ECTS credits: what are they for?

If you are looking to enrol in a university degree course, you will surely have heard of ECTS credits, and consequently you will have wondered what they are and what they are for in terms of higher education.

Below, we will show you all the information you need to know in order to obtain any type of qualification. According to the means provided by university education.

What are ECTS credits?

First of all, we must objectively define what ECTS credits are. In short, they have the function of unifying criteria when quantifying all the work done by university students. Specifically evaluating the different subjects of the degrees included in the EHEA (European Higher Education Area).

Thanks to this type of credits you can finally get an allocation in the ranking of available study centres. This must have an unequivocal equivalence in ECTS credits that accredits the acquired competences. This is the same in all countries adhering to the Bologna Declaration.

Thus, the state can ensure that mobility and opportunities are the same in all European universities.

What are they for?

As previously mentioned, this type of credit unit serves to democratise higher education. It objectively quantifies the access of many people to training and opportunities at European universities.

You don’t have to worry too much, as these types of credits are accredited according to the judgements of the institutions themselves. So just by the fact that you are enrolled in this programme, and you are listed in the registers, you are already being allocated credits according to the rules imposed by the state.

How many ECTS is one academic year?

The equivalence changes significantly depending on the institution you want to enrol in. But, to give a point of reference, we could look at the following example:

In the case of the Autonomous University of Madrid, a criterion has been established with respect to the house of study’s own credits having the proportion of 6/4.5 with respect to the ECTS credits.

However, at the University of Seville, one ECTS credit changes significantly. It has been established that one ECTS is equivalent to 25 hours of work by the student in accordance with the quantification of the university’s own qualifications.

Can they be accumulated?

In view of the fact that these credits ensure you a greater number of opportunities as a student, you may be interested to find out whether they can be accumulated. And according to the rules, these credits do not accumulate beyond university terms.

In total, each degree course consists of a total of 240 ECTS university credits spread over a period of four years. After obtaining and accreditation, each student is qualified for professional practice in his or her chosen academic field. Such as the following branches: Medicine, Law, Psychology, Nursing, among many other options.

In any case, we strongly recommend that you check with the relevant department of your university to find out more. So that you can objectively accredit whether you have achieved a good position in terms of university credits.

 University activities to earn ECTS

For the purposes of the current regulations, these credits admit a certain equivalence with respect to the fees of the official degrees, which almost always do not exceed the specific amounts of the old bachelor’s degrees and diplomas.

In any case, the system of public prices is controlled by the autonomous communities, which can increase the fees by between 1.5 and 5.5, which is the range established by the Ministry of Education.

Therefore, if you want to get these credits to improve your academic index by participating in extracurricular or university activities, such as the following:

Attending lectures and/or any activity within the university campus itself.
Doing voluntary work
Taking courses outside the curriculum that allow you to develop specific skills that are especially useful for your degree. For example, you can study a course in pharmacy sales techniques as a complement to your degree.
You can also do this through internships in specialised companies.
However, you can also choose to study other degrees for which there are equivalences between subjects.

In short, there are many questions to be answered regarding the ECTS, so whenever you have any doubts, contact the corresponding department at your university and you will be able to obtain all the necessary information.