What are academic credits and levels?

A system of levels is used to measure the education and qualification standards in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The levels are used to explain how complex and intellectually demanding the learning involved is – a diagram illustrating the educational levels graphic of some common qualifications can be found on page 7.

To achieve a qualification you must gain enough credits at that academic level to pass.

For example to gain an undergraduate (Bachelor’s) degree you would need to successfully complete 120 credits at level 4, 120 credits at level 5 and 120 credits at Level 6.

Credits roughly represent the number of hours of learning that have been or need to be undertaken; 1 credit roughly equals10 hours.

Each level will be made up of a number of modules, each with their own credit value. At the end of a module students understanding will be assessed, this could be in a variety of ways, eg, portfolios, exams and essays.

 

For more details on credits and academic levels have a look at the below website:

QAA – Qualifications & Credit Framework