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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

FOR THE

CHC COMMUNITY SERVICES AND HLT HEALTH

TRAINING PACKAGES

Release 1.0 November 2015

__________________________________________________________________________________ FAQs for the CHC Community Services & HLT Health Training Packages - Release 1.0 November 2015 Community Services & Health Industry Skills Council 2

Contents

Questions from RTOs ____________________________________________________________ 2

Questions from students ________________________________________________________ 14

Questions from Employers_______________________________________________________ 16

Questions from RTOs

The Certificate IV has a requirement for 80 hours of work. The Diploma has 160 hours of

work but includes units of competency that say 80 hours as those units are in both

qualifications. What is the relationship between these two sets of hours? Does this mean

that the RTO must provide 240 hours of work placement?

No. In the example given, the RTO would need to provide a total of 160 hours of work placement as

this is the highest number of hours specified.

The specification of hours is in the performance evidence of the assessment requirements of

relevant units.

performed the activities outlined in the performance criteria of this unit during a period of at

least X hours of work

Note the emphasis on the word during. It does not say ‘for a total of’ or ‘for at least ‘

If a qualification has units within it that require differing numbers of hours, the student will need to

complete the highest number of hours. For instance a qualification, depending on the electives

chosen may have some units that require 80 hours, some that require 120 hours and a core unit that

requires 240 hours. In order to satisfactorily complete all the requirements for the qualification the

individual will need to undertake a total of 240 hours. Within those 240 hours they will be able to

demonstrate that they have:

performed the activities outlined in the performance criteria of this unit during a period of at

least X hours of work

In terms of providing evidence of this they will need a log book, a diary, timesheets or some other

time based evidence they have been ‘performing the activities’. As with any other assessment

evidence, it will need to meet the rules of evidence.

Units of competency in themselves rarely describe a person’s whole job, but rather functions within

the job. The developers have written the units in this way so that candidates gain work experience

in the whole job, and can use that work experience as part of the performance evidence for

individual units of competency.


It is desirable that an individual use the same 240 hours as evidence for multiple units. In that way it

is treated the same as any other piece of evidence that may be required for more than one unit.

The qualification says 200 hours of work is required and the core includes multiple units

that require 200 hours of work. What does this mean? Does the RTO have to provide 200

hours of work placement for each unit?

See the answer above. 200 hours of work placement in total will need to be completed for the

qualification.

I have completed a Certificate IV which has a requirement for 80 hours of work. I now

want to do a Diploma which has 160 hours of work but includes units of competency that

say 80 hours as those units are in both qualifications. Am I able to count the 80 hours of

work completed in my Certificate IV to the 160 hours required for the Diploma?

A: Ultimately, the assessor must apply professional judgement to ensure that both the requirements

of units of competency and the rules of evidence are met. That professional judgement must also be

able to be substantiated.

Using the example above, for a student that has completed 80 hours of work in a Certificate IV and

now enrolled in a Diploma which requires 160 hours of work, it is possible to use the hours of work

previously completed in the lower AQF level qualification as evidence for the work hours required in

the higher AQF level qualification.

To do this an RTO must consider the evidence gathered during the 80 hours of work (completed

during the Certificate IV) and ensure that some evidence relates directly to units in the Diploma

which specify the higher number of hours (not just those units listed in both qualifications which

specify the lower number of hours as this should be a credit transfer). The best way to do this is to

undertake a mapping exercise which clearly demonstrates the relationship between the evidence

gathered and the unit(s) in the Diploma. It is important to note that any evidence used meets the

rules of evidence.

Continuing with the example above; if a judgement is made that the evidence gathered during the

80 hours of work is valid and can be mapped as valid evidence to the unit(s) specifying 160 hours

then the 80 hours of work can be used and the candidate may only have to complete the remaining

hours of work required for the Diploma qualification (potentially an additional 80 hours). The RTO

cannot just blindly ‘reduce’ workplace hours for higher AQF level qualifications if using

previous work hours completed in lower AQF level qualifications, the RTO must map the evidence. It

must also be noted that the student has not ‘reduced’ the number of hours completed for the

qualification, they have still completed 160 hours work and have valid evidence across this period.

