In upper secondary schools (e.g. colleges and vocational/internship programs,) each course is assessed in upper secondary school credits.

• One full-time academic year is equivalent to 60 credits.
• Most classes are valued between 2–10 credits, depending on the amount of teaching and work they require.
• To complete a matriculation examination, a student usually needs around 200 credits (depending on the school and course of study.)

Universities use ECTS-credits (European Credit Transfer System,) a European system that makes it possible to compare studies between universities.

• 60 ECTS credits correspond to one year of full-time study.
• One course can, for example, be 5 or 10 ECTS credits.
• To complete a BA or BS degree, a student generally needs 180 ECTS credits, and a Master's degree (MA/MS) adds 60–120 ECTS credits.

American and British universities use different credit systems, which are also eligible for grants. 

American universities use Credit hours, where 1 U.S. credit hour ≈ 2 ECTS.

British universities use UK Credits or CATS (Credit Accumulation and Transfer Scheme), where 2 UK credits ≈ 1 ECTS.

Studies, courses or exams that provide formal professional qualifications to work, teach, or practice a specific profession in a certified manner are classified as additional qualifications.
These qualifications grant permission to work in a specific profession, undertake teaching or services that require special qualifications, or use the qualifications as a professional in a specific job.

Additional qualifications can be both legally protected (e.g., driver's license, trades, and certified accountant) and non-legally protected but still professionally recognised (e.g., yoga teacher training, certified coach, or PGA golf instructor training.)