in the European Region Regulations 2005

L.N. 280 of 2006

MUTUAL RECOGNITION OF QUALIFICATIONS ACT, 2002

(ACT NO. XVIII OF 2002)

Mutual Recognition of Higher Education Qualifications

in the European Region Regulations 2005

IN exercise of the powers conferred by article 8 of the Mutual

Recognition of Qualifications Act, 2002, the Minister of Education,

Youth and Employment has made the following regulations>-

(1) The title of these regulations is the Mutual Recognition Citation and

commencement.

of Higher Education Qualifications in the European Region Regulations

2005. (2) These regulations shall come into force on such date as

the Minister responsible for education may, by notice in the Gazette,

appoint.

In these regulations unless the content otherwise requires –

Interpretation.

“access” means access to higher education and is the right of

qualified candidates to apply and to be considered for admission

to higher education<

“admission” means admission to higher education institutions

and programmes and is the act of, or system for, allowing qualified

applicants to pursue studies in higher education at a given institution

or a given programme<

“assessment of institutions or programmes” means the process

for establishing the educational quality of a higher education

institution or programme<

“assessment of individual qualifications” means the written

appraisal or evaluation of an individual’s foreign qualifications by

a competent body<

“competent recognition authority” means a body officially

charged with making binding decisions on the recognition of

foreign qualifications<

“higher education” means all types of courses of study, or

sets of courses of study, training or training for research at the post

secondary level which are recognised by the relevant authorities

of a Party as belonging to its higher education system<

“higher education institution” means an establishment

providing higher education and recognised by the competent

authority of a Party as belonging to its system of higher education<

“higher education programme” means a course of study

recognised by the competent authority of a Party as belonging to

its system of higher education, the completion of which provides

the student with a higher education qualification<

“higher education qualification” means any degree, diploma

or other certificate issued by a competent authority attesting the

successful completion of a higher education progamme<

“general requirements” means such conditions that must, in

all cases, be fulfilled for access to higher education, or to a given

level thereof, or for the award of a higher education qualification

at a given level<

“Party State” means a state that has ratified the Lisbon

Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher

Education, which is>

(a)

a member of the Council of Europe,

(b) a member of the UNESCO European Region,

(c) any other signatory, contracting State or party to

the European Cultural Convention of the Council of Europe,

or to the UNESCO Convention on the Recognition of Studies,

Diplomas and Degrees concerning Higher Education in the

States belonging to the Europe Region<

“period of study” means any component of a higher education

programme which has been evaluated and documented and, while

not a complete programme of study in itself, represents a significant

acquisition of knowledge or skill<

“qualifications” means either higher education qualifications

or qualifications giving access to higher education, or both<

“qualification giving access to higher education” means any

diploma or other certificate issued by a competent authority

attesting the successful completion of an education programme

and giving the holder of the qualification the right to be considered

for admission to higher education in terms of the definition of

access<

“recognition” means a formal acknowledgement by a

competent authority of the value of a foreign educational

qualification with a view to access educational or employment

activities<

“requirement” means either general requirements or specific

requirements, or both<

“specific requirements” means such conditions that must be

fulfilled, in addition to the general requirements, in order to gain

admission to a particular higher education programme, or for the

award of a specific higher education qualification in a particular

field of study.

(1) Holders of any qualifications issued by a recognised Access to

assessment of

institution of higher education of one of the Party States shall have qualification.

adequate access, upon request to the appropriate body, to a transparent,

coherent and reliable assessment of the qualifications.

(2) No discrimination shall be made in this respect on any

ground such as the applicant’s gender, race, colour, disability, language,

religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social origin,

association with a national minority, property, birth or other status, or

on the grounds of any other circumstance not related to the merits of

the qualification for which recognition is sought and skills achieved.

(3) Decisions on recognition shall be made on the basis of

appropriate information on the qualifications for which recognition is

sought.

(4) In the first instance, the responsibility for providing

adequate information rests with the applicant, who shall provide such

information in good faith.

(5) Notwithstanding the responsibility of the applicant, the

recognised institutions of higher education in Malta, having issued the

qualifications in question shall have a duty to provide, upon request of

the applicant and within reasonable limits, relevant information to the

holder of the qualification, to the institution, or to the competent

authorities of the country in which recognition is sought.