Much like an RPL process, previous work hours have contributed as evidence.


One final consideration is that the tasks being described in the units of higher level qualifications can

be quite complex. A student must have enough time in the workplace to have properly ‘performed

the activities outlined in the performance criteria’ as well as met the volume and frequency

requirements as specified in the performance evidence, which in some cases may take longer than

the minimum number of hours stipulated for the qualification. For example, if a student has

completed 80 hours work placement for a Certificate IV and there is valid evidence that may

contribute to the 160 hours of work required for a Diploma, the RTO will need to determine if the

student can be assessed for rest of the Diploma in the remaining 80 hours or if the student will

require more than just 80 hours to meet the assessment requirements of all of the units of

competency in the qualification.

My RTO is small and regional and we have limited access to workplaces. How will we be

able to meet the workplace hours requirement?

There is no requirement that the workplace hours are in only one workplace or in any particular

location. The industry stakeholders have determined that they do not consider an individual to be

workplace competent until they have completed all assessment requirements including specified

hours in the workplace. Rural and regional training organisations will probably need to either stagger

work placements, (one student on placement each week for example) rather than send everyone to

placements at the same time or identify potential workplaces where students are required to

commute to or stay away from home to undertake the required work placements.

Other strategies may include coordination of work placements timings through networking with

other RTO’s in the same region. Providing additional support and facilitation to employers offering

the work placement is also very important.

My RTO delivers online. How can we meet the workplace hours requirement?

See the answer above. The online RTO will need to negotiate with the student and appropriate

workplaces how they will undertake the placement and how evidence will be gathered. If there is a

requirement for demonstration of skills in the workplace as part of the assessment, there will need

to be a relationship between the RTO assessor and the workplace.

Co-assessment can occur when a qualified assessor does not have the subject matter expertise to

make a judgement about competency of a candidate or the assessor is unable to be present in the

workplace at the time of assessment. Co-assessment of a candidate can be undertaken by a third

party person who has the industry expertise partnering with a qualified assessor, both viewing the

assessment directly (through observation in the workplace or via video). The assessor can sign off on

the competency of the candidate having made their judgement in consultation with the third party

industry expert who will sign off as the co-assessor for the assessment process.


What happens if a student enrolls in a single unit with a requirement for work placement

hours? Do they need to do all the hours required by the individual unit?

Yes as the number of hours are a requirement of the unit. These hours can be ‘shared’ with other

units, but an individual completing only one unit will need to meet all the evidence requirements of

that unit, including the requirements for hours of work. Other activities may be undertaken during

the work placement hours, however, it is important that sufficient evidence is collected to ensure

competence of the candidate in the unit, and that the assessment requirements and the rules of

evidence are met.

Often an individual undertaking a single unit will already be in the workforce, and will therefore be

able to use their current job as evidence. In terms of providing evidence of this they will need a log

book, a diary, timesheets or some other time based evidence they have been ‘performing the

activities’.

Assessment requirements often refer to the ‘workplace’. How is the workplace defined?

The standard definition of workplace is ‘a place where people work’; it’s the location where a person

must be able to perform the duties required of his/her job role and/or responsibilities. There is no

specification that the work must be paid work. The diversity of work in health and community

services means that the ‘workplace’ will look very different depending on the sector:

in Home and Community Care or Disability, the workplace may be the person’s home

in Children’s Services, the workplace is defined as a ‘regulated education and care service in

Australia’, and this is explicitly stated in the assessment requirements of relevant units.

Can a student use hours completed in a simulated environment towards the work hours

required for a qualification (as specified in the assessment requirements of units of

competency)?

No, where a unit specifies the requirement of hours, these must be completed in a workplace. A

simulated environment can be used for training purposes however hours of work must be

completed in a ‘workplace’. See above for definition of ‘workplace’

There seems to be the requirement for a lot of assessment to be done in the workplace,

when is assessment in a simulated environment allowed?

