RPL

PURPOSE & SCOPE

The purpose of this procedure is to outline the RTO’s approach to offering recognition of prior learning (RPL) to individual students seeking recognition for skills and knowledge previously gained through experience in the workplace, volunteer work, social or domestic duties, or through formal and informal studies where there are no formal qualifications as proof of learning.

This procedure applies to all employees and clients of the RTO.

DEFINITIONS

Appropriate means the training and assessment will be delivered to regulatory and industry standards, uses delivery modes and durations optimised for the individual’s needs and include reasonable support to facilitate the individual’s participation and attainment.

AQF means Australian Qualifications Framework which can be accessed at http://www.aqf.edu.au/

ASQA means Australian Skills Quality Authority which is the national VET regulator and the RTO’s registering body.

Clients are defined as including students, legal/host employers and workplace supervisors.

Course means any nationally recognised qualification, unit of competency, skill set or short course delivered by the RTO

Principles of assessment require all assessments to be fair, flexible, valid and reliable.

Reasonable adjustment means a modification made to the learning environment, training or assessment methods used to enable students with a disability to access and participate in training on the same basis as those without a disability. The adjustment must be ‘reasonable’ in that it must not impose unjustifiable hardship on the person or the RTO.

Recognition of Prior Learning or RPL means an assessment process that assesses the competency(s) of an individual that may have been acquired through formal, non-formal and informal learning to determine the extent to which that individual meets the requirements specified in the training package.

RTO representative is defined as an employee or contractor of the RTO.

Rules of evidence require that evidence of assessment is valid, sufficient, authentic and current.

SRTOs means the Standards for RTOs 2015 – refer to definition of ‘Standards’

Standards refer to the current Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs).

STUDENT APPLIES FOR RPL

  • A student may indicate they wish to apply for RPL at any stage during the enquiry or enrolment process.
  • Determine initial suitability for RPL based on experience in industry and previous training, overseas qualifications etc.
  • If considered suitable for RPL, the student is to be sent a Candidate Kit which includes Application to Enrol. This will allow the student to make an initial self-assessment of their skills and knowledge and identify any evidence they may be able to provide of their skills.
  • Students who express an interest in RPL but who, based on their experience and initial discussion with the RTO, are not considered to likely be suitable for RPL may still go through the self-assessment process.
  • The student completes an initial self-assessment against the units/qualification they are seeking RPL for. This self-assessment process will help them decide whether RPL is a suitable pathway. Further guidance about how to use the self-assessment is outlined in the Candidate Kit. During this phase, the student may also wish to discuss the process with a Trainer and Assessor who will be made available to them by the RTO.
  • The student should then return the completed self-assessment along with the RPL Application Form.
  • Where evidence is in a language other than English, the applicant must provide a translation by an accredited translator.

RPL APPLICATION IS REVIEWED

  • The application will be reviewed to determine whether the self-assessment and evidence listed by the student demonstrates suitability for RPL for the units applied for.
  • If suitable, the Assessor contacts the student to make arrangements for first interview.
  • The Assessor may request further information from the Student at this stage.
  • When assessing RPL applications the Assessor must evaluate the evidence giving consideration to:
  • authenticity – relates to the candidate
  • validity – relates to the elements within unit of competency
  • quality – credibility and/or additional supporting evidence
  • sufficiency – the amount of evidence relative to the unity of competency
  • currency – the age of collected evidence and relevance to the unit of competency
  • relevance – evidence cited is applicable to the unit of competency being sought

CONDUCT INITIAL INTERVIEW

  • The assessor will review the information supplied by the student for each unit of competency.
  • The assessor will use the interview as a time to make a preliminary judgment about the student’s skills and knowledge against each unit. The Assessor will ask a range of questions to identify the student’s broad level of competency. This interview is called the ‘Competency Conversation’ and findings and observations are recorded in the RPL Assessors Kit.
  • During this conversation the Assessor and student will decide on which units RPL should be continued for and work out a plan for the evidence to be collected by the student prior to next meeting.
  • The student completes an Enrolment Form at this stage if continuing with RPL process.

CONTACT PROFESSIONAL REFEREES

  • The professional referees should be contacted to confirm the student’s skills, work experience and knowledge.
  • Records of the conversations are to be kept in the appropriate section in the RPL Assessors Kit.
  • The assessor may require that the student provides further information or evidence in relation to the conversations held with the referees.

CONDUCT FURTHER INTERVIEWS AND PRACTICAL ASSESSMENTS

  • Further interviews are conducted with the student to cover the questions in the RPL Assessors Kit.
  • Practical assessments are made in the workplace to assess on-the-job skills.
  • Student provides further evidence to support their history and experience.
  • The student has the Third Party Kit completed as part of their evidence where possible.
  • A decision about whether RPL will be granted for each unit is made and recorded in the RPL Assessor’s Kit.
  • Arrangements for gap training are made if required.

 

GATHER FEEDBACK

Feedback is collected from each RPL candidate using the RPL Candidate Feedback Survey to be collected in line with the Feedback Procedures.

 

RESPONSIBILITY OF

  • CEO 
  • Compliance Manager
  • Training Manager

RECORDS MANAGED BY

  • LMS

APPLICABLE LEGISLATION / STANDARDS

 

PROCEDURE APPROVED BY CEO

Refer to Company implementation plan for signed documents