Choosing the Right Assessor Qualification
There’s no doubt that training for a new role/career can be costly; both in terms of money and time. That’s why it’s important to make sure you’re choosing the right Assessor Qualification from the start. Not only will this save you a considerable amount of money in the long run, it will also qualify you for that role or assessor job you want, even sooner.
There are lots of different types of Assessor qualifications, and it can be hard to work out which is the right one for you. The requirements for Assessor roles are extremely varied depending on both the employer and the qualification itself. However, there are two main things you need in order to become an Assessor:
- Occupational Competence
- An Assessor Qualification
We have already looked at Occupational Competence in detail, so we wanted to spend some time explaining each of the Assessor qualifications that we offer.
The best assessor qualification for you will depend entirely on your career goals and what you want to be able to assess. At Brooks and Kirk, we offer a range of courses suitable for trained assessors looking to refresh their knowledge, all the way through to experienced individuals looking to become qualified assessors for the first time.
What are my assessor qualification options?
The first step in choosing the right Assessor Qualification is knowing exactly what options are available to you and where these qualifications could lead.
You’ll see on our site that we offer four Level 3 qualifications – Does this mean they all do the same thing?
Not quite! Although all of our assessor qualifications represent a high standard of training, each one equips learners for a different end goal which we delve into in just a moment.
Within the TAQA suite, the 4 qualifications are made up of one, a combination of, or all 3 of the following units:
- Understanding the Principles and Practices of Assessment – Unit 1
- Assess Occupational Competence in the Work Environment – Unit 2
- Assess Vocational Skills, Knowledge and Understanding – Unit 3.
Choosing the Right Assessor Qualification to meet your end goal?
People undertake training for a number of different reasons. For example, some people are looking to update their knowledge after being in one role for a long time. Others may be working within an industry but are looking to sidestep into a new position. Then there are those who want a completely new career and are looking to become qualified in areas they’ve never worked before.
In the rest of this article, we’ll take a look at different learner goals and explain which Assessor Qualification is right for each one.
1. I want to update my knowledge
If you’re already a trained Assessor who is simply looking to refresh their knowledge or learn about updates in the industry, then you will need our Level 3 Award in Understanding the Principles and Practices of Assessment (UPPA) – Unit 1.
As you have probably already worked out from the information above, this qualification is a standalone unit (Unit 1 from the list). It is a knowledge-based unit which covers all of the theory behind vocational assessment.
This qualification won’t actually allow you to carry out any assessments. It is more for a qualified assessor to complete in order to update their CPD recor
2. I want to be a classroom assessor
If you’re looking to become an Assessor exclusively in a classroom, workshop, or virtual setting, then you need the Level 3 Award in Assessing Vocationally Related Achievement (AVRA) – Units 1 & 3.
This assessor award will qualify you to assess learners in a classroom setting but is not suitable for people who want to assess in a workplace environment. This course covers Units 1 and 3, so you can still assess the vocational knowledge, skills and understanding. You would only be able to assess learnings in learning environments though, such as classrooms, workshops and online systems.
3. I want to assess on the job
If you want to become an Assessor of occupational competency – i.e. you want to make sure people are doing their jobs right – then you’ll want to take the Level 3 Award in Assessing Competence in the Work Environment (ACWE) – Units 1 & 2.
With this qualification, you would only be able to assess learners within a work environment. You have probably guessed this already, but this qualification covers Units 1 and 2. This course is ideal for people who are looking to become in-house assessors for a company that they currently work with.
4. I want to do it all
If you’re looking to dive in the deep end and become an all-around Assessor who can work both in the classroom and on-the-job, then you will want to take the Level 3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement (CAVA) – Units 1,2 & 3. CAVA is like the ‘holy grail’ of Assessor qualifications. It qualifies you to carry out all forms of assessment mentioned above, as it covers all of the units. This is the only course that will make you a fully-qualified Assessor. Most Assessor vacancies will stipulate that the candidate is either holding or working towards CAVA or the ACWE. To give yourself the best possible chance when you are up against other candidates, having a CAVA qualification will certainly look more appealing.
Reading the fine print when Choosing the Right Assessor Qualification
It’s important when choosing the right Assessor Qualification that you’re aware of which awards actually qualify you for your desired role, and which are unaccredited training. At Brooks and Kirk, all of our awards are part of the NVQ Framework and are Ofqual approved.
Are you sure? What about the A1 assessor qualification, D32, D33 or the TAQA?
If you have been assessing for some time, you will be familiar with the old course names. For those who are new to assessing, let’s explore these quickly (we won’t bore you with the history too much we promise). In the 90s if you wanted to train to become an assessor, you would complete the D32 and D33 units. In 2001, these were replaced by the A1 and A2 Awards. Then fast-forward to 2010, and the A1 and A2 Awards were replaced by ‘TAQA‘ (Training Assessment and Quality Assurance). If you still feel like you are a little bamboozled by all of these acronyms, assessor qualifications run-through should help.
But most importantly, don’t worry – we offer the most up-to-date qualifications!
I have a full-time job. What are my options for studying the assessor qualification?
Over 70% of the trainee assessors we currently have on-programme are fitting their study around a full-time job. This is made possible by Brooks and Kirk’s completely unique delivery model.
Exactly what your assessor course will involve depends on which assessor qualification you choose. That being said if you were to enrol on what the industry considers the best assessor qualification – the CAVA, you would only be required to attend one day in the latter half of the course. You will be able to complete the rest of your course online, entirely at your own pace.
Still not sure about Choosing the Right Assessor Qualification?
If you’re still not sure what’s right for you, then there’s no need to worry. Our expert t
eam is available to help and make sure you’re getting exactly the training you need.
Get in touch with us today and talk us through your career goals. We’ll make sure you choose the right Assessor Qualification to get you where you want to be. Call us on 01205 805 155 or send an email to training@brooksandkirk.ac.uk.
For more advice on choosing the right assessor qualification, take a read of NVQAssessor’s blog on choosing the right assessor qualification.
Steve is a Chartered Manager and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
He provides Educational Consultancy to the 19+ sector as well as being an Assessor, IQA, EPA and Digital Marketing Professional. When not doing any of these he finds time, every now and then, to write blogs and articles.