• Australia recognises NCEA Level 3 as broadly equivalent to its Senior Secondary Certificates of Education and accepts it for applications for entry to its universities.

• Britain recognises NCEA Level 3 as broadly equivalent to its General Certificate of Education (GCE) A Level. It is used by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service to evaluate candidates for tertiary education.

• NCEA is also recognised in India, Thailand, Germany and within the European Union through a number of international agreements.

• As the United States has no central agency for tertiary admissions, entry applications are made to individual institutions and often involve entry exams. NCEA Level 3 (with Merit/Excellence endorsements) is usually sufficient for consideration.

NCEA subjects are assessed by both internal assessment and external examination. When enough credits have been accumulated, students are awarded NCEA certificate. High achieving students can get their NCEA qualifications endorsed with a Merit or Excellence rating. While studying towards their NCEA, students can also achieve a University Entrance qualification, the minimum requirement for making an application to study at a New Zealand university.