Recognition and validation of prior learning, whatever this latter comes from professional experience or prior studies, has been implemented in France long  before the 2012 European Recommendation on validation of non-formal and informal learning. Nevertheless, the most known validation procedure is the VAE (validation des acquis de l’expérience) created in January 2002. Since this date, a new right has been given to French citizens, the right to have their skills and competences assessed and validated. VAE represents in France a means to access to qualifications just like education, apprenticeship or further education.

The legal basis of VAE is a law (17 January 2002) which applies at the same time to the Education Code and the Labour Code, making the French validation system an integrated system where many stakeholders and bodies related to the worlds of education and employment are involved, at different levels : local, regional and national.

The presentation will explain how the law and the different regulatory texts have organized the implementation of the VAE by sharing  the responsibilities between the different actors. It will also show how, over the years, the evolution of the policies and the laws which express them have somewhat changed the initial purposes of the VAE and its link with the professional training of the adults.