

	Introduction to qualifications
	Main qualification groups
	Key features of the main qualification groups

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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 qualification framework is the structure supporting the qualifications system. Its aim is to guarantee quality and standards, meeting the full range of needs of learners and those who provide education, employment and training. The current version is under review.

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

In this section

Main qualification groups
Key features of the main qualification groups

Also see

> Using qualifications and awards
> Brief guides to qualifications