills and competences for entry into an occupation or group of occupations. In Malta IVET may or may not involve apprenticeship;

Continuous vocational education and training (CVET):

This term refers to professional or vocational development through education and training after having completed vocational education and training.

The University of Malta is the highest teaching institution in Malta. It is publicly funded and is open to all those who have the requisite qualifications.

Over the past few years, the University has reviewed its structures in order to be in line with the Bologna Process and the European Higher Education Area. Conscious of its public role, the University strives to create courses which are relevant and timely in response to the needs of the country. The supreme governing bodies of the University are the Council and the Senate.

There are some 11,000 students including over 650 international students from 77 different countries, following full-time or part-time degree and diploma courses, many of them run on the modular or credit system.

The University regularly hosts a large number of Erasmus and other exchange students. A basic Foundation Studies Course enables international high school students who have completed their secondary or high school education overseas but who do not have the necessary entry requirements, to qualify for admission to an undergraduate degree course at the University of Malta.

The University is geared towards the infrastructural and industrial needs of the country so as to provide expertise in crucial fields. Almost 3,000 students graduate in various disciplines annually. The degree courses at the University are designed to produce highly qualified professionals, with experience of research, who will play key roles in industry, commerce and public affairs in general. There are a further 2,800 pre-tertiary students at the Junior College which is also managed by the University.

The University today has fourteen faculties: Arts; Built Environment; Dental Surgery; Economics, Management & Accountancy; Education; Engineering; Health Sciences; Information & Communication Technology; Laws; Media & Knowledge Sciences; Medicine & Surgery; Science; Social Wellbeing and Theology.

A number of interdisciplinary Institutes and Centres have been set up in various fields. The Institutes include Anglo-Italian Studies; Baroque Studies; Climate Change & Sustainable Development; Confucius; Digital Games; Earth Systems; European Studies; Islands & Small States; Linguistics; Maltese Studies; Physical Education & Sport; Public Administration & Management; Sustainable Energy; Tourism, Travel & Culture; the Edward de Bono Institute for the Design & Development of Thinking; the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies and the Mediterranean Institute.

The Centres comprise: Centre for Biomedical Cybernetics; Centre for English-Language Proficiency; Centre for Entrepreneurship and Business Incubation; Centre for Environmental Education and Research; Centre for Labour Studies; Centre for Literacy; Euro-Mediterranean Centre for Educational Research; Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Insular Coastal Dynamics; European Centre for Gerontology; Centre of Resilience & Socio-Emotional Health and the IOI - Malta Operational Centre.