(6) The responsibility to demonstrate that an application

does not fulfil the relevant requirements lies with the body undertaking

the assessment.

Decisions on recognition shall be made not later than four

months calculated from the time all necessary information on the case

has been provided. If recognition is withheld, the reasons for the refusal

to grant recognition shall be stated, and information shall be given

concerning possible measures the applicant may take in order to obtain

recognition at a later stage. If recognition is withheld , or if no decision

is taken, the applicant shall be able to make an appeal within four months

to the Mutual Recognition of Qualifications Appeals Board.

(1) The Malta Qualifications Recognition Centre and

qualifications giving

institutes of higher education within Malta shall recognise qualifications

issued by similar institutions in other Party States and which meet the

general requirements for access to higher education in those Party States

for the purpose of access to programmes belonging to the Maltese higher

education system, unless a substantial difference can be shown between

the general requirements for access to an institution of higher education

in Malta and those of the Party State concerned.

(2) Alternatively, it shall be sufficient for a Party State to

enable the holder of a qualification issued in one of the other Party

States to obtain an assessment of the qualification, upon request by the

holder, and the provisions of sub-regulation (1) hereof shall apply mutatis

mutandis to such a case.

(3) Where a qualification gives access only to specific types

of institutions or programmes of higher education in the Party State in

which the qualification was obtained, Malta shall grant holders of such

qualifications access to similar specific programmes in institutions

belonging to its higher education system, unless a substantial difference

can be demonstrated between the requirements for access in the Party

State in which the qualification was obtained and in Malta.

(4) Where admission to particular higher education

programmes is dependent on the fulfilment of specific requirements in

addition to the general requirements for access, the competent authorities

of the institutions of higher education may impose the additional

requirements equally on holders of qualifications obtained in the other

Party States or assess whether applicants with qualifications obtained

in other Party States fulfil equivalent requirements.

(5) Where, in the Party States in which they have been

obtained, school leaving certificates give access to higher education

only in combination with additional qualifying examinations as a

prerequisite access, Institutions of Higher Education in Malta may make

access conditional on these requirements or offer an alternative for

satisfying such additional requirements within their own educational

systems.

(6) Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-regulations

(1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) hereof, admission to a given higher education

institution in Malta, or to a given programme within such an institution,

may be restricted or selective. In cases in which admission to a higher

education institution or programme is selective, admission procedures

should be designed with a view to ensuring that the assessment of foreign

qualifications is carried out according to the principles of fairness and

non-discrimination described in regulation 3(2).

(7) Without prejudice to the provisions of sub-regulations

(1), (2), (3), (4) and (5) hereof, admission to a given higher education

institution in Malta may be made conditional on demonstration by the

applicant of sufficient competence in the language or languages of

instruction of the institution concerned, or in other specified languages.

(8) In the case in which access to higher education may be

obtained on the basis of non-traditional qualifications, similar

qualifications obtained in other Party States shall be assessed in a similar

manner as non-traditional qualifications earned in Malta.

(9) For the purpose of admission to programmes of higher

education, each Party State shall make the recognition of qualifications

issued by foreign educational institutions operating in its territory

contingent upon specific requirements of Maltese legislation or specific

agreements concluded with the Party State of origin of such institutions.

(1) Institutes of higher education in Malta shall recognise Recognition of

periods of study.

periods of study completed within the framework of a higher education

programme in another Party State. This recognition shall comprise such

periods of study towards the completion of a higher education

programme in the Party State in which recognition is sought, unless

substantial differences can be shown between the periods of study

completed in another Party and the part of the higher education

programme which they would replace in Malta.

(2) Alternatively, it shall be sufficient for the institution of

higher education in Malta to enable a person who has completed a period

of study within the framework of a higher education programme in

another Party State to obtain an assessment of that period of study,

upon request by the person concerned, and the provisions of sub-

regulation (1) hereof shall apply mutatis mutandis to such a case.

(3) In particular, Institutions of higher education in Malta

shall facilitate recognition of periods of study when>

(a) there has been a previous agreement between, on the

one hand, the higher education institution or the competent

authority responsible for the relevant period of study and, on the

other hand, the higher education institution, or the competent

recognition authority responsible for the recognition that is sought<

and

(b) the higher education institution in which the period of

study has been completed has issued a certificate or transcript of

academic records attesting that the student has successfully

completed the stipulated requirements for the said period of study.