A simulated environment is a great training environment however not always appropriate for

assessment. Industry had concerns about a student’s ability to properly apply skills and knowledge in

the workplace and as a result a number of units will specify that assessment must be undertaken in

the workplace. Best practice assessment would always be in the workplace however this is not


always achievable. The assessment conditions will specify the conditions under which assessment

can take place, where assessment can be undertaken is one of these. CS&HISC has consulted with

industry to determine these conditions, a further explanation of the statements used in the

assessment conditions can be found in the following Companion Volumes - CHC Assessment

Strategies Guide and HLT Assessment Strategies Guide.

What are the requirements to be a trainer and/or assessor in the VET sector?

This is a regulatory question and therefore RTOs should contact their regulatory body. ASQA has

issued a Fact Sheet – Meeting trainer and assessor requirements. The arrangements outlined in the

fact sheet are made in accordance with the provisions of the Standards for Registered Training

Organisations 2015. As part of the Standards, an RTO’s training and assessment may only be

delivered by trainers and assessors who have:

the vocational competencies at least to the level being delivered and assessed

current industry skills directly relevant to the training and assessment being provided, and

current knowledge and skills in vocational training and learning that informs their training and

assessment.

In addition, training and assessment may only be delivered by persons who have:

TAE40110 Certificate IV in Training and Assessment, or its successor, or

a diploma or higher level qualification in adult education.

The RTO must also ensure that all trainers and assessors undertake professional development in the fields of:

knowledge and practice of vocational training, and

learning and assessment, including competency-based training and assessment

For RTOs not registered with ASQA please contact the relevant regulatory body – Western Australia

Training Accreditation Council (WATAC) or Victorian Registering and Qualifications Authority (VRQA).

RTOs must always meet the requirements of their Regulator, if in doubt check in with the Regulator

to ensure compliance with the regulations.

In the assessment conditions of some units it specifies additional assessor requirements,

do I need to meet these?

In the assessment conditions of all units in CHC and HLT there is the following statement:

Assessors must satisfy the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs)

2015/AQTF mandatory competency requirements for assessors.

http://www.asqa.gov.au/media-and-publications/meeting-trainer-and-assessor-requirements.html

http://www.tac.wa.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx


http://www.vrqa.vic.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx


This statement ensures that assessors meet the requirements as specified by their regulatory body

(see previous FAQ on trainer/assessor requirements in the VET sector). In some cases industry has

agreed that for assessment of some units the assessor should have additional expertise. An example

of this is HLTAIN001 Assist with nursing care in an acute care environment where the assessment

conditions states that ‘in addition, be a registered nurse with current registration with the Australian

Health Practitioner Regulatory Authority (AHPRA)’. Considering this example, if your RTO does not

have an assessor that is a Registered Nurse then you may be able to co-assess (see earlier FAQ which

relates to co-assessment). It is essential that any additional assessor requirements are always met.

What happened to the AQF number in the units with this new CHC & HLT coding?

The CS&HISC approach to the coding of units is:

HLTAID001

alpha and/or numeric characters that comply with the length specified in the AVETMIS standard

(no more than 12 characters.) CS&HISC approach is for 3 alpha characters to denote a sector or

skill and sequential numeric characters for example 001,002,003.

units of competency do not carry an Australian Qualification Framework level indicator, only a

qualification carries this AQF indicator. If you have looked at older unit codes that have a

qualification identifier – for example HLTFA311A the ‘3’ in this code is the identifier number

which refers to the AQF level qualification in which this unit was first listed in the Training

Package, and does not indicate that this unit has an AQF level.

elective units should be selected on their function and importance to the job role. The

application of a unit will describe the functional level of the skill. The application might describe

the function as being under supervision, works in collaboration with a team, works

independently or autonomously. The title of the unit may also describe the functional level of

the unit with verbs such as; follow, comply, participate, implement, facilitate or manage.

How do I pitch my assessment tools for a unit of competency to the right AQF level?

See answer above regarding units having no AQF level. The assessment requirements for a unit are

clearly outlined in the unit. The assessment requirement outlines the performance evidence,

knowledge evidence and the assessment conditions under which the assessment must take place.

Training Package identifier- three

alpha characters: HLT or CHC

3 alpha characters to denote

a sector or skill, in this

example AID is for first aid

Sequential numeric characters, for

example 001,002,003.


