SKILLS RECOGNITION

SKILLS RECOGNITION

Empower Skills has tied up with the top Registered Training Organizations (RTO’s) to bring you a wide variety of qualifications to choose from. Our partner RTO’s are extremely professional and their assessors have a world of experience in their qualifications to know and understand your requirements.

Why Choose Empower Skills?

• Huge number of qualifications to choose from
• Faster than classroom study
• Great Service
• Best Price Guaranteed
• Satisfaction Guaranteed

RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING DEFINED

Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is defined in the AQF as follows:

Recognition of prior learning is an assessment process that involves assessment of an individual’s relevant prior learning (including formal, informal and non-formal learning) to determine the credit outcomes of an individual application for credit.

This is underpinned by the AQF definition of credit as follows:

Credit is the value assigned for the recognition of equivalence in content and learning outcomes between different types of learning and/or qualifications. Credit reduces the amount of learning required to achieve a qualification and may be through credit transfer, articulation, recognition of prior learning or advanced standing.

RPL ASSESSMENT METHODS (According to the AQF):

• should include reasonable adjustment for the literacy levels, cultural background and experiences of students, and it should not be a proxy for the assessment of skills such as literacy except where these are intrinsic to the learning outcomes of the qualification component
• should address the specific evidence required to demonstrate prior achievement of the learning outcomes and assessment requirements of the particular qualification components for which credit is sought
• should provide a range of ways for individuals to demonstrate that they have met the required outcomes and can be granted credit. These might include:

• mapping of learning outcomes from prior formal or non-formal learning to the relevant qualification components
• questioning (oral or written)
• Observation of performance in work based and/or simulated environments
• challenge examinations/assessments
• Consideration of third party reports and/or other documentation such as articles, reports, project material, papers, testimonials or other products prepared by the RPL applicant that relate to the learning outcomes of the relevant qualification component
• Consideration of a portfolio and review of contents, andParticipation in structured assessment activities that individuals normally would be required to undertake if they were enrolled in the qualification components.

The assessment outcomes may enable the student to meet the entry requirements and/or components of the qualification. This may reduce the duration of the qualification.

The agreed credit outcomes of the assessment of previous learning through RPL are specific to the individual. They may establish a precedent which can be used for other RPL assessments and potentially form the basis for future credit transfer agreements.

For further information on Recognition of Prior Learning, please visit:

www.aqf.edu.au

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)?

• Recognition of Prior Learning is the process that is used to recognise the skills and knowledge you have acquired through life and work experience (paid or unpaid) and match them to part of, or to a complete qualification.
• Rather than have to start a qualification from scratch, you would be required to provide various forms of evidence to prove you are competent in the units within the qualification.

Being competent means that:

• you can perform a task/job/activity to an industry standard
• you can do it in a consistent way, over time
• you have sufficient knowledge to enable you to perform it in a range of situations.

What are the benefits of Recognition of Prior Learning?

• your skills are formally acknowledged with a nationally recognised qualification.
• you don’t have to waste time studying something you can already do.
• you may have increased career opportunities due to holding a qualification.
• you could open up more career pathways.
• you may complete your qualification more quickly.

What will it cost?

• The cost will vary depending on the qualification and the amount of RPL you undertake.
• You may be required to undertake ‘Gap Training’ to complete the qualification. This is an additional cost to the RPL process.
• Each registered training organisation will charge differently, so please shop around for a price best suited to your budget
• RPL can reduce the cost of your qualification
• Government contributions may be available in particular circumstances. Check with the Registered Training Organisation (RTO) for details.
• RPL will never cost you more than the training it replaces and can cost you a lot less. It will certainly take up less of your time.

What is Gap Training?

If you are unable to provide enough supporting evidence to verify sufficient knowledge in all units of the qualification, you may need to complete some form of Gap Training. In simple terms, it is a way of filling in the relevant gaps within your work history.

These will be provided by the Assessor, and depending on the qualification, it can be completed “on the job” or in your own time as a self-paced process. The tools and resources for Gap Training will relate directly to the unit/s which is/are outstanding.

Gap Training is usually conducted online through our eLearning portal; your assessor will enrol you in the unit/units that were deemed “Not Yet Competent”. You will receive support from your assessor while completing your online study, which may include assessment methods such as case studies, Q and A activities, projects and assignments.

Once Gap Training has been completed, the assessments are reviewed by the assessor and you will be advised on whether you have successfully completed the training. You are given alternative assessment methods if skills are not up to the required level. If you are still unable to successfully complete the Gap Training, then a Statement of Attainment is issued listing the completed Units.

Additional charges may apply for Gap Training.

How much time will the RPL process take?

The self-evaluation exercise on this site should only take you about 10-15 minutes to complete.  However, Recognition of Prior Learning with a training organisation does take time, but much less time than completing a full course from start to finish with no prior experience. To have skills formally recognised in the national system, assessors must make sure you have the skills and knowledge to meet the industry standard. The assessor at the registered training organisation will work with you through the RPL process. This means you must be involved in a careful and comprehensive process that covers the content of all unit/s or qualification/s you can be recognised for.

Tips and hints to help you prepare for your RPL process

Here are some tips and hints to prepare you for a recognition process.

• The evidence you provide must be valid. It must relate to the specific competency unit that has been identified
• The evidence must be authentic. It must be something you have produced or has been written about you
• Evidence must be sufficient and demonstrate complete competency against the information that underpins a competency statement
• The evidence must be reliable. It must show that you can consistently perform a given competency to the required standard
• Evidence must be current. This is a particularly important aspect as you must be able to demonstrate your evidence is still relevant to the skills and knowledge you have.
• Be prepared to talk about your current job role, responsibilities and work history.
• Bring a resume or notes about where you have worked, either paid or unpaid, and what you did there.
• Bring your position description and any performance appraisals from the last two years.
• Collect any certificates from in-house training or formal training you have undertaken in the past.
• Consider the possibilities for workplace contact. Would you feel comfortable having the assessor contact your workplace so your skills can be validated?
• Think about who can confirm your skill level. This could be current or recent supervisors, but you may also have other people who can vouch for your skill level. The assessor will need to contact them.
• There may be other documents demonstrating your skills such as letters from employers, records of your professional development sessions or acknowledgments from employers or clients.

Empower Skills is not a Registered Training Organisation. We do not conduct any form of assessment. Since our coordinators are certified and experienced in the entire process, we do advice you about the entire process and could guide you at every stage. We however, have no influence or say in the actual assessment process.