Impact Training

QCF - The Qualifications & Credit Framework

The QCF became fully operational from 1st January 2011. Read on to find out what it all means.

QCF explained

The main idea of QCF is that all Vocational Qualifications now exist on a single framework. Units that make up full qualifications are completely transferable to other qualifications.

The difference between National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) and Vocationally Related Qualifications (VRQs)

The main difference at present is that NVQs relate to the student's ability to carry out job tasks ("competence") whereas VRQs relate to the student's theoretical understanding of a concept ("knowledge"). Under the QCF NVQs and VRQs have ceased to exist as separate types of qualifications. The units that make up a full qualification under QCF are defined as "competence units" or "knowledge units". Some qualifications consist purely of competence units, others consist purely of knowledge units. Most contain a mixture of both types of units.

Units and credits

Units are the building blocks of each qualification. For each qualification there is a list of mandatory units and optional units. Each unit has a credit value. Units can be achieved on their own or as part of a full qualification.

Awards, Certificates and Diplomas

The three types of qualifications available under QCF are Awards, Certificates and Diplomas. The three different types refer to the amount of units required to achieve that qualification.

• An Award requires the student to gain between 1 and 12 credits
• A Certificate requires the student to achieve between 13 and 36 credits
• A Diploma requires the student to achieve 37+ credits

Levels

The Level refers to the difficulty of the qualification. There are nine levels, starting with Entry Level and then Levels 1-8. The higher the level, the more in-depth the studying. The level would also normally relate to the amount of responsibility the student holds at work. For example in health and social care work a care assistant is likely to study at Level 2, possibly 3. Whereas a home manager is likely to study at Level 5.

It is possible to have Awards, Certificates and Diplomas at all levels. That's not to say that there are in fact all types of qualifications at all levels, just that it is theoretically possible to do so.

An example

The new Level 3 Certificate in Working in Community Mental Health Care is on the QCF.

• The Level (3) indicates that it is suitable for frontline workers who have a reasonable amount of independence and reponsibility
• The name (Certificate) indicates that it requires students to achieve somewhere between 13 and 36 credits (in fact it actually requires 23 credits)
• The Awarding Body (in our case City & Guilds) has specified that students should complete 8 mandatory units in order to achieve those 23 credits. There are no optional units in this qualification
• All of the units are knowledge units, meaning they can be assessed by written assignments
• All of the units exist on the QCF, meaning that students who achieve those units can use them towards other qualifications. Specifically two of the units are also present in the new Level 2 and Level 3 Diplomas in Health and Social Care, and also in the new Level 2 and Level 3 Certificates in Supporting People who have a Learning Disability.