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	Qualifications home

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Introduction to qualifications

The 14-19 curriculum is more than the qualifications designed to complement students’ learning programmes, but the qualifications are an important part of it. They represent the outcomes of students’ studies and their ‘passports’ to further study, training or employment.

Qualifications should support high-quality learning programmes and encourage learners to progress. They must be credible to the world at large. They need to evolve, keeping in tune with curriculum developments and meeting the needs of higher education and employers, as well as learners themselves.

Increasingly, qualification outcomes are used as measures of institutional, regional and national performance. They also help determine the funding available to institutions. Meeting this diverse range of needs is no easy task, and, as a consequence, the qualifications, and the framework within which they sit, need to be kept under constant review. Changes are introduced when they are needed.

The National Qualifications Framework (NQF) is the structure supporting the qualifications system. Its aim is to guarantee quality and standards, meeting the full range of learners needs and those who provide education, employment and training. The NQF helps learners make informed decisions about the qualifications they need. They can compare the levels of different qualifications and identify clear progression routes for their chosen careers.

The changes to the NQF began in September 2004. Higher level qualifications at levels 4 and 5 have been assigned more precise levels, (Levels 4-8). These changes will not currently apply to NVQs and a small number of related qualifications. The changes provide more precise levels against which learners can compare qualifications and allow for a broad comparison with the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications (FHEQ).

For more detail about the NQF levels visit the NQF section of the QCA Website or the openQUALS website, QCA’s website containing all accredited qualifications in the NQF (links to these sites are provided below).

To find out how the range of qualifications can be used within the curriculum, see the ‘using the qualifications and awards’ section of this website and the related case studies.

Also see

> Using qualifications and awards
> Brief guides to qualifications

QCA weblinks

> QCA Website/Qualifications/The National Qualifications Framework
> NDAQ (National Database of Accredited Qualifications