Qualifications framework
The national qualifications framework describes knowledge, skills and general competences that all candidates who have completed an education at a certain level are expected to have. The framework is valid for all candidates at the same educational level independent of their subject area. The relationship between the national qualifications framework and courses and study programmes can be illustrated as follows:
Main content
The specification of knowledge, skills and general competences is done through the development of learning outcomes at the course and programme level. Together these learning outcomes shall covere the requirements of the general national framework (NQF). At the programme and course level it is the academic staff, i.e. the teachers, that shall describe his/her expectations regarding the students' learning outcomes in the course and programme desciptions. Learning outcome descriptions shall harmonize with the qualifications framework and shall be adjusted when needed, i.e. after evaluations.
The University of Bergen decided in the Education Committee on May 09, 2006 that learning outcome descriptions at the course and programme level should be implemented in the programme descriptions by the end of 2009, while waiting for the NQF and in accordance with the NOKUT regulations (deadline postponed to 2012 in accordance with the Ministry's deadline).
The national qualifications framework for higher education was stipulated by the Ministry of Education and Research on March 20, 2009, and the Ministry has given all higher education institutions a deadline of ultimo 2012 to implement the NQF in all study programme descriptions.