Assessments tools or instruments should not be ‘pitched’ at any level. Units of competency are

purposely written to describe tasks at different levels of complexity, by developing assessments

based on the requirements of the unit you will automatically adhere to the complexity of the unit

and therefore the right level would be reached.

What happened to entry requirements, are all new qualifications direct entry?

Most qualifications in the CHC and HLT Training Packages that have been reviewed to the 2012

Standards for Training Packages have had the entry requirements removed. Each qualification

reflects a work outcome and is able to stand alone with all skill requirements to achieve that work

outcome articulated within the qualification. There are some advanced diploma and graduate

diploma level qualifications in the CHC and HLT Training Packages that will still list a qualification as

an entry requirement for a higher level qualification. This was necessary to meet registration for

that particular regulated profession.

What happened to pre-requisites on units of competency?

The job of the Training Package is to clearly articulate industry’s skill requirements in terms of

outcomes, rather than dictate the way that people may achieve those skills in a huge diversity of

workplaces and training organisations. In the workplace, people use and combine skills in many and

different ways – prerequisites can prevent this from happening. The units have been developed to

ensure that any essential underpinning skills and knowledge is embedded into the unit.

There are a number of cross sector units packaged in qualifications and content is not

specific to that industry, how do I deliver these units?

In the recent review of the CHC and HLT Training Packages units have been rationalised to support

portability of skills. As a result there are a number of ‘cross sector’ units which are purposely not

specific to any industry sector. These unit(s) should be contextualised to the qualification where it is

listed, and the task that is being described should be delivered in the ‘context’ of that industry. For

example, there may be a piece of legislation that is relevant to a sector and should be covered as

part of the unit, however any modifications must maintain the integrity of the unit.

What is the transition period for revised training package components?

This is a regulatory question and therefore RTOs should contact their regulatory body. ASQA have

issued a General direction – Learner Transition information page. The arrangements outlined in the

general direction are made in accordance with the provisions of the Standards for Registered

http://www.asqa.gov.au/news-and-media/learner-transition.html


Training Organisations 2015. For RTOs not registered with ASQA please contact the relevant

regulatory body – Western Australia Training Accreditation Council (WATAC) or Victorian Registering

and Qualifications Authority (VRQA).

RTOs must always meet the requirements of their Regulator, if in doubt check in with the Regulator

to ensure compliance with the regulations.

What is the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) process between ‘old’ units and ‘new’

units?

A normal RPL process would apply, it could be simpler or more complex depending on the level of

change between the old and new unit.

What are nominal hours?

Nominal hours are used for funding of units and qualifications, however, they are only anticipated

hours and it may mean that quality training and assessment will exceed the nominal hours listed in

the purchasing guide.

Nominal hours are the anticipated number of hours that are deemed necessary to conduct training

and assessment. They do not include the hours associated with non-supervised work experience,

field work, work placement or private study.

Once a new version of a Training Package is endorsed and received by the Victorian government

they develop and release the Purchasing Guide. This includes what they have deemed to be the

nominal hours for the endorsed qualifications and units. Most other states and territories will

generally accept the nominal hours proposed by Victoria but they do have the right to have

‘purchasing hours’ that differ from the Victorian Purchasing guide.

Some qualifications have specialisations, can a student complete more than one

specialisation as part of a qualification?

Yes. A student is able to complete multiple specialisations and these should be reflected on the

testamur. For example, in the Certificate III in Individual Support if a student completes the Ageing;

Home and Community specialisations, the qualification should read; Certificate III in Individual

Support (Ageing, Home and Community).





How is very detailed knowledge assessed?

In some areas, industry has determined the need for very detailed specifications around the scope of

knowledge required to demonstrate competency (an example of this would be the specification of

muscle knowledge in the massage units). You assess detailed knowledge in the same way that you

assess any knowledge. The RTO must use assessment activities that clearly allow candidates to

demonstrate their knowledge of all the items specified.

I work in disability and only ever work with one person, how can I meet the volume and

frequency in the assessment requirements?

Not all CHCDIS coded units specify that the tasks must be demonstrated in the workplace, for some

unit’s demonstration in a simulated environment is sufficient. For those units that do require

demonstration in the workplace, such as CHCDIS005, the performance evidence states that the task

must be undertaken at least once in the workplace, simulation can be used for additional

assessments.

