Qualifications frameworks in Europe : 2017 developments.
Date: 2018-07-03
Institutions: Cedefop
Subjects: EU employment policy, apprenticeship, job access, labour market, learning, professional qualifications, recognition of diplomas, vocational training

BRIEFING NOTE 

BRIEFING NOTE 

QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORKS IN EUROPE  
2017 DEVELOPMENTS 
‘When you change the way you look at things,  
the things you look at change’ (Max Planck) 

the 

As  countries  across  Europe  are  pushing  ahead  with 
their national qualifications frameworks (NQFs) (1), the 
question  of 
frameworks’  added  value  and 
contribution  to  policies  and  practices  is  taking  centre 
stage.  While  every  NQF  is  unique,  being  organically 
woven  into  the  fabric  of  a  country’s  education  and 
training system, the frameworks share many features. 
learning  outcomes,  support 
They  are  based  on 
consistency  of  qualifications,  and  bring 
together 
stakeholders from across the board.  

qualifications at European level. The time has come to 
assess  the  frameworks’  impact  from  a  European 
perspective and to look at their potential as facilitators 
of change. 

its 

recently 

inception 

in  2008, 

Since 
the  European 
qualifications framework (EQF) has been the common 
reference  tool  bringing  European  countries’  NQFs 
together.  The 
revised  EQF  Council 
recommendation  (2)  encourages  the  trend  towards 
include 
frameworks 
comprehensive 
qualifications  of  all  types  and  levels,  awarded  by 
different  bodies  and  subsystems.  It  also  addresses 
the  question  of  their  impact,  stressing  the  need  to 
learning, 
make 
employability,  mobility  and  social  integration  more 
visible to end-users. 

contribution 

lifelong 

which 

their 

to 

national 

frameworks 

Thanks to the dynamic progress of NQF development, 
several 
provide 
comprehensive  ‘maps’  of  national  qualifications  and 
the  relationships  between 
increased 
transparency  across  systems  and  borders  helps 
comparability  of 
promote  mainstreaming  and 

them.  This 

now 

(1)  Countries  participating  in  the  implementation  of  the  European 
qualifications  framework  (EQF)  comprise  the  28  EU  Member 
States, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina,  the former Yugoslav 
Republic  of  Macedonia,  Kosovo, 
Iceland,  Liechtenstein, 
Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Turkey. 

(2)  http://eur-

National qualifications 
frameworks: 
a never-ending story 

How do we 
systematically gather 
evidence to inform the 
continuous 
development of NQFs? 

NQF development: status 

total  of  39  European  countries  are  currently 
A 
developing  and  implementing  43  NQFs  (3),  which 
have reached different stages.  Of these, 35 countries 
have  formally  adopted  their  NQFs  (most  recently 

lex.europa.eu/search.html?qid=1466080531500&PROC_NUM=
0180&DB_INTER_CODE_TYPE=NLE&type=advanced&PROC
_ANN=2016&lang=en 

(3)  Some countries, such as Belgium with its communities and the 

UK with its nations, have more than one NQF. 

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Page 1 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                                                         
 
 
                                                                                         
Italy,  Luxembourg,  Poland  and 
Austria,  Finland, 
Slovenia).  By  the  end  of  2017,  34  countries  had 
referenced  their  NQFs  to  the  EQF  (4);  the  remaining 
countries  are  expected  to  follow  in  the  near  future. 
Further,  29  countries  have  linked  their  NQFs  to  the 
framework  for  qualifications  in  the  European  higher 
education area (QF-EHEA) (5). 

It is expected that countries will regularly update their 
frameworks to take into account system changes and 
new  qualifications.  Estonia  updated  its  NQF  in  2015 
and Malta presented four updates of its NQF between 
2009  and  2015.  The 
revised  EQF  Council 
recommendation  confirms  this  ongoing  nature  of  the 
EQF process and the need for continuous updates. 

through 

training; 

in  some  cases 

total  of  35  countries  are  working 

A 
towards 
comprehensive  frameworks  covering  all  types  and 
levels  of  qualifications  awarded 
formal 
(6), 
education  and 
qualifications  awarded  outside  formal  education  and 
training  are  also  included.  While  the  comprehensive 
frameworks in Europe are primarily being designed as 
(making  national  qualifications 
descriptive 
systems  more  transparent)  rather  than  normative 
ones  (regulating  design  and  award  of  qualifications), 
their potential to trigger reform is emerging.  

