Contemporary economies place ever greater emphasis on the utilization of knowledge and information. The knowledge structure of the population is the image of the country s maturity. The right of education should be granted to everyone who wants it. The knowledge society, however, from the experiences of economically developed countries of Europe, does not solve the problems of low competitiveness, high unemployment rate, development of democracy and civil society. The paper deals with educational changes in a transforming economy and its effects on the labour market and the society.