Skip to main content
  • RTO Standards Guide
  • Accredited Course Standards Guide
  • asqanet
  • asqaconnect
Australian Government Australian Skills Quality Authority
  • Contact us
  • News & Events
  • Complaints

Main navigation

  • RTOs
    Close
    RTOs
    • What is an RTO?
    • How to become an RTO
      • Prepare your RTO application
      • Submit your RTO registration application
      • How we assess RTO applications
      • RTO application decision
    • Renew RTO registration
      • How to renew your registration
      • How we assess your registration renewal
    • Change RTO scope
      • Change RTO scope | Add training products
      • Change RTO scope | TAE Training Package evidence
      • Change RTO scope | Application process
      • Change RTO scope | Remove training products
      • When training products change
    • Withdraw registration
    • Requirements and responsibilities
      • Complying with legislation
      • Complying with ASQA requirements
      • Qualifications and statements of attainment
      • Data collection and provision
      • Other licensing and registration requirements
    • Change RTO details
      • Change business address
      • Change key staff or their contact details
      • Change legal or business name
      • Change scope of registration
      • Change to financial status
      • Change to legal entity type, ownership, and mergers
      • Changes due to COVID-19
      • Keep delivery locations updated
    • Focus on compliance - Spotlight On
      • Series 1 | Trainers and assessors
      • Series 2 | Assessment Validation
      • Series 3 | Assessment
      • Series 4 | Student support
    • Users’ guide to the Standards for RTOs 2015
      • Introduction to the RTO standards users' guide
      • Chapter 1—Marketing and recruitment
      • Chapter 2—Enrolment
      • Chapter 3—Support and progression
      • Chapter 4—Training and assessment
      • Chapter 5—Completion
      • Chapter 6—Regulatory compliance and governance practice
      • Appendix 1—Index to Standards/clauses as referenced in the users’ guide
      • Self-assessment tool
    • ASQA delegations
    • More support
  • ESOS providers
    Close
    ESOS providers
    • What is an ESOS provider?
    • How to become an ESOS provider
      • Prepare your ESOS application
      • Submit your application
      • How we assess ESOS applications
      • ESOS application decision
    • ESOS requirements
      • Legislative obligations
      • Quality of training experience
      • Maintaining your registration
      • Reporting obligations summary
      • Provider default obligations
      • Education agents
      • Tuition fee obligations
    • English-language courses (ELICOS)
    • Change ESOS registration
      • Change ESOS registration | Documentation requirements
      • Change ESOS registration | Fees
      • Change ESOS registration | Application process
    • Renew registration
    • Change CRICOS details
    • How we process applications
    • Withdraw registration
    • More support
  • Course accreditation
    Close
    Course accreditation
    • What is an accredited course?
    • Apply for course accreditation
      • Step 1—VET course concept
      • Step 2—Course development
      • Step 3—Course submission
      • Step 4—Application assessment
      • Step 5—Decision
      • Users’ guide to developing a course document
    • Manage a course
      • Amend a course
      • Cancel a course
      • Extend a course
    • Renew a course
      • Step 1—Intention to renew
      • Step 2—Course redevelopment
      • Step 3—Submit course renewal
      • Step 4—Application assessment (renewal)
      • Step 5—Decision (renewal)
    • Course owner responsibilities
    • Users’ guide to the Standards for VET Accredited Courses
      • Foreword
      • About the Standards
      • About this guide
      • National course document template
      • Standards
      • Accredited courses guide appendices
    • More support—Course accreditation
  • Training package assurance
  • Students
    Close
    Students
    • How ASQA can help students
    • Choosing a course and provider
    • Provider closures
    • Student records
    • Complaints about providers
    • More support
      • Courses and providers
  • Guidance & resources
    Close
    Guidance & resources
    • Focus on compliance - Spotlight On
      • Series 1 | Trainers and assessors
      • Series 2 | Assessment Validation
      • Series 3 | Assessment
      • Series 4 | Student support
    • Third-party agreements
      • Third-party written agreements
      • Third-party agreements for VET in schools
    • Annual declaration on compliance
    • Practical training and assessment
    • Online learning
      • Planning online learning
      • Marketing and enrolment for online learning
      • Online student support
      • Online training and assessment
    • ESOS Return to Compliance for face to face training
    • Managing natural disaster and pandemics
    • Resources
      • Users' guide to Standards for RTOs 2015
      • Users’ guide to developing a course document
      • Accredited Course Standards Guide
      • Fact sheets
      • FAQs
      • Forms
      • Guidance for Providers
      • Guides and tools
      • Presentations
      • Publications
      • Videos and webinars
  • How we regulate
    Close
    How we regulate
    • Our approach
    • Risk-based regulation
    • Regulatory priorities
      • ASQA's regulatory risk priorities 2022-23
      • Setting our Regulatory Risk Priorities
    • Self-assurance
      • Towards self-assurance
      • Draft model for self-assurance
      • Building a shared understanding of self-assurance
    • Strategic reviews
      • Past strategic reviews
    • Our regulatory practice
    • How we engage and educate
      • Provider Roundtable
      • Stakeholder Liaison Group
      • Consultation
    • Performance assessment (audit)
      • How to prepare for a performance assessment
      • During your performance assessment
      • After your performance assessment: If you’re compliant
      • After your performance assessment: If you’re non-compliant
    • Provider profiles
  • About us
    Close
    About us
    • ASQA overview
      • Our role
      • Our values
      • Key legislation
      • Our leadership and organisation
      • National Vocational Education and Training Regulator Advisory Council
      • Work with us
    • VET sector overview
      • National register of VET
      • Training Package Assurance
      • Training packages
    • Fees and charges
      • Current ASQA fees and charges
      • Annual registration charge
      • Transition arrangements
      • Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS)
      • How we consult on fees and charges
      • ELICOS fee relief
    • Reporting and accountability
      • Annual reports
      • Corporate Plan
      • Gifts and benefits register
      • Consultation
      • Service standards
      • Surveys
      • Corporate publications
      • Privacy policy
      • APS employee census results
      • Financial reporting
      • Freedom of information
      • Harradine report
      • Information publication scheme
      • Child Safety Policy
    • Contact us
      • Office locations
    • Complaints
      • Complaints about training providers
      • Complaints about ASQA
      • More support
    • Using this website
      • Accessibility
      • Disclaimer
      • Site map
      • Copyright
  • Contact us
  • News & Events
  • Complaints
Standards
  • Standard 9 – Duplication
  • Standard 10.1 – Stakeholder consultation
  • Standard 10.2 and 10.3 – Enterprise units of competency
  • Standard 10.4 – Modules
  • Standard 10.5 – Australian Qualifications Framework levels
  • Standard 10.6 – Foundation skills
  • Standard 10.7 – Industry recognition and licensing
  • Standard 10.8 – Course packaging rules
  • Standard 10.9 – Course exit points
  • Standard 10.10 – Education pathways and articulation
  • Standard 10.11 – Entry requirements
  • Standard 10.12 – Course assessment strategy
  • Standard 10.13 – Delivery modes
  • Standard 10.14 – Specialist facilities and resources
  • Standard 10.15 – Course monitoring and evaluation
  • Home
  • Course accreditation
  • Users’ guide to Standards for VET Accredited Courses
  • Standards
  • Standard 10.2 and 10.3 – Enterprise units of competency

