Ms. Nolan, currently Head of Unit for Higher Education and Erasmus at the Education and Culture Directorate-General, joined the Commission in 1985.

To this end, and like in other industrial sectors in the EU such as aeronautics and automobile, it is appropriate to use the " European Credit system for Vocational Education and Training (ECVET) " (see Recommendation of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2009[4]), the objective of which is promoting mutual trust, transparency as well as recognition of competencies and qualifications in VET across the 27 EU Member States.

Strong support was given for a system of credit transfer in vocational education and training at European level, complementing the successful European Credit Transfer System in higher education.

Facts and Figures on the Open and Distance Teaching Universities in Europe In annex to the Communication, extensive information is given on the different Open and Distance Teaching Universities in Europe, associated in the European Association of Distance Teaching Universities (EADTU), which has been established in 1987 by the Principals of the European open and distance teaching institutions of higher education, and provides a structure for multilateral collaboration, in particular in the fields of course and credit transfer, joint course development and the development of new educational technology for higher distance education/.

More specifically, thanks to the scope for cooperation provided by the Erasmus programme since 1987 and Action II under the Lingua programme since 1990, 2 200 inter-university cooperation programmes involving 1 300 higher-education establishments and 14 000 partnerships have resulted in: * mobility for more than 200 000 students and 15 000 teachers; * design of 700 intensive programmes and 800 common curricula; * 145 higher-education establishments have participated in a pilot project to introduce the ECTS (European Community course credit transfer system), intended to facilitate the academic recognition of studies abroad; * 20 000 teachers and administrators from higher-education establishments or NARIC centres have taken part in study ...[+++]visits to other Member States; * 100 teachers' associations and 30 students' associations have been set up with encouragement from the Erasmus programme, covering a broad span of subjects and activities at European level.

The initiative, which will be introduced on a preparatory basis by the start of the 1993/94 academic year, will provide support for up to 30 consortia or partnerships of EC and US higher education institutions to cooperate (at institutional and faculty level) in the design of collaborative teaching programmes, course credit transfer measures, and visiting fellowships for teaching staff.