Glossary:International standard classification of education (ISCED)

From Statistics Explained

The International standard classification of education, abbreviated as ISCED, is an instrument for compiling internationally comparable education statistics.

The current version, ISCED 1997, covers two cross-classification variables: levels and fields of education as well as general/vocational/prevocational orientation and educational/labour market destination. ISCED 1997 was implemented in European Union countries for collecting data starting with the 1997/98 school year.

Levels of education

Empirically, ISCED assumes that there are several criteria that can help allocate education programmes to levels of education. Depending on the level and type of education concerned, there is a need to establish a hierarchical ranking system between main and subsidiary criteria (typical entrance qualification, minimum entrance requirement, minimum age, staff qualification, etc.).

There are seven levels of education in ISCED 1997:

• Level 0: Pre-primary education – the initial stage of organised instruction; it is school- or centre-based and is designed for children aged at least 3 years.

• Level 1: Primary education – begins between 5 and 7 years of age, is the start of compulsory education where it exists and generally covers six years of full-time schooling.

• Level 2: Lower secondary education – continues the basic programmes of the primary level, although teaching is typically more subject-focused. Usually, the end of this level coincides with the end of compulsory education.

• Level 3: Upper secondary education – generally begins at the end of compulsory education. The entrance age is typically 15 or 16 years. Entrance qualifications (end of compulsory education) and other minimum entry requirements are usually needed. Instruction is often more subject-oriented than at ISCED level 2. The typical duration of ISCED level 3 varies from two to five years.

• Level 4: Post-secondary non-tertiary education – found somewhere between upper secondary and tertiary education. They serve to broaden the knowledge of ISCED level 3 graduates. Typical examples are programmes designed to prepare pupils for studies at level 5 or programmes designed to prepare pupils for direct labour market entry.

• Level 5: Tertiary education (first stage) – entry to these programmes normally requires the successful completion of ISCED level 3 or 4. This includes tertiary programmes with academic orientation (type A) which are largely theoretical and tertiary programmes with an occupational orientation (type B). The latter are typically shorter than type A programmes and aimed at preparing students for the labour market.

• Level 6: Tertiary education (second stage) – reserved for tertiary studies that lead to an advanced research qualification (Ph.D. or doctorate).

ISCED 1997 has introduced level 4: post-secondary non-tertiary education (previously included in ISCED levels 3 and 5), which has affected the comparability of chronological series, especially for level 3 (upper secondary education) and for level 5 (tertiary education).

Fields of education

The ISCED classification comprises 22 fields of education in all (at two-digit level), which can be further refined into the three-digit level. At the highest one-digit level the following eight broad groups of fields of education are distinguished:

• 1 Education
• 2 Humanities and arts
• 3 Social sciences, business and law
• 4 Science
• 5 Engineering, manufacturing and construction
• 6 Agriculture
• 7 Health and welfare
• 8 Services

Further Eurostat information

• International Standard Classification of Education, 1997 version (RAMON Classifications database)

External links

• UNESCO - International Standard Classification of Education I S C E D 1997
• UNESCO Institute for Statistics - International Standard Classification of Education - ISCED 1997 (including download as pdf in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Arabic and Chinese)