1. 24th Annual General Meeting of Society of Mining Professors
26 - 29 June 2013, Milos island, Greece
21
Mining education and qualification framework in Estonia
G. Grossfeldt, I. Valgma and M. Kolats
Tallinn University of Technology, Department of Mining, Estonia
ABSTRACT
Higher mining education is 75 years old in Estonia. It started in 1938 when the Department of
Mining was created in Tallinn University of
Technology.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in
1991, the qualification certification was reorganized. In 2001, the building up of qualification standards for mining engineers was restarted to provide a process and framework for the
authorization of equipment, competencies, procedures and management systems to satisfy legislative requirements and responsibilities. The
first positive outcomes were in 2010 when first
standard for mining engineers was accepted by
The Estonian Qualifications Authority (trademark - Kutsekoda). At this point Estonia has an
8-level comprehensive national qualifications
framework, which consists of four subframeworks: for general education, for vocational education and training (VET), for higher
education and for occupational qualifications
with sub-framework specific level descriptors.
Meanwhile cooperation with international project called EUExNet was used to create explosive engineering qualification standards. The
standards were basis of current curricula called
Geotechnology that is used for preparing mining
engineers. There are still language, political and
business interests that have to be agreed in the
framework.
In 2012 first mining engineers in Estonia
were qualified to the EQF highest level - 8.
1. INTRODUCTION
In Estonian occupational qualifications system
the labor market is divided into 16 sectors (on
the bases of statistical classification of economic fields in Estonia) and each sector is managed
by a sector skills council.
Institutions represented in sector skills councils are nominated by the Government (10-20
institutions) and persons representing these institutions are nominated by the Minister of Education and Research. Typically institutions represented in sector skills councils are: employers
organizations of the sector; trade unions of the
sector; professional associations of the sector;
education and training institutions; responsible
ministries.
The objective of the sector skills council is to
register the viewpoints and suggestions of different institutions and to achieve a consensus
upon working out, developing and implementing the occupational qualifications system of the
sector. One of the 16 sector skill councils are
Energy, Mining and Chemical Industry.
Cooperation between sector skills councils
coordinates the Board of Chairmen of Sector
Skills Councils (BCSSC). BCSSC decides on
the allocation of the initial occupational qualifications in the EstQF and the need to develop
higher qualification levels, and approves the
need for the development of the occupational
qualification standards.
The awarding body is a legal entity nominated by sector skills council. To ensure impartiality in awarding occupational qualifications, the
awarding body shall set up an occupational
qualification committee that shall consist of the
parties interested in awarding occupational qualifications in the given field: specialists, employers, employees, trainers, representatives of professional associations and, if necessary, repre-

2. 22
24th Annu General Meeting of Society of Mining Professors
ual
o
P
s
26 - 29 June 2013, Milos islan Greece
nd,
e
sentatives o clients, a well as other intere sted
of
as
o
parties.
alification a educati timelin is
and
ion
ne
The qua
based on th productio of Eston
he
on
nian main m
minerals produ
uction timel
line, curren mainly oil
ntly
y
shale (Fig 1). Probl
g.
lems, inter
rnationaliza
ation
and educati are well synchroniz
ion
l
zed.
In order to be gran
r
nted the righ to award ocht
ons
en
ition
cupational qualificatio an ope competi
da
d.
arranged by Kutsekod shall be completed A
legal person or author that has been decla
n
rity
s
ared
a winner by a decision of a secto skills cou
y
n
or
uncil
in a public competitio and that has the co
c
on
orresponding re
egistration in the regis of occu
ster
upational qual
lifications m
may act as an award
s
ding
body.
In order to be gran
r
nted the righ of an awa
ht
arding instituti the orga
ion
anization must prepare the
m
e
rules and p
procedure f awardin the occu
for
ng
upational qualifications a to set up an occu
and
upational quali
ification com
mmittee.
In sprin 2012 E
ng
Estonian Mining Soc
M
ciety
(EMS) won the compe
n
etition and was granted the
w
d
right to aw
ward occup
pational qua
alifications for
five years in the field o mining en
n
of
ngineering.
The asse
essment is to be done according to the
o
a
o
Occupation Qualifica
nal
ations Act. Estonian Q
Qualification Fr
ramework (
(EstQF) ha 8 levels, the
as
first of whi is the lo
ich
owest and th eighth is the
he
s
highest. Th descript
he
tions of the qualifica
ation
levels are id
dentical wit the Europ
th
pean Qualif
fication Frame
ework (EQF level des
F)
scriptions. The
EQF is a reference fra
amework of different forion
cations (gen
neral educat
tion,
mal educati qualific
vocational education a training, higher edu
and
ucation) and o
occupationa qualifica
al
ations (sect
toral
qualificatio
ons). The EQF links th qualifica
he
ation
systems of the EU M
f
Member Sta
ates and ma
akes
qua
alifications of different countries more mutut
ally understand
y
dable and co
omparable.
Table 1 pre
T
esents the r
results of as
ssigning the
e
Est
tQF levels to Estonian formal edu
ucation qualific
cations.
2. MINING QU
M
UALIFICA
ATION FRA
AMEWO
ORK
2.1 Purpose
The main pur
e
rpose for th qualifica
he
ation framework in minin engineer
ng
ring is to increase the
i
e
com
mpetitivenes of Eston
ss
nian employ
yees; to promo the deve
ote
elopment, a
assessment, recognition
n
and compariso of their occupatio
d
on
r
onal competence; to make occupation qualifications inter
e
nal
rnationally com
mparable an mining related com
nd
r
mpan have to assign a re
nies
o
esponsible specialist to
o
gua
arantee the safety of w
workers and mining operations by the law of min
e
ning.
It is regulat by a law because mining is a
I
ted
aw
dan
ngerous field.
Table 1: EstQF le
evels to Estoni formal edu
ian
ucation qualificat
tions.
Figure 1: Oil shale mining rate in Estoni
ia.
Ba education certificate
asic
ba
ased on curric
culum for stu
ude with mod
ents
derate and se
evere
lea
arning disabi
ilities
Ba education certificate
asic
ba
ased on simpl
lified curricu
ulum
Ba education certificate
asic
VE without basic educati
ET
b
ion
req
quirement ce
ertificate
VE based on basic educat
ET
tion
certificate
Up
pper seconda general e
ary
education certifica
ate
Up
pper seconda VET cert
ary
tificate
VE based on basic educat
ET
tion
certificate
Di
iploma of Ba
achelor´s deg
gree
Di
iploma of pro
ofessional hi
igher
ed
ducation
Di
iploma of Ma
aster´s degre
ee
Di
iploma of Do
octoral degre
ee
EstQ
QF
level
l
EQF
level
1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
Fo
ormal educati qualifica
ion
ations
5
6
6
7
8
7
8

