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Your skills and gaps
With a little preparation, you can work out whether it is worthwhile to proceed with a formal application for skills recognition. The more prepared you are, the quicker and easier the process will be if you decide to go ahead.
You need to think about your skills and the gaps in your skills. When you search for a Registered Training Organisation (RTO), you want to find one that will recognise the skills you already have and also train you in the gaps if you want a whole qualification.
You know now what qualification you want and maybe what level would suit you. To prepare for your application for skills recognition, you need to think about the skills you need for that qualification.
Once you start jotting down what your skills are and what you still need to learn, you are taking the first step to preparing for your meeting with an assessor at an RTO. The assessor will be interested in what you explain about your skills and they will want you to prove that you have those skills. To do that, you will need to provide a portfolio of evidence – things like references, payslips, even photos of yourself doing a task on the job.
Study areas on Prove It
- Aged Care
- Automotive Mechanical
- Beauty
- Children's Services
- Community Services
- Disability Work
- Financial Services
- Training & Assessment
A website called Prove It! can help you start to build a portfolio of evidence to prepare you for your recognition application through a Registered Training Organisation. It’s free and easy to use but it doesn’t apply to all qualifications.
You may also find Skillsbook helpful. This is a more comprehensive service with some functions at no cost and others, like producing reports, incurring a fee, so you’ll need to assess the value of it for you before proceeding.
Skillsbook helps you to:
- Work out which qualification and which units of competency you should apply for recognition in
- Determine what types of evidence you may be able to provide
- Determine your best-match to qualifications based on the skills you think you have
- See in which areas you might require further training
- Build an online portfolio and skillsbook
- Communicate with teachers, students and friends
The service includes a help function both online and via a 1300 telephone service.
Match your existing skills with a qualification
Help with searching NTIS website
To find a Unit of Competency or Qualification -
1. Click on the ‘Search’ button from the main menu on the NTIS homepage;
2. Enter the Unit of Competency or Qualification name or code within the ‘Search For’ textbox;
3. Select the ‘Units of Competency’ checkbox or the ‘Qualifications’ checkbox from under the ‘Search in’ header, depending on what you are searching for;
4. Click on the ‘Search’ button.
Note: If you are prompted with a download page, you will need to download the entire Training Package to view the Unit of Competency or Qualification.
If the Unit of Competency or Qualification is from a Training Package that is fully searchable, then you will be automatically presented with the information after clicking on the relevant title from the search results.
Source – NTIS Quick Reference Guide
You decide it’s worthwhile applying for skills recognition because you already have several relevant skills. Now you’re ready to take the next step: preparing a list of your skills and experience and matching them with specific ‘units of competency’ for the qualification you want.
A unit of competency is 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 RTOs is made up of units of competency which in turn include learning outcomes. These are agreed on by Australian industries and government. They are defined to match precise workplace needs, so you need to know what they are before you can decide which ones your skills are matched to.
When you apply for skills recognition, you are asking the RTO to recognise your skills in a particular unit of competency. To be recognised, your application needs to show your skills according to that unit. Units also contain elements, performance criteria and evidence guides that will help you to understand the type and standard of skills required.
To find out what the competencies are for the qualification you’re seeking, you can go to the National Training Information Service (NTIS). This website can be complex to use because it was designed for people working in the training industry. Once you’re used to it though, you will find it gives you exactly the information you need to prepare for your assessment for skills recognition.
Don't give up if you don't understand the NTIS site. When you choose an RTO your assessor will be able to help you match your skills to units of competency in the qualification you're seeking.
Some large RTOs also have information on their website about the units of competency that are within qualifications they offer.
As you find the unit of competency you need, you can keep useful notes by filling out this self evaluation form (Word document 28KB). See example of form below. This is not your actual assessment application (they are different for every RTO) but it will help you prepare the material the assessor wants from you and will give you a great head start in the assessment process.
| Unit of competency | Your qualifications | Relevant work experience | Relevant life experience | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
List here the elements or performance criteria for each unit of competency |
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