tools 

to  have 

Cedefop  considers  21  NQFs 
reached 
operational  status  (7).  These  have  become  an 
integrated  part  of  national  education  and  training 
systems and are fully based on learning outcomes. By 
involving  a  broad  range  of  education,  training  and 
labour  market  stakeholders,  the  frameworks  have 
provided  a  platform  for  dialogue  and  coordination 

(4)  Austria, Belgium (fl and fr), Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech 
Republic,  Denmark,  Estonia,  Finland,  the  former  Yugoslav 
Republic  of  Macedonia,  France,  Germany,  Greece,  Hungary, 
Iceland,  Ireland, Italy,  Kosovo,  Latvia,  Liechtenstein,  Lithuania, 
Luxembourg,  Malta,  Montenegro,  the  Netherlands,  Norway, 
Poland,  Portugal,  Slovakia,  Slovenia,  Sweden,  Switzerland, 
Turkey and the UK. 

(5)  29 countries participating in the EQF implementation have also 
linked  their  comprehensive  framework  to  the  QF-EHEA;  20  of 
these  have  done  so  as  part  of  their  EQF  referencing  process 
(AT,  BG,  HR,  EE,  FI,  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of 
Macedonia,  HU,  IS,  LT,  LT,  LI,  LU,  MT,  ME,  NO,  PO,  PT,  SI, 
TK). 

(6)  Belgium (fl), Estonia, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, 

Slovenia, Slovakia, Sweden and the UK. 

(7)  Austria, Belgium (fl), the Czech Republic (partial framework for 
vocational  qualifications  –  NSK),  Denmark,  Estonia,  Finland, 
France,  Germany,  Ireland,  Latvia,  Lithuania,  Liechtenstein, 
Luxembourg,  Malta, 
the  Netherlands,  Norway,  Portugal, 
Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. 

across  traditional  institutional  and  sectoral  borders  in 
many countries. 

Are  qualification  frameworks  making  a 
difference? 

Several countries  have  evaluated their frameworks in 
recent  years.  The  results  of  these  assessments 
suggest  that  there  are  three  factors  determining 
framework impact (8): 
  the  institutional  robustness  of  a  framework  is  the 
benchmark  for  measuring  its  sustainability:  the 
stronger  its  political  mandate  and  its  integration 
into  mainstream  policy  processes,  the  greater  its 
potential as a policy steering and reform tool; 
  to be of value to citizens, frameworks need to  be 
visible  to  them.  Many  European  countries  now 
indicate  NQF  and  EQF  levels  in  qualifications 
databases and/or on the certificates and diplomas 
they  award  (9).  This  is  expected  to  help  citizens 
understand the value of their diploma or certificate 
across  borders  and  education  subsystems,  and 
make  it  easier  for  them  to  pursue  working  and 
learning careers across systems and borders; 
  comprehensive qualifications frameworks need to 
be  coordinated  and  backed  by  a  broad  group  of 
stakeholders both from education and training and 
the  labour  market.  This  is  essential  to  framework 
quality  and  acceptance,  contributes 
their 
transparency  and  coherence,  and  improves  the 
relevance of qualifications. 

to 

Promoting 
qualifications 

a  holistic 

approach 

to 

and 

education 

to  mapping 
With  a  comprehensive  approach 
qualifications 
training 
(across 
subsystems)  and  a  common  language  for  describing 
them  (the  language  of  learning  outcomes),  national 
frameworks  have  increased  the  transparency  and 
consistency  of  qualifications,  shed 
the 
relationship  between  them,  and  aided  comparison 
across systems and countries. Their  level descriptors 
are  increasingly  used  not  only  for  describing  but  also 
new 
for 

designing 

reviewing 

light  on 

existing 

and 

(8)  Cedefop has regularly monitored NQF development since 2009: 

http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/events-and-
projects/projects/national-qualifications-framework-nqf 

(9)  23  countries  include  them  in  certificates/diplomas  (AT,  BE  (fl), 
CH,  CZ,  DK,  DE,  EE,  EL,  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of 
Macedonia,  FR,  HU,  IE,  IS,  IT,  LT,  LU,  LV,  ME,  MT,  NL,  NO, 
PT, SI) and 17 in their national qualifications databases (AT, BE 
(fl),  CZ,  DK,  DE,  EE,  EL,  the  former  Yugoslav  Republic  of 
Macedonia, FR, LT, LV, MT, NL, PT, SI, SK, UK).  

