UNIcert® is an open educational system aimed at the target group of university students – non-philologists, who are provided with a general, comprehensive and transparent system of language learning and verification of acquired language competence.
Its aim is to acquire and develop students’ ability to cope with the linguistic situations they may find themselves in while studying at universities at home and in the countries where the target language is spoken or lectured. It also implies a certain degree of familiarity with general cultural differences with regard to the cultural specificities of the field of study or the country concerned.
The UNIcert®, as a certificate of a certain level of linguistic competence, applicable in a broad, not only European, context, has the prospect of becoming a document that will ensure its holders not only participation in foreign language studies and mobility programmes, but also the possibility of gaining or retaining employment.
The UNIcert® Framework Guidelines are a set of guidelines agreed by the institutions participating in the programme. On the basis of these guidelines, the relevant institutions wishing to award UNIcert® certificates will draw up their own examination regulations and curricula, taking into account local conditions and priorities.
Due to the above-mentioned advantages, such as the openness of the education system and the target focus on university students, the UNIcert® system is gradually becoming an internationally recognised proof of language proficiency, which is also used by higher education institutions not only from Germany but also from other EU Member States and Georgia. It is currently represented by a group of 65 universities. As the UNIcert® system is applied in higher education, it develops the ability of trainees to cope with communication situations during their studies, practice and employment that are relevant to their educational qualifications. UNIcert® is the only system that reflects the specific needs, objectives, methodological practices and methods typical of students in different fields of study.
The UNIcert® system respects the categorisation of levels of communicative competence according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages as a basic document. Level B1 corresponds to UNIcert® I, level B2 to UNIcert® II, level C1 to UNIcert® III and level C2 to UNIcert® IV. Although a CEFR A1 level is not sufficient for study or work requiring proficiency in a foreign language, it serves as a starting point for further development and is referred to as UNIcert® Basic.
The main objective of the UNIcert® system is to improve the quality of language teaching programmes, from their design, through implementation in all aspects, to the evaluation of the achieved goals. At the same time, the system takes into account the efficiency and effectiveness of language programme delivery. A significant benefit of the introduction of UNIcert®, which no other system has, is that it creates a platform for collaboration between a very large group of teachers of professional languages in higher education. Not only their quality but also their quantity allows to address in a targeted way the diverse and numerous aspects of foreign language teaching in universities, both in terms of professional and academic needs.