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Assessment in vocational upper secondary education

Denmark

6.Upper secondary and post-secondary non-tertiary Education

6.6Assessment in vocational upper secondary education

Last update: 27 November 2023

Student assessment

During VET programmes, tests are carried out both continuously throughout the programme and at the end of the programme.

As explained in section 6.5, VETs consist of a basic course and a main course. At the end of the first part of the basic course, students are examined in one of the basic subjects they have taken. Usually, the student will be tested in the Danish subject, but if the student has followed multiple basic subjects, it will be decided at random by the school. At the end of the second part of the basic course, students are also examined in one of the basic subjects. If the student has followed multiple subjects the same rules apply. Furthermore, the subject specific to the student’s educational programme ends with a basic training subject examination. The educational institution decides the details of the examination. The student must pass this examination in order to continue to the main course.

The main course include several types of tests and examinations depending on the programme in question. Tests can be held in both basic subjects, basic training subjects as well as specialised subjects. The main course ends with a professional vocational examination in which the students’ competences are tested in staged real-life settings. The examination usually consists of both a theoretical and practical part.

The Ministry of Children and Education sets the framework for the completion of the examination. In addition to this the Ministry decides which qualifications the external examiners need and decide which facilities that should be available for the examination. The framework is presented in the act on examination in basic vocational education (in Danish): Bekendtgørelse om prøver og eksamen i grundlæggende erhvervsrettede uddannelser. Furthermore, the institutions must describe their examinations in their local teaching plans with regard to objectives and demands, the framework for examination, the framework for assessment and the criteria for assessment.

Students are either assessed according to the 7 point grade scale or the 'passed'/'not passed' marks.

More information on tests and examinations can be found here and here (In Danish).

A list of relevant provisions regarding tests and examination in VET programmes can be found here (In Danish).

Progression of students

As mentioned above, it is required that students studying a VET pass the basic training subject examination at the end of the basic course in order to progress to the main course of the VET programme.

Certification

The educational institution issues a certificate upon the student’s completion of their studies. Information about the required contents of such certificates can be found in the Consolidation Act on Tests and Examinations in Basic Vocational Education (in Danish): Bekendtgørelse om prøver og eksamen i grundlæggende erhvervsrettede uddanelser.