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qualifications, assessment standards and curricula. In 
Portugal  and  Slovakia,  for  example,  EQF  descriptors 
are being used to review the content and outcomes of 
qualifications.  In  Estonia,  Malta  and  the  UK,  the 
identify  gaps 
frameworks  have  helped 
in  VET 
provision  and 
the  development  and 
triggered 
description of new qualifications. Comprehensive  and 
increasingly 
integrated 
underpin 
information  on 
qualifications  accessible  to  students,  employers  and 
guidance staff (10). 

the  NQFs  and  make 

qualifications 

registers 

Integrating non-formal (private sector and 
international) qualifications 

There is a huge adult learning  sector  in Europe, both 
private  and  public,  with  qualifications  often  awarded 
outside  formal  national  qualifications  systems. 
In 
recent  years,  European  countries  have  started 
opening up their frameworks to non-formal and private 
sector  qualifications.  The  objective  is  for  frameworks 
to  provide  a  more  complete  overview  of  existing 
certificates  and  diplomas,  making  possible  for  better 
selection  and  combination  of  initial  and  continuing 
education and training. The Netherlands, for example, 
have  developed  quality  criteria  and  procedures  and 
included  several  such  qualifications  in  their  NQF;  so 
have France, Ireland and the UK.  

Validating  non-formal 
learning 

and 

informal 

frameworks  are 
learning  acquired  outside 

As  learning  outcomes  increase  the  transparency  of 
national systems and clarify the relationships between 
increasingly  aiding 
qualifications, 
validation  of 
formal 
education  and  training;  for  example  at  work  and 
during  leisure  time.  17  countries  have  put  in  place 
validation  arrangements  which  make  it  possible  to 
assess  non-formally  or  informally  acquired  skills  and 
competences  against  standards  used 
formal 
education.  This  allows  citizens  to  obtain  (part  of)  a 
qualification  included  in  their  country’s  NQF  (11). 
Linking validation arrangements to their NQF enables 
countries  to  move  from  fragmented  use  of  validation 

in 

(10)  See 

for  example 

the  German  qualifications  database: 

https://www.dqr.de/content/2316.php 

(11)  European inventory on validation 2016 update: 
http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/events-and-
projects/projects/validation-non-formal-and-informal-
learning/european-inventory  

to  a  more  systematic  approach.  Established  NQFs 
have mainstreamed validation systems.in France and 
Scotland. 

Promoting stakeholder cooperation 

Broad  stakeholder  buy-in  is  instrumental  in  building 
consensus  on  a  framework,  creating  a  sense  of 
ownership  and  promoting  its  actual  use.  In  European 
countries  without  a  tradition  of  social  dialogue,  such 
as  Estonia,  Malta  or  Slovakia,  developing  a  national 
framework has been instrumental in opening the door 
to  social  partner 
in  education  and 
involvement 
training. 

the  coherent 

Many  countries  have  established  NQF  steering 
groups, national qualifications councils or other bodies 
to  support 
implementation  and 
their  NQF  across  sectors  and 
maintenance  of 
institutions.  For  example, 
the  Croatian  National 
Council  for  the  Development  of  Human  Potential,  set 
up  in  2014,  comprises  24  representatives  of  national 
ministries,  regional  bodies,  social  partners,  education 
providers  and  various  bodies  developing  and 
in 
awarding  qualifications. 
education, 
HR 
development,  and  monitors  the  development  of  the 
NQF,  ensuring  a  broad  consensus  on  all  related 
matters.  

It  oversees  policies 
employment 

training, 

and 

Triggering institutional reforms 

Ireland,  Greece,  Malta,  Portugal  and  Romania  have 
merged  multiple  qualifications  bodies 
into  single 
entities  covering  all  qualification  types  and  levels.  It 
remains  to  be  seen,  however,  if  these  reforms  will 
lead to increased synergies. 

Making higher VET visible 

role 

firmly  underlining 

NQFs  have  played  a 
in  making  visible 
vocationally oriented education and training at higher, 
‘academic’  levels.  For  example,  Germany  has  placed 
its  master  craftsman  qualification  at  level  6  of  its 
framework, 
that  vocationally 
oriented  education  and  training  can  take  place  at  all 
levels. The Swiss national  qualifications framework is 
explicitly  designed  to  support  this  principle,  showing 
how vocational and professional qualifications operate 
from  level  3  to  level  8  of  the  framework.  The  rapid 
development of higher VET programmes and policies 
their 
in  many  countries 

is  partly  owed 

to 

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comprehensive  NQFs  as  they  bring  to  light  the 
diversity  of  qualifications  designed 
for  different 
purposes and the way they relate to one another. This 
opens  the  door  to  new  pathways  and  horizontal  and 
vertical progression options. 

