NQF Defines Training Standards In South Africa
For many years, and even more so, since the birth of our still-emerging democracy, numeracy private companies and institutions have competed to offer all manner of educational and training facilities. In many cases, however, a certificate issued by such an establishment held little standing in local circles, was certainly not a guarantee of the relevant competency and did not qualify the owner for entry to further studies. It was precisely these shortfalls that made necessary the founding of the NQF in South Africa.
The initials stand for National Qualification Framework, the system defines the relative educational levels of various approved courses according to a uniform set of standards and does so within three clearly-defined bands known by the acronyms GET, FET and HET. The first stands for General Education and Training and applies both to formal schooling up to standard 8 and Adult Basic Education and Training courses offered under ABET schemes. FET refers to Further Education and Training and HET to Higher Education and Training.
All recognised qualifications fall under one of these NQF bands. In South Africa the bands are further divided into 8 levels. NQF1 then would apply to learners completing standard 2 to standard 7 in the GET band while standard 8 is recognised as NQF2, standard 9 as NQF3 and matric as NQF4 in the FET band. The remaining levels 5 to 8 represent higher education qualifications beginning with National Certificates or Diplomas and Occupational Certificates at level 5, undergraduate degrees and higher diplomas designated as level 6 and levels 7 and 8 representing honours or post-grad certificates and Doctorates or Master’s degrees respectively.
Assisting Job Seekers
NQF levels in South Africa are of great help to those holding some kind of qualification in their search for work. The establishment of the national qualification framework has made it a relatively simple task for an employer to understand the level of ability represented by any given certificates or diploma to which an official level within this framework has been allocated.
It also acts as an important yardstick with which to develop new courses that will conform to the levels of learning needed for NQF equivalency in South Africa and has long been the staple guideline for all forms of adult education and training provided to the country’s learners by accredited ABET service providers such as Triple e Training.
In particular, the levels represented by many vocational certificates and diplomas provided to professionals such as laboratory technologists, theatre technicians, radiographers and carers have, in the past, been hard to assess, but the establishment of the framework has provided recruiters and employers with the means to make meaningful and reliable comparisons defined by the NQF levels applicable in South Africa.
Defining The Way Up
On completion of a recognised basic education course, the learner knows that he or she is qualified to progress to matric studies if so motivated and, thereafter to higher education or an advanced vocational qualification in accordance with an established framework that clearly defines each step on the upward journey.
Whether the need is for basic literacy, numeracy, improved English or one of many available vocational training courses, contact us about our proven-effective and certified NQF equivalent courses in South Africa and selected neighbouring states.