3. 24th Annual General Meeting of Society of Mining Professors
26 - 29 June 2013, Milos island, Greece
23
Table 2: Statistics of the Geotechnology curricula.
Master degree
Bachelor degree
PhD degree
Master students start
Bachelor students start
Doctoral students start
Master students quota of start
Bachelor students quota of start
Doctoral students quota of start
2005
5
21
1
15
24
2
13
24
1
2006
4
13
0
12
15
3
14
14
1
2007
5
21
1
18
11
4
18
24
1
2.2 Mining occupational qualifications system
Mining occupational qualifications system is
based on the EQF levels. We have a standard
for mining engineers at the levels of 6, 7 and 8.
EQF level 6 (bachelor of mining engineering) is
named a mining engineer, level 7 (master of
mining engineering) is named a Diploma Mining Engineer and level 8 (doctor of mining engineering) is named a Chartered Mining Engineer.
The standard contains different parts: *Part A
- description of the occupation), provides an
overview of the nature of work, major parts of
work and tasks, necessary tools, etc. *Part B - is
a basis for the assessment of the applicant and
Part C - contains general information about the
2008
3
8
4
6
10
3
26
24
1
2009
5
4
0
13
17
3
20
24
1
2010
10
6
2
12
21
2
22
29
1
2011
4
2
2
6
23
5
23
29
1
2012 Average
11
6
10
11
1
1
11
12
27
19
1
3
16
19
28
25
1
1
qualification. The standard contains different
fields of mining (quarrying, underground mining, planning etc.) the highest level (8) has also
the highest responsibilities. Since 2012 there are
2 chartered mining engineers in Estonia.
In addition to the mining engineers’ standard
we also have a level 5 occupational standard for
shift foremen who have the right to work in
more dangerous fields in sand and gravel pits.
Since 2012, there are 9 shift foremen working in
Estonia who have received the professional certificate.
3. MINING EDUCATION - GEOTECHNOLOGY CURRICULA
Mining education was started in 1938 and the
mining curriculum has had different focusses
30
Master students start
Master degree
Bachelor students start
25
Bachelor degree
Doctoral students start
20
PhD degree
Master students quota of start
Bachelor students quota of start
15
Doctoral students quota of start
10
5
0
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
Figure 2: Statistics of Geotechnology curricular students.
2010
2011
2012

4. 24
24th Annual General Meeting of Society of Mining Professors
26 - 29 June 2013, Milos island, Greece
like mining engineering of flat deposits, electrical and mining engineering etc. The trend has
been from specific to general. Geotechnology
curricula started in 2002, it was modified in
2009. In 2013 the curricula is under the evaluation and modified to adjust the new qualification
framework for mining. Our curriculum is internationally accredited. Beside the modifications
in the geotehnology curricula a new international masters curricula is in development and
should be opened in 2014.
Geotechnology curricula has about 120 students total in three levels in 2013. It divides between degrees 10 doctoral students, 30 master
students and 80 bachelor students. Statistics are
made over the last 8 years (Table 2, Fig. 2). The
average quota of starting the studies in the Geotechnology curricula is 19 students in master
degree, 25 students in bachelor degree and 1
student in doctoral degree in one year. The average number of students who have started studies for a master’s degree is 12, for a bachelor’s
degree is 19 and for a doctoral degree is 3. The
average number of students who have received a
master’s degree is 6, a bachelor’s degree is 10
and a PhD degree is 1.
4. CONCLUSION
Mining education and qualification framework
in Estonia is in constant change and development. First qualifications have been awarded
and the system has changed from eastern to European.
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http://www.kutsekoda.en