Worked example · Queensland only
The Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) is earned by accumulating credits. A VET qualification contributes credits, but credit categories differ. This page uses Queensland as a worked example; each state has its own rules.
20 / 12
20 credits in total, and 12 of them must be completed Core credits.
Up to 8
A completed Shafston qualification contributes up to 8 credits.
Of the 20 credits, 12 must be completed Core credits. The remaining 8 are open.
12 slots: completed Core only8 slots: open
The open 8 can come from Core, Preparatory (max 4) or Complementary (max 8). A student whose courses are all Core can fill all 20 that way.
Additional requirements
Courses fall into three categories. All earn credits, but only Core credits count towards the required 12. Shafston’s Certificate III is Core; the Diploma is not.
Course categories
General and Applied subjects, Certificate II
Certificate III and IV: up to 8 credits
Literacy and Numeracy Short Courses, Certificate I
University subjects studied at school
Diploma: up to 8 credits
Where the credits go
Core can fill these 12. Fully completed; recorded in the learning account. A half-finished course cannot go here.
All three can fill these 8. Core can sit here too; Preparatory: 4 at most; Complementary: 8 at most.
The Diploma is a higher level, but the QCAA classifies it as Complementary, not Core. It still earns up to 8 credits, but these cannot count towards the required 12 Core credits. Students taking the Diploma need their 12 Core credits from other subjects.
Most schools run six subject lines. Replacing one line with a Shafston Certificate III:
Pattern A · six General subjects
GeneralGeneralGeneralGeneralGeneralGeneral24
Pattern B · the sixth line becomes a Certificate III
GeneralGeneralGeneralGeneralGeneralCertificate III · 8 credits · Core28
Credits assume every unit is completed at the set standard.
This adds 4 credits, removes one external assessment and adds a nationally recognised qualification. With the Diploma, the total is also 28, but its 8 credits fall in the open group. The Diploma therefore suits students whose 12 Core credits are already secure.
Credits depend on the nominal hours of the qualification.
| 440 hours or more | 8 credits |
| 385 – 439 hours | 7 credits |
| 330 – 384 hours | 6 credits |
| Under 330 hours | 5 credits |
A partly finished Certificate III or IV earns credit in 25 per cent steps, and it is recorded. Only a fully completed qualification can fill one of the first 12 slots.
Literacy and numeracy requirements can only be met through options listed by the QCAA, such as an English or Mathematics subject or the Short Courses. No VET qualification meets them. A Shafston course replaces a sixth subject line, not English or Mathematics.
The learning account stays open for nine years and can be reopened later; credits already earned are kept. The missing ones can be added afterwards: as an adult student at a state high school or school of distance education, through a QCAA Short Course, or by completing a VET qualification. Because a completed Certificate III or IV earns up to 8 Core credits, it is usually the quickest route. The QCAA issues the certificate in the July or December after the requirements are met.