Issuing qualifications

Can an employer request a copy of a qualification issued to a learner, if the employer paid for the course? (Clauses 3.1 - 3.3)

You may only issue Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) certification documentation to a learner who you have assessed as meeting the requirements of the training product.

You may issue a copy of a learner’s qualification or statement of attainment to another party, such as an employer, if the leaner has given written approval. You must be able to demonstrate, if required, that the learner approved the issue of a copy of their award to another party.

Do I have to issue a qualification or statement of attainment within 30 days, or will a record of results suffice? (Clauses 3.1 – 3.4)

You must issue the full AQF certification documentation that the student is entitled to within 30 calendar days of a student being assessed as competent in the training program they are enrolled in.

If a student hasn't paid all of their fees, but completed their studies, does my RTO need to issue a qualification in 30 days? (Clauses 3.1 – 3.4)

An RTO does not need to issue a qualification or statement of attainment until all agreed fees the learner owes are paid.

My RTO hosts a graduation event to issue qualifications to students. What does this mean in the context of the 30 day requirement? (Clauses 3.1 – 3.4)

Your RTO can continue to hold graduation events and these can be held at any time.

However, every RTO must ensure it issues its students with the qualification or statement of attainment they are entitled to, within 30 calendar days of a student being assessed as competent in the training program they are enrolled in (providing all fees have been paid).

Your RTO may choose to issue a commemorative or framed copy of the certification documentation at the graduation event.

What records of learner AQF certification documentation do I need to keep? (Clause 3.4)

Your RTO must:

maintain a register of all Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) qualifications that it is authorised to issue
maintain a register of all AQF qualifications and statements of attainment it has issued, and
retain records of any AQF certification documentation that has been issued for a period of 30 years.

Regardless of the storage method you use, you must retain sufficient data to reissue a qualification or statement of attainment. As such, the information you retain should be consistent with the information recorded on a qualification, statement of attainment, and record of results. The data retained should also include information to allow authentication of the learner, such as their USI, date of birth, or address.

Retaining full Australian Vocational Education and Training Management Information Statistical Standard (AVETMISS) data is sufficient.

An RTO must ensure that current and past learners are able to access records of their achievements. All learners who hold a verified unique student identifier (USI), and whose results have been reported into the USI system, will be able to access their records through the USI system. If a learner’s achievements have not been recorded through the USI system, you will need to have processes in place to ensure that this learner can access their records in another way.

If your organisation ceases being an RTO, you will be required to provide the records of learner AQF certification documentation to ASQA in digital form.

When does the 30 day period for issuing a qualification or statement of attainment begin? (Clauses 3.1 – 3.4)

The Standards require you to issue AQF certification documentation within 30 calendar days of a learner being assessed as meeting the requirements of their training program—providing all agreed fees the learner owes your RTO have been paid.

The time taken to determine a learner meets all requirements of their training program would include the RTO’s processes for finalising assessment and verifying the learner is eligible to be issued with AQF certification documentation.