Does assessment need to be individual or can assessment be undertaken in a group

setting?

It is the individual who achieves competency, so the assessor must determine that the individual has

provided the required evidence. Group activities may contribute to this determination.

How much evidence is enough evidence?

Assessment requirements provide a level of specification about the volume of evidence required.

However, it is the role of assessors to make professional judgments about whether they have

sufficient evidence to make a determination about competency at an individual level.

How many face-to-face hours of training are required?

The training package is silent on hours of training required and the type of training that must be

undertaken; focus is on the outcomes that need to be achieved. Training delivery times vary

depending on individual needs and the mode of training. The Australian Qualifications Framework

(AQF) provides broad indicators of the volume of learning required for qualifications at different

levels. http://www.aqf.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Volume-of-Learning-Explanation.pdf

http://www.aqf.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Volume-of-Learning-Explanation.pdf


Why are CHC and HLT Training Package components not equivalent to their predecessors?

In this review CS&HISC aligned units and qualifications to the 2012 Standards for Training Packages

and updated current sector roles and service delivery models/approaches. This meant that the

changes to the units and qualifications are far reaching and significant. All units in the revised CHC

and HLT Training Packages are not equivalent to those they supersede. RTOs will especially notice

the new Assessment Requirements which stipulate detailed ranges and frequencies that evidence

must be provided for. Furthermore, conditions under which assessment must be undertaken are

detailed in the revised units and are mandatory – not just advice. While units are not equivalent it

should be noted that in many cases an RTOs current resources for training may map well to revised

units provided the RTOs have kept abreast of current industry roles, service delivery models and

terminologies. However, assessment strategies and evidence gathering requirements will not. RTOs

will need to map the revised units to their current resources and identify gaps.

In some units there is a requirement for clinic hours under the supervision of an assessor.

How does this work with RPL (e.g. for a person coming from overseas seeking recognition)

This person would still need to meet the requirements as specified in the units of competency.

One of the units requires assessment in a simulated environment and then in the

workplace. A candidate has recent experience working in industry and is seeking

recognition for a qualification. The candidate has only ever worked in industry, do they

have to be assessed in a simulated environment?

In this instance the assessor would need to use their professional judgement. The intent is that a

candidate is first assessed in a simulated environment to ensure that they have skills prior to being

assessed in the workplace. If a person has already been working in industry they would not have to

show evidence for being assessed in a simulated environment. However they would need to meet

the volume and frequency requirements as stipulated in the assessment requirements. For example

if the assessment requirements specified that the task be undertaken 3 times, 1 in a simulated

environment and 2 in the workplace, the candidate would have to show workplace evidence for

three occasions.

If we deliver the Certificate III in Individual Support (Home and Community) does a

student have to complete all 120 hours in a home and community setting?

The requirement for the qualification is a minimum of 120 hours of work as specified in the

performance criteria of CHCCCS023 Support independence and wellbeing:


‘performed the activities outlined in the performance criteria of this unit during a period of at

least 120 hours of direct support work in at least one aged care, home and community,

disability or community service organisation’.

This unit of competency was purposely written like this, it says ‘at least one’ and lists the different

organisations - aged care OR home and community OR disability OR community service.

The units of competency in the specialisations of the Certificate III in Individual Support do not have

hours attached to them but most of the units do require assessment in the workplace. Only units in

the core of the packaging rules have work placement hours. Someone doing a Certificate III in

Individual Support (Home and Community) specialisation would need to do a minimum of 120 hours

of work (they may need longer to be properly assessed in all components, remember this is a

minimum). To meet the requirements of the units some assessment will need to be done in a home

and community setting, for example the unit CHCHCS001 Provide home and community support

services has to be assessed in the workplace and looking at the performance criteria it’s about

working in someone’s home. However, throughout the Training Package development process

stakeholders advised that getting all 120 hours of work in just a home and community setting could

be difficult, therefore some of those hours could be done in a residential setting – hence the

wording in CHCCCS023 Support independence and wellbeing and the different organisations where

work placement can take place. Therefore other units in the qualification, such as CHCAGE001

Facilitate the empowerment of older people could be assessed in a residential setting. Someone

completing the Certificate III in Individual Support (Home and Community) could NOT do all their

work placement in a residential setting because they could not complete the tasks required in

CHCHCS001 Provide home and community support services.

