ETITO is the recognised standards setting body for our industries. That means we develop and maintain competence [or unit] standards and national qualifications to meet the skills needs of our industries.  

Unit Standards

A unit standard simply describes what you need to know or be able to do to be competent in a particular skill area. Each unit standard has a credit value and once a trainee is assessed as being competent in that particular skill area, they gain credits. To achieve a national qualification, a trainee must successfully complete the required number of credits.

National Qualifications

National qualifications are made up of unit standards and are set at different levels to indicate the degree of difficulty. There are three kinds of national qualifications:

• National Certificates – levels 1-4
• National Diplomas – levels 5-6
• Degrees and Post Graduate Programmes – levels 7-10

The National Qualifications Framework [NQF]

All unit standards and national qualifications developed by ETITO are registered on the New Zealand Qualifications Authority's National Qualifications Framework.

As trainees achieve unit standards, their details are listed on a ‘Record of Learning’, held on a national database by NZQA. This can be accessed via the internet so trainees can keep track of their achievements.  Credits can be accumulated over a number of years and from a variety of training providers, until a qualification is completed.