Frequently Asked Questions

knowledge control: a complete set of methods used to determine a student's progress in mastering a discipline (course) or module. Usually, these methods include a written, oral, laboratory, and practical test/exam, a project, a presentation (report) with accompanying documents. The control of knowledge can be intermediate (current certification-self-control) - so that the student can assess the progress in the development of knowledge, or conducted by an educational institution to determine whether the student has achieved the results of training at the end of a section of the course or module (certification - based on the results of a section of the course, discipline or module).
knowledge control assessment criteria: A description of what is expected of the student to demonstrate that their knowledge meets the established knowledge requirements. Criteria usually refer to the cycle and/or level descriptors for the module being studied within the relevant discipline.
Ministers have entrusted the implementation of all the issues covered in the Berlin Communiqué, the overall steering of the Bologna Process and the preparation of the next ministerial meeting to the Bologna Follow-up Group (BFUG), formed in Berlin Conference in October, 2003. The Group is a key element and executive body of the Bologna Process. The BFUG is composed of the representatives of all member states of the Bologna Process and of some international organization as consultative members. BFUG meets at least twice a year, chaired by the EU Presidency, with the host country of the next Ministerial Conference as vice-chair. A Board, also chaired by the EU Presidency and with the next host country as vice-chair, will oversee the work between the meetings of the BFUG. The overall follow-up work will be supported by the Bologna Secretariat which the country hosting the next Ministerial Conference will provide. Each member states of the Bologna Process has own national working group on the development of the Bologna Process.
– a group of students who started this qualification program or course in the same year.
– competencies are a dynamic combination of knowledge, skills, skills, and abilities. The formation and development of competencies is the goal of the educational program. Competencies are formed in different sections of the training course and evaluated at its various stages. They can be divided into competencies related to the subject of study (professional) and general competencies (independent of the content of the training program).
– A period of time of 45-60 minutes of the learning process in direct contact between the teacher and the student or group of students.
- convergence involves the voluntary perception of appropriate actions to achieve a common goal. The Bologna Process is essentially a convergence of building national higher education systems in Europe.
- course section (academic unit, discipline) - a content-based, formally structured part of the course. The section must contain: an appropriate and clearly defined list of learning outcomes set out in terms of competencies, as well as appropriate criteria for evaluating knowledge. Different sections of the course may have a different number of credits.
- the concept of learning work is associated with the required – usually supervised and evaluated – learning activity within a course section or module.
– a numerical way of expressing the volume and level of knowledge based on the achievement of learning outcomes, as well as the corresponding level of labor intensity, measured in units of time. The credit can also be credited to the student after checking that the student has achieved the set learning outcomes at a certain level, corresponding to the labor costs of the ongoing training or previously completed training.
– in the cumulative credit system, in order to successfully complete training in a semester, in an academic year, or in the entire curriculum, you must receive (credit) a certain number of credits set by the requirements of this program. Credits are credited (and accumulated) only after the successful achievement of the students ' learning outcomes is confirmed by the knowledge control. Students can use the cumulative credit system to transfer or accumulate credits credited to programs with a prescribed labor intensity or to other programs in one or different educational institutions. The credit accumulation system also allows students to master individual sections of courses or modules without the need for immediate academic recognition of learning outcomes.
– a system that facilitates the measurement and comparison of learning outcomes in the context of different qualifications, educational programs, and learning environments, based on the labor intensity of the student's academic work, measured in units of time.
– an indicator of the relative learning requirements or the degree of freedom given to the student in this section or module. This indicator is usually associated with the depth and complexity of the study and is sometimes associated with the year (course) of study and/or with the features of the content of the section.
– in this form of knowledge control, specific characteristics, abilities, skills, behavioral units, and assessments are selected as criteria that determine the threshold for successful "passing" of this control. At the same time, a "shortfall" in one criterion value can be compensated for by success in another. Such a control system is usually associated with a "threshold minimum" for achieving learning outcomes.
– three consecutive stages defined in the Bologna Process (first cycle, second cycle, and third cycle), within which all qualifications of the European higher education system are located.
– generalized descriptions of a wide range of learning outcomes for each of the three cycles, consistent with the definitions of the Bologna Process.
– the qualification assigned by the educational institution to the graduate after successful completion of the established educational program. In the cumulative credit system, the program is considered completed if the graduate has received the required number of credits credited when achieving the stipulated list of training results.
is an annex to the official degree/qualification designed to provide a description of the nature, level, context, content and status of the studies that were pursued and successfully completed by the holder of the degree/qualification. It is based on the model developed by the European Commission, Council of Europe and UNESCO/CEPES. It improves international transparency and the academic/professional recognition of qualifications.