Supporting VET cross-border mobility 

Better  European  (and  international)  comparability  of 
qualifications,  one  of  the  declared  aims  of  European 
NQFs,  can  support  cross-border  mobility  of  learners 
aligns  European  NQF 
and  workers,  which 
development with the EU skills agenda goals (12). It is 
becoming  easier  for  learners  and  workers  to  take  up 
employment,  education  or  training  abroad.  In  recent 
years, VET providers in Europe have been increasing 
cooperation  and  exchange  of  students  and  teachers, 
sometimes  through  the  Erasmus+  programme,  and 
recognition  of  skills  and 
establishing  mutual 
qualifications obtained by their students abroad. NQFs 
have  aided  cross-border  dialogue,  comparison  of 
training  courses,  and  design  of 
international 
programmes. In Luxembourg, a  2016 law  establishes 
the  national  qualifications  framework  as  the  formal 
reference  point  for  the  recognition  of  professional 
qualifications acquired abroad. 

Reaching end-users 

In  spite  of  these  positive  developments,  NQF  labour 
market  use  has  been  limited  in  most  European 
countries; many employers are still not aware of their 
existence.  For  example,  a  2009  impact  study  of  the 
Irish  NFQ  demonstrated  that  it  has  considerable 
potential  to  be  used  in  recruitment,  in  developing 
career pathways, in planning work-based learning and 
training,  and 
transferable  skills. 
recognising 
Similarly,  a  recent  study  carried  out  in  Germany 
(2017)  on 
the  German 
qualifications 
identified  several  areas 
where  it  could  add  value,  for  instance  supporting 
human resource development (recruitment and career 
development).  The  study  highlighted  that  this  could 
especially  benefit  SMEs  but  this  potential  has  been 
little tapped since. 

the  potential  use  of 

framework 

in 

the  national 

connection  with 

There  are  some  exceptions,  however.  A  national 
framework  with  labour  market  visibility  is  the  French 
NQF  (13),  which  links  qualifications  levels  to  levels  of 
occupation,  work  and  pay.  First  generation 
frameworks  in  the  UK  have  also  reached  a  high 
degree  of  visibility.  Scottish  policy-makers  have 
developed and promoted a range of widely used tools 
credit  and 
in 
qualifications framework, supporting employers in staff 
selection,  recruitment  and  development.  Also,  the 
Scottish  framework  is  successfully  used  to  promote 
social inclusion and other broad government goals. In 
Wales,  the  NQF  has  also  become  very  popular;  all 
education and labour market stakeholders know it and 
use  it  in  their  daily  work.  In  Malta,  MQF  levels  have 
job  vacancy 
become  an  essential 
advertisements  in  both  the  public  and  the  private 
sectors. 

feature  of 

in 

in 

the 

the  NQF  signal 

framework  of  a  policy 

A  2017  survey  of  national  stakeholders  in  Ireland, 
carried  out 
impact 
assessment of the Irish NQF, showed that 72% of Irish 
stakeholders  considered  that  vocational  qualifications 
included 
relevant  skills  and 
competences  required  for  particular  occupations,  while 
51% believed that the NQF has enabled better matching 
between  people’s  skills  and  job  vacancies.  The  survey 
also  sought  stakeholders’  views  in  relation  to  NQF 
governance  and  future  priorities.  76%  of  respondents 
said  that  the  framework  played  a  role  in  ensuring  that 
qualifications  are  reliable  and  valid.  Apart  from  quality 
assurance,  many  stakeholders  also  highlighted  the 
framework’s 
career 
progression and the recognition of qualifications (60%). 

importance 

individual 

for 

Source:  QQI (2017). Policy impact assessment of the Irish national 

framework of qualifications. 

What next? 

After  a  decade  of  intense  NQF  engineering  across 
Europe,  many  frameworks  have  been  evolving  into 
multi-purpose  tools  which  would  be  missed  if  they 
were not around (14). There is growing consensus that 
it  is  now  time  to  bring  the  frameworks  to  life  for 
employers  and  other  labour  market  actors  and,  more 

(12) Making skills more visible and comparable, improving the quality 
and relevance of training, and understanding trends in demand 
for  skills  and  jobs  to  enable  people  to  make  better  career 
choices and find quality jobs. 

