Background: The quality of teachers in higher education is subject of increasing attention, as exemplified by the development and implementation of guidelines for teacher qualifications at Universities in The Netherlands.

Aim: Because medical education takes a special position in higher education the Council of Deans of Medical Schools in The Netherlands installed a national task force to explore a method to weigh criteria for teacher qualifications of medical teachers.

Methods: A framework was developed covering competencies of teachers throughout the medical education continuum and including medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine.

Results: The framework distinguishes 3 dimensions: (a) six domains of teaching (development - organization - execution - coaching - assessment - evaluation); (b) three levels in the organization at which teachers perform (micro, meso and macro level) and (c) competencies as integration of knowledge, skills and attitude and described as behaviour in specific context. The current framework is the result of several cycles of descriptions, feedback from the field and adaptations. It is meant as a guideline, leaving room for local detailing.

Conclusion: The framework provides a common language that may be used not only by teachers and teacher trainers, but also by quality assurance committees, human resource managers and institutional boards.