Standard 10.2 and 10.3 – Enterprise units of competency

VET accredited courses must be based on nationally endorsed units of competency or modules developed specifically for inclusion in the course.  A VET accredited course must include skills and knowledge components expressed as a unit of competency or module.

This Standard relates to Section C of the National course document template.

Developing units of competency

VET accredited courses comprise units of competency from nationally endorsed training packages and/or enterprise units of competency developed for that particular course.

Enterprise units of competency should be written to reflect the standard of skills and knowledge required by a competent person in the workplace, rather than focussing on how the unit will be trained and assessed by a training provider. This focus on the workplace outcome should be clear throughout the unit of competency.

Units of competency should be developed in close consultation with practitioners and technical experts from industry and the VET sector.

Each unit of competency should describe:

  • a specific work activity
  • the standard of performance required in the workplace
  • assessment requirements, specifying the required evidence of competency, and required conditions under which assessment is conducted
  • other evidence that can be gathered to assist an assessor when judging competency.

In order to provide this information you will need to research and understand the:

  • work activity and what it involves
  • tasks, roles and skills that make up the work activity
  • generic work skills (or foundation skills) required
  • knowledge required to perform the work activity
  • performance evidence a student needs to demonstrate to be considered competent in the work activity
  • conditions and/or context in which the unit is to be delivered and assessed
  • resources that might be needed to gather the assessment evidence.

This information can be sourced from:

  • interviews
  • reviewing documentation e.g. position descriptions, procedures or standards
  • observing the work activity
  • consulting with internal and external stakeholders
  • consulting with subject matter experts.