(13)  Known  as  national 

register  of  vocational  qualifications, 

Repertoire national des certifications professionnelles. 

(14)  This  was  stated  by many  of the  participants  in  Cedefop’s  peer 

learning conference of 9 and 10 November 2017. 

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generally,  European  citizens.  To  secure  the  NQFs’ 
future relevance, several conditions must be met (15).  
  Political commitment. NQFs need to be backed by 
politicians at national and regional levels who can 
secure  institutional  stability,  appropriate  funding 
and the necessary human resources. 

  A  clear  vision  of  NQFs’  usefulness  for  different 
beneficiaries.  Communication  efforts  need  to  be 
stepped  up;  NQFs  need  stronger  ‘branding’  to 
raise end-user awareness. 

  Continuous  stakeholder  cooperation,  bridging 
education  and  employment  and  including  clear 
attribution of roles. 

  Systematic  inclusion  of  non-formal  and  informal 

learning. 

  Mutual  trust  between  institutions  and  systems. 
This requires efforts to maintain the NQFs’ role in 
ensuring  quality,  and 
for 
is  a  precondition 
cooperation across subsystems and borders. 

  Strong social dialogue. 
  Time  to  allow  for  mentality  adjustment.  Learning 
outcomes  are  still  a  relatively  new  approach, 
which  requires  teachers,  learners,  policy-makers 
and institutions to change their way of thinking. 
  Strengthening the European dimension of NQFs. 
  Implementation of all European tools in parallel. 
  Monitoring  and  evaluation  of  NQF  added  value 
and  impact:  this  should  be  planned  from  the 
beginning  to  inform  policy  developments  and 
allow stakeholders to revisit, revise and change.  
  Closer  European  research  cooperation  on  NQFs. 
This  could 
include  partnerships  of  experts, 
researchers,  policy-makers  and  practitioners  to 
obtain  a  better  picture  of  NQF  implications  on 
access, mobility, pathways, and skills formation as 
well  as  global  changes  in  the  economy,  labour 
market and society. 

impact 

is  needed  at 

While  more  robust  evidence  on  NQFs’  evolving  role 
and  areas  of 
this  stage, 
stakeholder  and  user  experiences,  stories  and  views 
are  equally  important.  An  NQF  is,  above  all,  a  social 
construct  which  changes  over  time;  it  is  important  to 
look  at  it  as  a  process  and  take  into  account  its 
multidimensional  character.  Expectations  are  high 
both for the frameworks’ ability to support a shift to a 
more  student-centred  approach  to  learning,  teaching 
and guidance and, ultimately, to enable recognition of 
qualifications. 

(15)  Conclusions  of  the  participants  of  Cedefop’s  peer  learning 

conference (see Footnote 14). 

BOX 1.  QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORKS ACROSS THE WORLD  

In  recent  years,  qualifications  frameworks  around  the 
globe  have  developed  dynamically,  boosted  by  the 
establishment  of  regional  frameworks.  The  European 
skills  agenda  (a)  and  UNESCO’s  Education  2030 
agenda (b) have been instrumental in this process. More 
than  150  countries  worldwide  are  currently  working  on 
national  frameworks  (c).  Various  groups  of  countries 
share  regional  frameworks:  the  EQF  is  the  most 
advanced  regional  framework,  with  a  number  of  fully 
operational  frameworks  linked  to  it.  Other  regional 
frameworks have been developed by the Association of 
Southeast  Asian  countries  (ASEAN),  the  Caribbean 
Community 
the  Southern  African 
Development  Community  (SADC),  the  transnational 
qualifications  framework  (TQF)  of  the  Virtual  University 
of Small States of the Commonwealth which covers 29 
small  states,  and  some  Arab,  Pacific  and  South 
frameworks 
American  countries.  These 
promote  international cooperation and capacity-building 
on qualifications. 

(CARICOM), 

regional 

(a)  http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-

content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52016DC0381. The skills 
agenda, adopted in June 2016, highlights the importance 
of the frameworks for educational and professional 
pathways. 

(b)  http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0024/ 

002456/245656E.pdf 

(c)  Cedefop; ETF; Unesco (2017). Global inventory of national 
and regional qualifications  frameworks. Vol. 1, Vol. 2. 

http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/sl/publications-and-
resources/publications/2222 

Briefing note – 9127 EN 
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ISBN 978-92-896-2552-4, doi:10.2801/25515 
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