Hanne-Gerd Nielsen Head of Recognition Section, NOKUT Assessment of Refugees’ Qualifications – national and international solutions Hanne-Gerd Nielsen Head of Recognition Section, NOKUT

Lisbon Recognition Convention

International obligations Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher Education in the European Region (The Lisbon Convention), Art. VII – obligations to establish a system for the recognition of qualifications held by refugees, displaced persons and persons in a refugee-like situation. Norwegian extensive experience: 2005 – Recognition procedure for Refugees 2013 – UVD-procedure for Refugees and Persons without Verifiable Documentation 2016 – NOKUTs Qualifications Assessment for Refugees 18.11.2018

ENIC-NARIC Network Two networks for the same objective  fair recognition! NARIC network 1984 : National Academic Recognition Information Centres in the European Union created by the European Commission ENIC network 1997 : European Network of National Information Centres on academic recognition and mobility created by the Council of Europe and UNESCO to implement the Lisbon Recognition Convention and to develop policy and practice for the recognition of qualifications

«Higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit» UN Declaration of Human Rights, 1948:art.26 32% of youth in the university age enrolled in higher education globally >1% of refugee population in the univeristy age enrolled in higher education UNHCR, 2016 18.11.2018

Left out: the common barriers Funding Language proficiency Lack of necessary documentation / possibility to evaluate educational background Lack of information or ineadequate, inaccesible and inaccurate advice 18.11.2018

Before we get into technical details.. Recognition is more than a technical exercise Recognition is more than a preparation for further studies or employment Early recognition of refugees` qualifications is a key to build inclusive societies Recognition of a qualification = recognition of the human behind the qualification Inclusion – empowerment – participation Reduce the risk of (social, political, economical) alienation 18.11.2018

What is an optimal assessment solution? Early / Fast Effective Accessible Professional Fair / provides equal treatment Provides relevant information Provides feasible system for transition and easy mobility between regions, countries and educational levels 18.11.2018

Current challenges and possible solutions Current refugee crisis concerns the European states, but: Different legislations; Different assessment practices; Different financial situations; Different labour markets; Different number of refugees 18.11.2018

A question we ought to ask… Do we have time to wait until necessary recognition procedures are established and approved by national authorities? 18.11.2018

European Qualification Passport for Refugees Passport No. 47XXXXXX Date of issue 28.10.2015 Date of expiry 28.10.2018 Family name M Given name Sonia Previous name, if any N/A Date of birth 01.01.1982 Sex Country of origin, place of birth F Syria, Homs Educational background / highest educational qualification achieved 2005: Bachelor of Civil Engineering, University of Damascus, Syria (4 years higher education) Additional information 2005-2013: Project Assistant, Homs Building dep., Syria Language proficiency Native language: Arabic Other languages: English, French National education system (description of the educational system in the country where the highest qualification was taken) Information/guidance on further recognition procedures available from ENIC-NARIC offices. Link to the ENIC-NARIC website 18.11.2018

European Qualification Passport for Refugees What could it be? A document containing advisory statement concerning refugee’s qualification(s). It provides necessary information about the refugee’s educational and training background, which will enable the inclusion to the society. 18.11.2018

European Qualification Passport for Refugees Who is it for? The European Recognition Passport for Refugees should be issued to newly arrived refugees 18.11.2018

European Qualification Passport for Refugees What it is not? The European Recognition Passport for Refugees is not: a substitute for identification or educational documentation; a substitute for regular recognition statements/authorization issued by the national recognition authorities in the European Community; an automatic system that guarantees admission to studies or employment in the European Community. 18.11.2018

NOKUT’s Qualification Assessment for Refugees Successful trial project (February-May 2016) First assessment issued 24 February 2016 18.11.2018

Our way ahead Special assessment procedure for refugees; NOKUT’s Qualifications Assessment for Refugees (2016) Refugees and Recognition: Toolkit for Assessment of Refugees’ Qualifications (Erasmus+ project) (2016 – 2018); NOKUT leads a consortium consisting of 6 European Credentional Evaluation Agencies European Qualifications Passport for Refugees (EQPR) (2015 - ); Council of Europe will lead a pilot project to test the EQPR methodology in one or more of the southern European countries in 2017 18.11.2018

Active sharing of best practice

NOKUT’s contribution and participation in other Norwegian initiatives Partner in Network coordinated by the Norwegian Association of Universities and Colleges (UHR) Partner in development of supplementary courses for refugees at HiOA Seminars and workshops on refugee qualifications Welcome to the 23 November seminar Integrating Refugees in Higher Education: How to move from Dugnad to a Robust and Effective System of Recognition and Inclusion? Partner in the UiO initiative Academic Dugnad 18.11.2018

Thank you for your attention! Hanne-Gerd Nielsen Head of the Recognition Section Hanne-Gerd.Nielsen@nokut.no NOKUT (Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education), Norwegian ENIC-NARIC