Slovenian education system

The school system in Slovenia is divided into three sections of education: primary, secondary and tertiary.

Primary education is provided by public and private kindergartens, basic schools, basic schools with an adapted education programme, music schools and educational institutions for children with special educational needs.

Secondary education is provided by upper secondary schools and secondary schools. It is classified as general or vocational technical and secondary professional or technical education.

The third segment of education, tertiary education, is provided by both public and private institutions. It consists of higher post-secondary vocational education and higher education. Higher post-secondary vocational education is provided by higher vocational colleges, while higher education is provided by faculties, academies and independent higher education institutions.

• Primary education
  • early childhood education and care
  • basic education
  • music education
• Upper secondary education
• Tertiary education 
  • short-cycle higher vocational education
  • higher education
• Adult education
• Special needs education

Slovenian Qualifications Framework

The Slovenian Qualifications Framework (SQF) is a uniform system of qualifications in the Republic of Slovenia aimed at outlining the educational and other qualifications available in Slovenia and the mutual comparability of different qualifications. The basic function of the Slovenian and other national qualification frameworks is to clarify the horizontal and vertical relationships between different types of qualifications, certificates and degrees/diplomas. They consist of level descriptors, where each level descriptor is defined by learning outcomes.

Learning outcomes are thus the central foundation, term, concept and criterion of national qualifications framework on which depend the effectiveness and transparency of national frameworks and the implementation of the European qualifications framework in the EU member states. The purpose of the SQF is to achieve transparency and recognisability of qualifications in Slovenia and the EU, while its basic objectives are to support lifelong learning, to integrate and harmonise Slovenia's qualifications subsystems and to improve the transparency, accessibility and quality of qualifications with regard to the labour market and civil society.

The SQF thus enables the verification of the level of an individual's education or qualification in the European Qualifications Framework (EQF) or Framework for Qualifications of the European Higher Education Area (FQ-EHEA).

The SQF is a framework of communication with a limited scope for reform. Sectoral legislation and the classification system of education and training (hereinafter referred to as: KLASIUS) serve as a  starting point for the classification of qualifications into the SQF.

Slovenian Qualifications Framework Act

The Act determines the Slovenian Qualification Framework (SQF), basic concepts (qualification, learning outcome, competence, etc.), the referencing of qualifications from the SQF to the European Qualifications Framework for Lifelong Learning (EQF) and the Qualifications Framework of the European Higher Education Area (FQ-EHEA), procedures and competences regarding the placement/referencing of qualifications, the establishment of a National Coordination Point for the SQF and EQF, and record keeping (SQF qualifications register).

Quality assurance in higher education

The Slovenian Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education – SQAA provides for the development and operation of the quality assurance system in Slovenian higher education. It operates with substantive and formal responsibility and provides guidance for all stakeholders and participants in tertiary education, in accordance with European and global development orientations.