17- Typically, programmes leading to higher education qualifications, particularly those taken over a number of years, include learning that is progressively more challenging. For the award of a higher education qualification at a particular level, the outcomes of this learning must reflect, in a holistic way, the qualification descriptor for that level.

18- A complementary approach, used by some other frameworks within the UK and Ireland, is to use (credit) level descriptors to determine the relative demand, complexity, depth of learning and learner autonomy associated with a particular level of learning and achievement (see Section 4, paragraphs 58-63).

19- To convey the relative position of levels of achievement and/or qualifications, it is convenient to number them. However, there is a need to avoid confusion with the numbering of levels in the various frameworks of the UK and Ireland. The authorities responsible for the maintenance of credit and qualification frameworks of the UK and Ireland have produced a guide to comparing the main qualifications offered in each country - Qualifications can cross boundaries9. This guide enables comparisons to be drawn between qualifications and their levels, rather than direct equivalences.