Jargon buster
You’ll hear a lot of terms being used about skills recognition. Here are some that you should understand.
Assessment
Assessment is a process in which you gather evidence to show an assessor that you are competent. Assessors can help you work out the kind of evidence to gather.
Competence
Competence is a mix of knowledge, technical skills, understanding, problem solving and attitudes that you need to be successful at work. Employers have worked with all Australian governments to decide the competencies needed in their industry. Your competence will be measured by an ‘assessor’ in an RTO. The assessor will assess you against relevant units of competency.
Elements
Each unit of competency is made up of elements which describe the key activities of the unit.
Nationally recognised qualification
A formal certification that is recognised nationally and awarded under the Australian Qualifications Framework for the achievement of competencies.
Performance criteria
Each element has performance criteria which specify the standards of performance expected for that element.
Registered Training Organisation (RTO)
An RTO is an organisation registered nationally to issue nationally recognised qualifications or statements of attainment for units of competency from training packages or accredited courses. This is the organisation that offers you recognition and assists you through the process. There are a variety of RTOs you can choose from, some may specialise in your industry area. RTOs consist of Private Providers (who vary in size), Community Colleges, Enterprise RTOs, TAFE and some universities.
Statement of Attainment
This is a statement to say you have part of a qualification. You may not need a whole qualification, depending on your job, so a statement of attainment may be more relevant to you. Statements of attainment recognise that you have achieved certain ‘units of competency’.
Unit of competency
This describes the standard of performance expected by industry for certain work functions e.g. driving a forklift, operating a bar or communicating in the workplace. Every qualification and statement of attainment offered by Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) is made up of units of competency.
For more general information, see the glossary of vocational education and training terms on the Department of Education and Training (DEST) website.
