European Qualifications Framework
The Eurepean Qualifications Framework (EQF) relates the national qualifications systems and frameworks at all levels in education and training together around a common reference for the European Union. In practice, it functions as a translation device making national qualifications more readable abroad. This should help learners and workers wishing to move between countries or change jobs or move educational institutions at home.
For example, currently an enterprise in Ireland may hesitate to recruit a job applicant from, say, Hungary, because it does not understand the level of the qualifications presented by the Hungarian candidate. But once the EQF is fully implemented a Hungarian's certificates will bear an EQF reference level e.g. level 5, easily compared to Irish qualifications via the EQF and the Irish qualifications framework.
The core element of the EQF is a set of eight reference levels describing what a learner knows, understands and is able to do — their ‘learning outcomes’ — regardless of the system where a particular qualification was acquired. The EQF focuses on learning outcomes: what a person holding a particular qualification actually knows and is able to do.
This approach is intended:
- to support a better match between the needs of the labour market (for knowledge, skills and competences) and education and training provision
- to facilitate the validation of non-formal and informal learning
- to facilitate the transfer and use of qualifications across different countries and education and training systems.
| Links |
|---|
| European Commission website: European Qualifications Framework |
| Documents |
| European Commission EQF Brochure |
| European Commission EQF Leaflet |
