Slovak National Observatory of Vocational Education and Training (SNO) was established the European Training Foundation (ETF) in Turin in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family. The SNO office started functioning on 1 August 1998 at the State Institute of Vocational Education, the SNO’s hosting institution.

The SNO focused on collecting, analysing and disseminating information about vocational education in the Slovak Republic and confronted it with the situation in the European Union (EU) and other countries seeking to join the EU.

As part of Slovakia’s integration process into EU structures, the observatory expanded its activities to include cooperation with the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Education (Cedefop). Európskym strediskom pre rozvoj odborného vzdelávania (Cedefop).

After Slovakia acceded to the EU, the SNO switched to full cooperation with Cedefop and became the national coordinator of Cedefop’s ReferNet network in Slovakia. The network’s task is to collect, process and disseminate information on developments in vocational education in EU countries, and support contacts between experts and key organisations.

You can access information about the activities and products of the ReferNet network by clicking on the link http://www.refernet.sk/.