Once you have clearly defined the outcome of the unit, you should review existing training package units of competency once again, to ensure the same outcome cannot be achieved. If a training package unit covers the same outcome, then that unit should be included in the course structure, rather than developing an enterprise unit of competency.

Writing enterprise units

Each enterprise unit of competency should be documented on a unit of competency template structured according to Table 4 below. You will also need to document the assessment requirements for each enterprise unit on the assessment requirements template, according to the structure set out in Table 5. Both tables should be circulated in draft form to key stakeholders for comment and revised as required. Stakeholders should then have the opportunity to review the revised unit of competency for comment.

Unit of competency template

This table sets out how enterprise units of competency should be structured in the course document. You can find additional guidance about each component of this template on the national course document template, on ASQA’s website.

Table 4: Unit of competency template components

Unit of competency template components

Unit code

ASQA will assign a unique code to each enterprise unit

Unit title

A title that concisely describes the outcome

Application

A brief description of the unit content, how the unit is applied and any licensing, legislative, regulatory or certification requirements that apply to the unit.

Pre-requisite unit

(Optional)

A list of any units in which the student must be deemed competent prior to undertaking this unit.

Note: As this component is optional, insert a row into the template if pre-requisite study is identified.

Competency field

Detailed (six digit) field of education (FOE) code is assigned to each unit to identify a type of work.

Note: The FOE code assigned to training package units can be found on the National Register. For training package units, you will find the relevant code on the Australian Bureau of Statistics website.

 

Unit sector

(Optional)

Relates to the categorisation of units of competency to a particular industry sector.

Note: As this component is optional, insert a row into the template if industry sector information is being identified.

 

Elements

Describe the essential outcomes of the unit by breaking down the unit into actions or outcomes.

 

Performance criteria

Relate directly to the corresponding element, breaking down the element into tasks, roles and skills, and applied knowledge that reflect the required standard of performance in the workplace, education or community environment.

 

Range of conditions

(Optional)

Specify different work environments and conditions that affect performance.

This information is intended to provide additional context to assist training providers deliver the unit of competency.

Note:  As this component is optional, insert a row into the template if you are identifying range of conditions. Where a range of conditions is identified, they should represent mandatory requirements.

 

Foundation skills

Describes language, literacy and employment skills that are essential to performance in the workplace.

If the foundation skills are essential to performance but not explicit in the performance criteria, include a brief description of how the skill is applied, presented as in the table below. If foundation skills are explicit in the performance criteria, you should include a statement to this effect in the course document.

Note:  Only skills applicable to the unit outcomes need to be identified in the table. Those skills that do not apply may be removed.

Unit mapping information

Specifies the code and title of any equivalent unit of competency e.g. a previous version of the unit.

Example table to show how essential foundation skills will be applied

Skill

Description

Reading skills

                                                                                               

Writing skills

 

Oral communication skills

 

Numeracy skills

 

Learning skills

 

Problem solving skills

 

Initiative and enterprise skills

 

Teamwork skills

 

Planning and organising skills

 

Self-management skills

 

Technology skills

 

In addition, to the above, you will need to record the assessment requirements for each unit of competency using the assessment requirements template, set out as in Table 5 below.

You can also find additional guidance about each component of this template on the national course document template, published on ASQA’s website.

Table 5:  Assessment requirements template components

Assessment requirements template components

Title

Specifies the code and unit title that the assessment requirements relate to.

Performance evidence

Specifies process and evidence, as well as the frequency or volume of evidence, that the assessor needs to collect to determine a student’s competency.

Note: Elements and performance criteria should not be repeated here.

Knowledge evidence

Specifies the knowledge a student must have to perform the work tasks described in the unit of competency.

Assessment conditions

Specifies mandatory conditions, methods, contexts and resources required for assessment.

This may also include:

  • mandated assessment methods
  • identified prerequisite relationships
  • mandated assessment tools and their implementation requirements
  • specialist vocational competency requirements for assessors.

The information must align with the assessment strategy described in Section B: 6.1 of the National course document template.

Was this page helpful?

Share

Print
Australian Government Australian Skills Quality Authority
Logo Working Together

Footer

  • RTOs
  • Guidance & Resources
  • How we regulate
  • About Us
  • CRICOS
  • RTO standards
  • Our regulatory practice
  • Contact us
  • Students
  • Course accreditation
  • Privacy
  • Using this website

Subscribe to our newsletter

  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
Logo Working Together
Flag TI Aboriginal flag

The Australian Skills Quality Authority acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians of country throughout Australia and acknowledges their continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to the people, the cultures and the elders past, present and emerging.