– a qualification awarded after completion of third cycle study, which is internationally recognised as qualifying someone for research or academic work may be designated as a doctorate or doctoral degree. It includes a substantial amount of original research work which is normally presented in a thesis.
is a student-centred system based on the student workload required to achieve the objectives of a programme of study. These objectives should be specified in terms of learning outcomes and competences to be acquired. ECTS is based on the principle that 60 credits measure the workload of a full-time student during one academic year. The student workload of a full-time study programme in Europe amounts in most cases to around 1500-1800 hours per year and in those cases one credit stands for around 25 to 30 working hours. ECTS is a system for increasing the transparency of educational systems and facilitating the mobility of students across Europe through credit accumulation and transfer. Credit transfer is guaranteed by explicit agreements signed by the home institution, the host institution and the mobile student.
Generally a formal written or oral test taken at set points (e.g. end of a semester or term, mid-semester or term) or at the end of a programme, module or course unit.
– a higher education qualification awarded after successful completion of first cycle studies.
- any numerical or qualitative measure, based on well-defined criteria, which is used to describe the results of assessment in an individual module or course unit or in a complete study programme.
Higher education applies to academic programmes of study that may be entered by students holding either an appropriate school leaving certificate from an upper secondary school or other relevant professional qualifications or approved prior learning and/or prior experience. Providers may be universities, universities of professional studies, higher education institutions, colleges, polytechnics etc
includes teaching and learning using modern information technology and telecommunications.
are statements – made by the academic staff – of what a learner is expected to know, understand and/or be able to demonstrate after completion of a process of learning. Learning outcomes must be accompanied by appropriate assessment criteria which can be used to judge whether the expected learning outcomes have been achieved. Learning outcomes, together with assessment criteria, specify the requirements for the award of credit, while grading is based on attainment above or below the requirements for the award of credit. Credit accumulation and transfer is facilitated if clear learning outcomes are available to indicate with precision the achievements for which the credit will be awarded.
– the number of hours an average student will need to achieve specified learning outcomes and gain credits to be awarded after assessment.
– teaching activity of academic staff, explanation new themes or other learning materials to students. Usually there is one teacher and a number of students.
are understood to be a series of sequential steps to be taken by the learner (within a development continuum) expressed in terms of a range of generic outcomes, within a given programme.
is a statement that provides an indication of the depth and extent of learning expected at a specific stage in a programme. They are a guide to the kind of demands or expectations it is appropriate to make of learners at each of the designated levels within a programme. The descriptors guide the learner, teacher and curriculum with respect to the complexity, relative demand and learner autonomy. These general descriptors can be applied to specific subject disciplines and ways of learning. Level descriptors are useful for curriculum design, assignment of credit, validation, guidelines for recognition of learning from experience and of non formal learning and for staff development.
The term module refers to a course unit within a modularized system, that is a system based on course units carrying a uniform number of credits (usually 5 or 6) or a multiple of that number. Module may be included in curricula or in a course unit independent from that curricula.
A course unit or module that may be chosen as part of a study programme but is not compulsory for all students.
The term “profile” refers to a specific subject related field of learning leading to a qualification, as well as to the broader fields, connected with general direction or importance, for instance, vocational study differs from academic study.
A degree document, diploma or certificate issued by a competent governing body attesting to the successful completion of studies in a recognized program.
Generic statements of the outcomes of study for a qualification. They provide clear points of reference that describe the main outcomes of a qualification, as defined in the National Frameworks, and make clear the nature of change between levels.
Recognition within ECTS requires that the credits achieved by a student through successful completion of course units or modules as described in the Learning Agreement at the host university must replace an equivalent number of credits at his/her home institution.
Non-prescriptive indicators formulated as learning outcomes expressed in terms of competences that support the articulation of qualifications (degree programmes).
Students who have not been able to take or who have not passed an examination or assessment on the first date scheduled may be offered the opportunity to take a resit examination or assessment at a later date.
This is a higher education qualification awarded after the successful completion of second cycle studies that may involve some research work. It is often referred to as a Master’s degree. A student normally takes it after completion of a first degree.
classroom instruction under the guidance of a tutor, professor, etc., to advance some particular subject, in which everyone is requested to be prepared and actively participate. It brings together one tutor and a small group of students.
The time (expressed in hours) that it is expected that an average learner (at a particular cycle/level) will need to spend to achieve specified learning outcomes. This time includes all the learning activities in which the student is required to carry out (e.g. lectures, seminars, practical work, private study, professional visits, examinations).
An approved set of modules or course units recognized for the award of a specific degree, which should be defined through the set of learning outcomes, expressed in terms of competences, to be achieved in order to obtain the specified credits.
A formally presented written report, based on independent research/enquiry/project work, which is required for the award of a degree (generally a first or a second degree or a doctorate). It may also be called a dissertation.
In the case of the Tuning Project, it means creating agreed reference points for the organisation of higher education structures in Europe, recognising that the diversity of traditions is a positive factor in the creation of a dynamic common higher education area.
A tutorial is a period of instruction given by a tutor aimed at exploring in greater depth, revising and discussing material and topics presented within a course unit or module. It is usually one tutor in a small group of students.