• Home
• Executive summary
• Background
• Definitions - learning objectives, outcomes and competences
• The Tuning Project (Medicine)

• The Tuning Learning Outcomes/ Competences for Primary Medical Degrees in Europe

  Level 1 Level 2

• Comment
• Using the Tuning (Medicine) learning outcomes
• References
• Appendix A
• Appendix B
• Appendix C
• Acknowledgements

Executive Summary

The Tuning Project began in 2000 as an initiative funded by the European Commission to develop common core learning outcomes/competences for degree programmes in Europe. It aimed to promote harmonisation in the Higher Education sector in support of the Bologna Declaration and subsequent developments.

Beginning in 2004, the Tuning (Medicine) Task Force has now generated and gained widespread consensus on a set of learning outcomes for primary medical degree qualifications in Europe. The work has been done under the auspices of the MEDINE Thematic Network for Medical Education in Europe, and was funded by the European Commission. The outcomes take account of previous work on learning outcomes in medicine. They have been generated through an extensive iterative process of expert review and development, and have been the subject of a Europe-wide internet-based opinion survey and subsequent detailed analysis. These have now been approved by the MEDINE Thematic Network and validated by an Expert Panel.

The outcomes are expressed as a two-level model, with 12 major ‘Level 1’ outcomes, each being further defined by a set of more detailed ‘Level 2’ outcomes. A further set of outcomes has been defined under the heading “Medical professionalism” – many of which are common to graduates of other disciplines in Higher Education. The Level 1 outcomes and ‘Medical professionalism’ are suitable for implementation as “curriculum themes”, and applications such as blue-printing of assessment programmes. The Level 2 outcomes may be used to determine discrete items of teaching, learning and assessment.

The outcomes are available for use by educational managers in curriculum planning, or as part of quality enhancement or quality assurance processes. These would provide the core learning outcomes of a primary medical degree programme, although each country, medical school and student would also be expected to achieve additional learning outcomes tailored to their local and individual needs. If applied appropriately and linked to effective assessment, this approach allows each school or country to have a distinct profile and to focus on particular areas of strength (e.g. research, professionalism, patient safety) while still ensuring that all of their graduates are fit for practice as a doctor in Europe.