Does a student need to undertake 240 hours of work if we deliver Certificate III in

Individual Support (Ageing, home and community)?

For someone completing the Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing, home and community) they

would be required to complete a minimum of 120 hours, not 240 hours. In this case the 120 hours

could be split between home and community and residential setting to ensure the student is

assessed in all appropriate work environments. Refer to earlier FAQs about work placement hours.

If a student has completed the Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing, home and

community) and wants to undertake the disability specialisation (which is listed as a skill

set) do they need to undertake another 120 hours?

If someone had completed the Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing, home and community)

and wanted to broaden their skills and knowledge by undertaking the disability specialisation they

would not necessarily need to undertake another 120 hours of work in a disability workplace, work

hours are not in the units of the Certificate III in Individual Support specialisations. However, some of

the CHCDIS coded units do require assessment in the workplace so a student would need to spend


an appropriate amount of time in a disability workplace to ensure they are properly assessed

completing the relevant tasks.

The assessment conditions in CHCDIV002 Promote Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander

cultural safety states that ‘In addition, assessment must involve persons approved of by

relevant local community elders’, what does this mean?

The intent of this statement is to ensure that the assessment process for this unit is culturally safe.

The requirement to ‘involve’ community elders (or the person/s approved by the elders) is not for

them to actually undertake the assessment but for them to be involved throughout the writing and

planning of the assessment tools to ensure that what is developed is culturally appropriate.

Aboriginal communities across Australia are diverse and each may use different imagery, language

and therefore may interpret things differently, for example language appropriate in one community

may not be culturally appropriate in another. Therefore to ensure that the assessment is culturally

safe and relevant for that geographical area the unit specifies involvement of ‘local’ community

elders or the person/s they have deemed appropriate.

Do I teach a unit at different levels when it appears in qualifications at different AQF

levels, for example the same unit in a Certificate III and a Diploma?

No you don’t. A unit describes a task or set of procedures and they are purposely written to describe

tasks/procedures at different levels of complexity. Units need to be trained and assessed as per the

requirements stipulated in that unit, not at the level of the qualification it appears in. For example, a

support worker, a team leader and a manager may all need to follow hand washing procedures. The

hand washing procedure outlined in the unit will not differ across the different roles. Many units

appear across different level qualifications. Some examples of common units you will see doing this

include:

CHCCOM005 Communicate and work in health or community services

CHCCOM002 Use communication to build relationships

CHCDIV001 Work with diverse people

HLTWHS003 Maintain work health and safety

HLTWHS002 Follow safe work practices for direct client care

HLTWHS001Participate in workplace health and safety

CHCLEG001 Work legally and ethically

CHCCCS023 Support independence and well being

HLTAAP001 Recognise healthy body systems

CHCAGE001 Facilitate the empowerment of older people

CHCDIS007 Facilitate the empowerment of people with disability

CHCADV001 Facilitate the interests and rights of clients


Questions from students

If I am undertaking a qualification that has work placement of 100 hours in one of the

units, do I have to spend the whole 100 hours on that unit in the workplace?

No. Units of competency in themselves rarely describe a person’s whole job, but rather functions

within the job. The developers have written the units in this way so that candidates gain work

experience in the whole job, and can use that work experience as part of the performance evidence

for individual units of competency.

Can my supervisor sign me off to say that I am competent in the units?

It is the responsibility of the Registered Training Organisation to provide qualified assessors and

those assessors make the decisions about competency. Your organisation may be asked to help

gather some of the evidence required and your supervisor may be able to provide some of that

evidence. Unless the supervisor is a qualified RTO assessor and there is a formal agreement

between the RTO in which you are enrolled and your supervisor that person will not be able to make

the sole decision about whether you have achieved competency in the units. For more information,

see the RTO regulator factsheet about Third Party Evidence.

http://www.asqa.gov.au/verve/_resources/FACT_SHEET_Use_of_third_party_evidence.pdf

Can I satisfy my workplace requirement across a number of organisations?

