European qualifications passport for refugees

Abstract

Asylum seekers and refugees usually face problems with qualifications recognition that obstructs their access to the host country labour market. The Council of Europe/UNESCO Lisbon Recognition Convention regulates "procedures designed to assess fairly and expeditiously whether refugees, displaced persons and persons in a refugee-like situation fulfil the relevant requirements for access to higher education". Recently, the Council of Europe embarked on development of the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees. The idea was to introduce a document providing an assessment of the higher education qualifications based on available documentation and a structured interview. This document would present information on the applicant's work experience, language proficiency and provide reliable information for integration and progression towards employment and admission to further studies. The European Qualifications Passport would enable faster and smoother integration, particularly for those categories of internationally protected persons who cannot fully document their qualifications. This paper examines the legal basis on the European Qualifications Passport, institutional framework and possible implications for all host countries. The qualitative research provides an indepth analysis of legal and regulatory framework applicable to qualification recognition. The paper may contribute to ongoing discussion on integration of asylum seekers and refugees.

The challenges surrounding recognition of prior learning for refugees in European universities

“…In addition to the Refugee Convention, the 1997 Lisbon Recognition Convention regulated that the Parties should develop processes and policies to recognise prior learning in a fair and quick manner even when refugees are unable to provide supporting documents. Unfortunately, data shows that most European countries have not fully implemented these recommendations so far (Spadina, 2018).…”

“…The new Qualifications passport process was so successful that the Council of Europe decided in 2017 to scale up this initiative to a European Qualifications Passport (Spadina, 2018). The European Qualifications Passport is a document obtained through an alternative process of RPL based on interviews with applicants to gather information on their level of language, skills, and prior qualifications.…”