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When competence accumulated in studies is described using similar terms, both learners and employers benefit from it. It is easy to compare continuous learning offerings between different higher education institutions.
Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences have drafted the first version of uniform principles for describing competence. These will help to describe degree programme contents with sufficiently similar terms in the future. This enables learners and employers to compare the offerings of different higher education institutions and identify the kind of competence accumulated in studies.
The principles are intended for internal use in higher education institutions: those drafting curricula and persons who, for example, plan continuous learning products. They help to understand how course contents and assessment criteria should be verbalised.
“Digivisio’s co-implementers have drawn up the principles in close cooperation with the curriculum coordinators of higher education institutions,” explains Tuula Heide, Project Manager at Digivisio 2030.
Why is a common language for describing competence needed?
The common thread in drafting the principles has been the needs of continuous learners. What kinds of descriptions are needed to enable learners to easily compare the offerings of different higher education institutions in the Opin.fi service? Is the wording used in line with the language of competence used in working life?
Good descriptions help the learner understand what studies would benefit them. At the same time, they also support higher education institutions in developing guidance services. Common assessment criteria for study attainments, on the other hand, increase transparency and the equality of learners.
Streamlining the descriptions also facilitates the recognition of prior learning and cross-institutional studies. This makes teaching cooperation between higher education institutions easier. Shared national rules also enable reaching out to international arenas: for example, cooperation in EU higher education alliances.
This is how the first version of the principles was formulated
The joint project of higher education institutions was launched as a partial implementation of Digivisio at the end of the spring term in 2024. It was a continuation of the preliminary study, which had already mapped the current state of competence descriptions.
During the project, discussions were held with stakeholders and networks with which contact should be maintained were identified. These include KouKe, the Digipeda network, Pedaforum, OHA-Forum, UAS-OHA, Funidata, the Peppi consortium and Digivisio.
In the autumn of 2024, the project made exemplary progress. Co-implementers refined the uniform principles for describing competence with the curriculum network. Guidance for the work was sought from the Digivisio steering group.
The end result was the first version of the principles. It includes a model that higher education institutions can use to describe learning outcomes. The principles also provide help in defining learning outcomes. The work has been guided by the idea of a competence-based approach, which emphasises an individual’s active role as a learner.
Principles advanced by the curriculum network
It is now recommended that higher education institutions update their own curriculum guidelines to comply with the uniform principles. However, refinements will continue to be made to these principles. The network of curriculum coordinators plays an important role in this. The Digivisio steering group has outlined that, in the future, the network will operate in a manner similar to higher education institutions. The Digivisio programme office supported the steering group in its work until the end of March 2025.
This year, it is recommended that the network familiarise itself with the development of competence profiles, classification of micro-credentials, utilisation of the European ESCO classification system and vocabulary of working life competences. It is important to adapt contracts at the same pace as other development projects. These include the VIRTA reform, Digivisio’s own Osaamispolku service, EU alliance initiatives and the development of the Sisu and Peppi study systems.
The co-implementers recommend that the Rectors’ Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences (Arene) and Council of Rectors of Finnish Universities (Unifi) guide the development of competence description data and the division of labour between different networks in the future. It is also important to secure sufficient resources for the coordination of cooperation.
“The drafting of uniform principles has got off to a good start. It strongly promotes Digivisio’s goal of making Finland a model country for flexible learning,” sums up Project Manager Tuula Heide.
The report on the description of competence was drafted by Outi Wallin (Tampere University of Applied Sciences), Antti Laitinen (University of Jyväskylä) and Anu Pruikkonen (Lapland University of Applied Sciences). Tuula Heide, Vilho Kolehmainen and Sini Hakala of the Digivisio programme office as well as the network of curriculum coordinators of higher education institutions were also involved in the work.