Yes you can. It will be important to keep a log book, a diary, timesheets or some other time based evidence that you have been ‘performing the activities’. It will be important to document which activities were performed where. As with any other assessment evidence, it will need to meet the rules of evidence.

Can I count past work experience towards my work place requirement?

Like all other evidence collected for assessment, the work experience component must meet the

rules of evidence. One of those rules is currency. The evidence must be current, meaning either

now, or in the recent past. The assessor will need to make a judgment about your evidence and you

would also need to show that the work experience you undertook in the past included performing

the activities outlined in the performance criteria of the relevant units.

http://www.asqa.gov.au/verve/_resources/FACT_SHEET_Use_of_third_party_evidence.pdf


Can I count paid employment towards my work place requirement?

Yes. There is no difference in relation to assessment evidence, between volunteer work, paid work,

work experience, clinical placements, or work placement. What the assessor is trying to determine

is whether you performed the activities outlined in the performance criteria of the relevant units.

I want to do multiple specialisations in a qualification but there are not enough electives

available in the packaging rules. How can I attain these extra skills?

Students can do more units than what is specified in the qualification however they will have to

complete them as individual units (separate to the qualification). Most specialisations are also

available as skill sets so a student could complete additional specialisations, once the qualification

has been completed, by enrolling in the skill set.

Do I have to do the electives that the RTO specifies?

A student has the right to undertake any elective listed either in the qualification or units which

comply with the packaging rules of the qualification. This does not mean that an RTO must offer

every elective listed. The RTO may not have qualified trainers able to deliver the elective or it may

not be economically viable for the RTO to deliver the elective.

If a student wishes to undertake an elective their current RTO does not offer, they are able to find

any other RTO that delivers the unit and is willing to train them in that unit. Once they have been

deemed competent they would then take their Statement of Attainment to the original RTO for

proof of completion of the qualification requirements.

The student would be responsible for the discussion with all RTOs involved about the costs and

associated fees. This could lead to a greater cost to the student. It may also have implications

depending on the funding arrangement for the qualification being undertaken.

Will my older qualification be recognised?

Individuals who have completed Nationally Recognised Training (NRT) qualifications or units of

competency prior to the 2012 Standards for Training Package will not have to automatically update

their skills and knowledge. Individuals should seek information from industry as to the qualification

or skills and knowledge required for the job role. If the industry requirement is to upgrade skills and

knowledge this can be achieved through a Registered Training Organisation (RTO). RTOs are

required to recognise an individual’s previously obtained NRT qualifications. Individuals should seek

recognition of prior learning for the skills and knowledge already achieved against any new

requirements in qualifications or units of competency.


Questions from Employers

Am I required to pay students who are working in my organisation as part of a work

placement organised by the RTO?

The short answer is NO, as long as the person is on what FairWork Australia refers to as ‘Vocational

Placement’. FairWork Australia has produced a factsheet which makes it clear that under the

FairWork Act there are conditions which must be met for a person to be recognised as being on a

vocational placement. These conditions can be summarised as:

must be a placement, arranged by the training provider or student as a course requirement

must be no entitlement to pay

placement must be done as a requirement of an education or training course

placement must be approved (all RTOs that are implementing the requirements of units of

competency will meet this as they are ‘approved’ by their regulator to deliver the program

https://www.fairwork.gov.au/about-us/policies-and-guides/fact-sheets/unpaid-work/student-

placements)

You can choose to pay the student, and if you have people working for you in a casual, part time or

full time capacity their work can be used to count towards the assessment requirement for them to

undertake a particular number of hours of work experience.

What type of insurance is required to cover students in the workplace?

Legal and insurance requirements vary between states and territories, and RTOs must undertake

their own research to ensure local requirements are met.

RTOs and Enterprises must ensure that the student is working in a safe environment and the

business will still have a duty of care to the student.

https://www.fairwork.gov.au/about-us/policies-and-guides/fact-sheets/unpaid-work/student-placements

https://www.fairwork.gov.au/about-us/policies-and-guides/fact-sheets/unpaid-work/student-placements

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