(1) To the extent that a recognition decision is based on the

knowledge and skills certified by the higher education qualification,

institutions of higher learning in Malta shall recognise the higher

education qualifications conferred in another Party State unless a

substantial difference can be shown between the qualification for which

recognition is sought and the corresponding qualification in Malta.

(2) Alternatively, it shall be sufficient for the Malta

Qualifications Recognition Information Centre or an institution of higher

education in Malta to enable the holder of a higher education

qualification issued in one of the other Party States to obtain an

assessment of that qualification, upon request by the holder, and the

provisions of sub-regulation (1) shall apply mutatis mutandis to such a

case.

(3) Recognition in Malta of a higher education qualification

issued in another Party State shall have one or both of the following

consequences>

(a) access to further higher education studies, including

relevant examinations, or to preparations for the doctorate, on the

same conditions as those applicable to holders of qualifications of

the Party in which recognition is sought<

(b) the use of an academic title, subject to the laws and

regulations of Malta, or a jurisdiction thereof.In addition,

recognition may facilitate access to the labour market subject to

laws and regulations of Malta, or a jurisdiction thereof.

(4) An assessment in Malta of a higher education

qualification issued in another Party State may take the form of>

(a)

advice for general employment purposes<

(b) advice to an educational institution for the purpose of

admission into its programmes<

(c)

advice to any other competent recognition authority.

(5) The Minister responsible for education may make the

recognition of higher education qualifications issued by foreign

education institutions operating in Malta contingent upon specific

requirements of national legislation or specific agreements concluded

with the Party State of origin of such institutions.

Malta shall take all feasible and reasonable steps within the Recognition

qualifications held

framework of its education system and in conformity with its by refugees,

constitutional, legal, and regulatory provisions to develop procedures displaced

and persons in a

designed to assess fairly and expeditiously whether refugees, displaced refugee-like

persons and persons in a refugee-like situation fulfil the relevant situation.

requirements for access into higher education, to further higher education

programmes or to employment activities, even in cases in which the

qualifications obtained in one of the Parties cannot be proved through

documentary evidence.

The Malta Qualifications Recognition and Information Centre Information

assessment of

and recognised institutions of higher education in Malta shall provide higher education

adequate information on any programme offered with a view to enabling institution

programmes.

the competent or designated authorities of other Party States to ascertain

whether the quality of the qualifications issued justifies recognition in

the Party State in which recognition is sought. Such information shall

take the form of information on the methods and results of this

assessment, and of the standards of quality specific to each type of higher

education institution granting, and to programmes leading to higher

education qualifications.

The Malta Qualification Recognition and Information Centre Information through

information

through its Information Technology Office shall make adequate technology.

provisions for the development, maintenance and provision of>

(a) an overview of the different types of higher education

institutions belonging to its higher education system, with the

typical characteristics of each type of institution<

(b) a list of recognised institutions, both public and private,

belonging to its higher education system, indicating their powers

to award different types of qualifications and requirements for

gaining access to each type of institution and programme<

(c)

a description of higher education programmes<

(d) a list of education institutions located outside its territory

which Malta considers as belonging to its educational system.

(1) In order to facilitate the recognition of qualifications

concerning higher education, institutions of higher learning undertake

to establish transparent systems for the complete description of the

qualifications obtained.

(2) Acknowledging the need for relevant, accurate and up-

to-date information, the Malta Qualification Recognition and

Information Centre in collaboration with institutions of higher education

shall maintain a national information centre which shall form part of

the European Network of Information Centres on academic mobility

and recognition known as the ENIC Network, established by decision

of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the 9 th June,

1994 and the UNESCO Regional Committee for Europe on the 18 th

June, 1994. The Centre shall also maintain links with the Committee of

the Convention on the Recognition of Qualifications concerning Higher

Education in the European Region.

(3) The Malta Qualification Recognition and Information

Centre incorporating ENIC shall>

(a) facilitate access to authoritative and accurate information

on the higher education system and qualifications of Malta<

(b) facilitate access to authorative and accurate information

on the higher education systems and qualifications of the other

Party States<

(c) give advice or information on recognition matters and

assessment of qualifications, in accordance with national laws and

regulations<

(d) promote the use of the UNESCO or Council of Europe

Diploma Supplement.

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press