Session Information
22 SES 07 A, Competencies in Higher Education: from Strategy to Pedagogy
Symposium
Contribution
The increasing emphasis on lifelong learning and competency-based education has led to renewed consideration of the relationship between higher education (HE) and university continuing education (UCE) (EUA, 2024). In Switzerland, this relationship is shaped by a complex meso-level tension between the systemic positioning of continuing education both outside and within the higher education system, as well as by the implementation of competency-based approaches in institutional strategies and practices. This paper addresses these tensions by examining how universities navigate the boundaries between HE and UCE and how competency orientation is enacted at systemic and organisational levels (SCCRE, 2023; Gonon & Weil, 2021). A key policy development framing this analysis is the recent reintegration of UCE into the Swiss National Qualifications Framework for Higher Education (nqf-HS) (swissuniversities 2025a). This reintegration can be understood as an attempt to strengthen permeability, flexibilization, and recognition across educational pathways. In this context, instruments such as Validation d’Acquis de l’Expérience (VAE) and Admission sur Dossier (ASD) are particularly relevant, as they operationalize competency-oriented access and recognition mechanisms and connect higher education more closely to professional and working-life experiences (swissuniversities 2023; 2025b). Empirically, the paper draws on data from the WebiFlex-hs research project, which examines how UCE is institutionally embedded within Swiss higher education institutions (Weil, 2023). The study combines document analysis with organizational and qualitative data. Organizational charts from all Swiss universities (N=41) allow for a systematic analysis of institutional positioning, revealing distinct patterns across institutional types and language regions (Besanko et al., 2005). These findings are complemented by a qualitative questionnaire with those responsible for UCE across all Swiss university types and language regions (n=32), which explores perceived degrees of flexibility and connectivity between continuing education and degree programs. The research interest addresses options for flexibility between systemic, institutional, and individual competency-oriented approaches.
References
Besanko, D., Régibeau, P. & Rockett, K.E. (2005). A Multi-Task Principal-Agent Approach to Organizational Form. Journal of Industrial Economics, 53(4), 437–467. EUA (European University Association) (2024). LEARNING & TEACHING PAPER #21 Flexible learning and teaching Thematic Peer Group. Report. file:///C:/Users/markus.weil/Downloads/eua%20tpg%20report_flexible%20learning%20and%20teaching.pdf (20.01.2026). Gonon, Ph. & Weil, M. (2021). Continuing Higher Education Between Academic and Professional Skills. In Ph. Eigenmann, Ph. Gonon & M. Weil (Eds.), Opening and Extending Vocational Education. (pp. 341–360). Peter Lang. SCCRE (Swiss Coordination Centre for Research in Education) (2023). Education Report Switzerland 2023. SCCRE. Swissuniversities (2023). Validierung. zur Durchführung der Validation des acquis de l’expérience (VAE). https://www.swissuniversities.ch/fileadmin/swissuniversities/Dokumente/Kammern/Kammer_PH/Vereinb-Erkl/230324_Vereinbarung_VAE.pdf (20.01.2026). Swissuniversities (2025a). Qualifikationsrahmen für den schweizerischen Hochschulbereich nqf.ch-HS. https://www.swissuniversities.ch/fileadmin/swissuniversities/Dokumente/Lehre/NQR/nqf-ch-HS-d.pdf (20.01.2026). Swissuniversities (2025b). Vereinbarung der Mitglieder der Kammer PH swissuniversities zur Harmonisierung der Aufnahme sur dossier (ASD). https://www.swissuniversities.ch/fileadmin/swissuniversities/Dokumente/Kammern/Kammer_PH/Vereinb-Erkl/Vereinbarung_ASD_d_f_i_200311_Version_231122.pdf (20.01.2026). Weil, M. (2023). Systematic potentials for co-operation: UCE as a gateway for HE? European Journal of University Lifelong Learning – EJULL, 7(2), 81–88.
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