UK NARIC

•  This organization gives you information on how your qualifications from overseas compare to UK qualifications. For example, they may confirm that a certificate you have from Sweden is at a similar level to an NVQ Level 2 in the UK.

•  You might need to use this service to prove your qualifications, either to an employer or to a college or university.

•  The service only covers qualifications which are recognised as national standards in their own country. The courses must also have been for at least 200 hours in length.

•  You apply for a ‘letter of comparability' through the ‘Standard Evaluation Service'. It costs £47 (£39.95 if you apply online).

•  You need to send your certificate(s) with a translation into English where necessary.

•  UK NARIC also has a ‘Translation Waiver Scheme' which can help if you need to translate certificates into English. It costs an extra £35.25 which is likely to be much cheaper than getting your own translation done. However, it is only available for the following languages: Bulgarian, Catalan, Chinese, Danish, French, German, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish and Russian.

•  It usually takes between 10 and 15 working days to receive your ‘letter of comparability'

•  For more information go to naric.org.uk

Teachers from Overseas

•  If you are qualified as a teacher in the European Union then you are automatically qualified to teach in the UK

•  If you are qualified as a teacher overseas but outside the European Union, you may be able to work in the UK as a temporary teacher.

•  For more information go to tda.gov.uk