SCQF

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework

The Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) promotes lifelong learning in Scotland. Through the framework, learners can find out about all mainstream qualifications in Scotland and plan their future learning. The framework supports everyone in Scotland, including learning providers and employers by:

Helping people of all ages and circumstances to get access to appropriate education and training so they can meet their full potential

Helping employers, learners and the general public to understand the full range of Scottish qualifications, how qualifications relate to each other and to other forms of learning, and how different types of qualification can contribute to improving the skills of the workforce

The SCQF allows people to understand and compare the various Scottish qualifications, by their qualification level or learning programme to the number of credit points awarded.

The level of a qualification (levels 1 - 12) indicates the level of difficulty, and the number of credit points indicates the length of time it takes to complete. One SCQF credit point represents an average of 10 hours of learning time.

Benefits

The SCQF helps learners to better understand the courses and programmes that lead to qualifications.

It helps to plan learning and develop 'progression routes' to follow, which allow learners to make the most of the opportunities to transfer credit points between qualifications and avoid repetition of learning.

The SCQF also allows recognition of different types of learning in a wide range of settings - for example, learning in the workplace or in the community.

Further detail about the SCQF can be found at www.scqf.org.uk

Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs)

SVQs are work-based qualifications which are usually delivered in the workplace or in partnership with a college or other training provider. SVQs are a means of recognising the skills and knowledge people need in employment, i.e. job competence. SVQs may be at differing SCQF levels and have differing amounts of credit points, depending on the structure and context of the SVQ. There are currently SVQs available in the following business skills areas: