This six-part publication summarizes the main findings and conclusions of the second report on vocational education and training (VET) research in Europe. Part 1, VET Systems, Coordination with the Labor Market, and Steering, covers education and training systems, including regulation, coordination, steering and cooperation, finance, certification, and professionalism. Part 2, Lifelong Learning and Competencies: Challenges and Reforms, contains information on lifelong learning and competence, as well as differentiation in VET pathways and on-the-job training. Part 3, Training and Employment in a Company Perspective, examines the skills needed in a global economy, labor markets, the role of small and medium-sized enterprises in training and employment, entrepreneurship, and skills and training needs. Part 4, Employment, Economic Performance, and Skill Mismatch, focuses on employment in Europe, education, training, and economic performance, dynamics of labor markets, and skill mismatches and future needs. Part 5, Individual Performance, Transition to Working Life and Social Exclusion, provides a context for training and individual performance, the education work relationship, and social exclusion and reintegration through training. Part 6, VET Research Outside the European Union, profiles research in the countries of central and eastern Europe as well as in other nonEuropean Union countries. An annex lists 31 bibliographic contributions to the background of the second research report. (KC)