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Foundation and Bridging qualifications
New Zealand Certificates in Foundation and Bridging are designed to assist people engaging or re-engaging with learning to prepare them for more advanced education and skilled employment.
Find a New Zealand Foundation and Bridging qualification
|
Qualification |
Developer |
|---|---|
|
New Zealand Certificate in Foundation Skills (Level 1) [Ref: 2861] |
NZQA National Qualifications Services (on behalf of the sector) |
|
New Zealand Certificate in Foundation Skills (Level 2) [Ref: 2862] |
NZQA National Qualifications Services (on behalf of the sector) |
|
New Zealand Certificate in Study and Employment Pathways (Level 3) [Ref: 2863] |
NZQA National Qualifications Services (on behalf of the sector) |
|
New Zealand Certificate in Study and Employment Pathways (Level 4) [Ref: 2860] |
NZQA National Qualifications Services (on behalf of the sector) |
Programme approval
Providers need to obtain programme approval and provider accreditation to deliver a programme before they can offer these qualifications. Information on programme approval and accreditation for New Zealand Certificate courses in secondary schools is available in Assessment Matters A2018/01.
Further information on delivering New Zealand Certificates for secondary schools is available on New Zealand certificates for secondary schools.
2022 Foundation Skills Unit Standards
NZQA National Qualifications Services (NQS) is developing unit standards to align with:
More information on this project, can be found on the review page.
2020 Foundation and Bridging qualifications review
In 2020-2021, NZQA National Qualifications Services conducted a review of the New Zealand qualifications in Foundation and Bridging (FaB) to ensure that they are fit for purpose and useful to learners, employers and other stakeholders.
The qualifications below have been approved and listed on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework:
- New Zealand Certificate in Foundation Skills (Level 1) [Ref: 2861]
- New Zealand Certificate in Foundation Skills (Level 2) [Ref: 2862]
- New Zealand Certificate in Study and Employment Pathways (Level 3) [Ref: 2863]
- New Zealand Certificate in Study and Employment Pathways (Level 4) [Ref: 2860]
Main changes resulting from the review
General changes across the suite of Foundation and Bridging qualifications
- Graduate Profile Outcomes were combined where appropriate and relevant, and credit values have been adjusted accordingly.
- Educational pathways have been adjusted to reflect graduate destination in study.
- Pedagogical principles and cultural practices reflective of Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and People of the Pacific were added to the Conditions.
- Programmes must align to the New Zealand Employability Skills Framework (2016) capabilities in teaching and learning of all graduate profile outcomes, as appropriate for the level of the qualification, the cohort of learners and the duration of the programme.
- Recommendation for programme providers to refer to the New Zealand Foundation and Bridging Qualifications Supporting Document. This can be accessed below.
Specific changes to:
New Zealand Certificates in Foundation Skills (Level 1) [Ref: 2861]
New Zealand Certificates in Foundation Skills (Level 2) [Ref: 2862]
- Graduate Profile Outcomes include the development digital literacy skills, and the qualities of a rangatira (role model).
- No longer requires programmes to be linked to specified destination programmes to allow flexibility with the context of programmes to meet learner needs.
Specific changes to:
New Zealand Certificates in Study and Career Preparation (Level 3) [Ref: 2863]
New Zealand Certificates in Study and Career Preparation (Level 4) [Ref: 2860]
- Title change from ‘Study and Career Preparation’ to ‘Study and Employment Pathways’ to widen future options for learners.
- Academic tasks were removed from the relevant graduate profile outcome to allow for tasks appropriate to vocational settings.
- Requirement for evidence of pathways for further study and training at a higher level related to the field(s) of the programme was removed from the General conditions for programmes.
Further detail is available in the Foundation and Bridging change report.
Foundation and Bridging supporting document
Consistency review
Any organisation that has a programme leading to New Zealand qualifications will need to take part in a consistency review.
Details of dates for consistency review events are available in the schedule for assuring consistency.
Following consistency reviews for each qualification, consistency review reports for individual qualifications will be published.
Contact
For enquiries about the above qualifications, please contact NZQA National Qualifications Services (NQS) at qualification.reviews@nzqa.govt.nz.