CERTIFICATE

What does a certificate confirm and who awards it?
A certificate confirms that its holder has the knowledge, skills and social competence required in the case of a given qualification.

A certificate is awarded by experts in a given field. The said experts verify if a given individual has the required learning outcomes. This is done through the validation process – in line with the specified criteria and quality assurance rules.

The experts must meet applicable conditions – e.g. they must have appropriate knowledge and experience in a given area.

POLISH QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORK

A certificate is awarded by experts in a given field. The said experts verify if a given individual has the required learning outcomes. This is done through the validation process – in line with the specified criteria and quality assurance rules.

The experts must meet applicable conditions – e.g. they must have appropriate knowledge and experience in a given area.

Each certificate – thanks to the PQF mark – is also recognised abroad:

  • if you are an employee, this way it will be easier for you to present your level of skills to a foreign employer;
  • if you represent a company, it will be easier for you to prove it to a European business partner that you have personnel with sufficient competence for the job.
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Note! A certificate is not equivalent to a professional licence – access to particular professions may be regulated individually by particular states.

For example: in Poland, bookkeeping is a market qualification – no special licences are required and everyone may offer bookkeeping services. Yet, a professional licence may be required in other countries.
A certificate will help you present your competence to potential employers in a credible manner – also in foreign countries.

CERTIFICATE – STEP BY STEP

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Find a desired qualification.

Find a qualification in the Integrated Qualifications Register (IQR) which you want to attain.
There is a detailed description for each qualification included in the system – it is available for download from the IQR page.

Read the qualification description.

Check if you have the required knowledge, skills and social competence necessary to substantiate all learning outcomes.

If there are any additional requirements to be met in order to be able undergo validation, these will be identified in the description.
 
In the event you do not have all the learning outcomes referred to in the description of the qualification, you will know what you still need to learn.

Find an awarding body (AB).

If you believe you meet all the applicable criteria – find an awarding body for the given qualification.
A list of institutions authorised to issue the certificate can be found on the IQR page – next to the description of a given qualification.
Go to the web page of the relevant institution to find all necessary information about the validation procedure and to learn how to apply for validation.

Undergo validation.

Report to the awarding body and undergo validation – i.e. a process designed to verify your knowledge and skills. You need to undergo the validation process to receive the certificate. The experts will check if you have ALL the required learning outcomes specified in the description of the market qualification.
 
A detailed description of the validation procedure can be found on the web page of a given awarding body.

5. Collect your certificate!

If the experts acknowledge that you have the required knowledge and skills – you will be awarded the certificate.
Once the validation has been completed – and you have met all the verification criteria – the awarding body will issue your certificate, which will confirm that you have a given qualification.

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All certificates, as issued by various awarding bodies, are equivalent. Each certificate issuing body is subject to identical requirements identified in the description of a given qualification.

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FUNCTIONING IN THE SYSTEM

Learn about the practical aspects.

VALIDATION

How to obtain a certificate?

QUALIFICATIONS

Learn about market qualifications included in the IQS