The Qualification Pathway Mapper shows school-leaving qualifications, examination checkpoints, vocational routes, and the next educational steps documented in Education Benchmark’s Education Passport guides. It is designed to explain where a qualification sits within its own education system and what routes may follow it.
Qualification pathway
Explore examination and qualification checkpoints
Select a country to view the examination, diploma, certificate, vocational, and transition points documented in its Education Passport.
What the Qualification Pathway Mapper Shows
Education systems use different combinations of examinations, certificates, diplomas, vocational awards, secondary-school completion credentials, and higher education entry requirements. The mapper organizes relevant checkpoints from the selected country’s Education Passport so that these routes can be viewed in sequence.
Depending on the country, this may include national examinations, general secondary qualifications, technical or vocational credentials, university-entry routes, and alternative progression points.
What the Mapper Does Not Determine
The mapper does not declare that qualifications from different countries are legally or academically equivalent. It does not issue credential evaluations, convert grades, guarantee recognition, determine professional licensing, or confirm admission to a university or other institution.
International recognition depends on the exact credential, issuing institution, programme, completed subjects, destination country, receiving institution, recognition authority, and the rules that apply to the intended purpose.
Where the Qualification Information Comes From
The mapper uses qualification and examination checkpoints documented in Education Benchmark country guides and Education Passport routes. Those guides reference relevant ministries, examination authorities, qualification bodies, education agencies, universities, and other primary or institutional sources where available.
How to Interpret a Qualification Pathway
A qualification should first be understood within the education system that awards it. Important questions include the stage at which it is awarded, whether it completes a programme, whether it supports progression to another school stage, whether it is academic or vocational, and whether additional selection or admission requirements follow.
Two qualifications can both appear near the end of secondary education without having identical curricula, assessment methods, legal effects, or higher education access. The mapper therefore describes routes rather than assigning automatic international equivalence.
Example Use
A reader researching a country’s upper secondary system can select that country and identify the examinations and qualifications appearing near the end of the school route. The next checkpoints can then show whether students normally move toward university admission, applied higher education, vocational training, apprenticeships, employment, or another qualification stage.
Important Limitations
- A pathway description is not an official credential evaluation.
- The same qualification name can have different conditions depending on programme, jurisdiction, or year.
- Higher education institutions may impose additional subject or grade requirements.
- Professional recognition may follow rules separate from academic admission.
- Vocational qualifications can have different progression rights depending on the exact award.
- Reforms can change examination names, qualification structures, and admission routes.
Read the Full Country Context
Use the Education Systems directory to read the full guide for a country, including school stages, grading, examination rules, qualifications, vocational education, and higher education pathways.
For a visual sequence of the full school route rather than qualification checkpoints alone, explore the Education Passports.
Methodology
Qualification pathways are presented using the terminology and route structure documented for each country. Education Benchmark distinguishes pathway explanation from formal recognition and keeps qualification purpose, progression, local variation, reference period, and source limitations visible where they affect interpretation. The site’s broader editorial approach is described on the About Education Benchmark page.