9 Responses

1. Depends on time allocated
   From my experience NVQ time frames depend on the individual, if a candidate is determined he/she could complete a level 3 or 4 within 6 months, of course it also depends on the individuals current Job role, some will have evidence at their finger tips.

   I completed a level 4 myself in around 7 months.

2. depends on the person
   from my point of view as someone who gained their NVQ a few years ago, it is dependant on the capabilities of the candidate. An NVQ will measure performance and knowledge, therefore if the candidate already has the required skills and knowledge, then there may be little learning and work will revolve around building the portfolio. However if the candidate needs to learn to achieve competence then it will of course take longer. It took me a year, yet if i worked hard and had time out of work, it would have been less

3. Depends on current levels of experience, skills and practice
   I obtained my NVQ level 3 in Training and Development in about 10 months. I am not a dedicated training officer, spending only about 20% of my work time engaged in training and development issues. However I did have a lot of experience and material that I could use as evidence. It still required a great deal of dedication and ‘out of hours’ working to put together my portfolio of evidence. Depending on your colleague’s practical experience it might be more realistic to think the NVQ would be achieved between 6 – 12 months. It is very much dependant on the previous experience of your colleague and how dedicated and committed they are. It should be possible to obtain the qualification in 4-6 months, but a lot of work is necessary.

4. It depends!
   Due to complex funding and personal circumstances at the time I had to complete an NVQ3 in Training & Development in 6 weeks. I was working full time and it required a great amount of effort at nights and wekends.

   Fortunately with six years experience in a training department I had plenty of access to material to use as evidence and regular students to assess.

   I would estimate it took me around 160 working hours, but this was just an evidence gathering and collating exercise. This was the C&G 728/01 in 1995 so I don’t know if it has changed substantialy since then.

   I wouldn’t suggest anyone tries to complete it this quickly (I was forced into it)and because of the time frame it was very stressfull. However it does show that three – six months is not impossible, but it obviously depends on the individual’s determination, experience, access to evidence and many other factors.

   Watch out for getting a back strain from carrying all the evidence. Good luck, Steven

5. T&D is now L&D
   I agree with most of the comments so far – the length of time this S/NVQ takes depends on various factors. It should be noted, however, that the old Training and Development S/NVQ has now been superceded (as of last year) by Learning and Development. The award has been much improved and brought up-to-date, with more emphasis on e-technology, a more learner-centered approach, and additional optional units (such as mentoring). Like its predecessor, it is an excellent and well-rounded qualification, and well worth putting time and effort into.

6. Time vs experience and context
   Time will very much depend on the experience and environment the individual is working in. Some vocations allow for a huge range of evidence production whilst others are a minefield. Experience of the environment and materials help greatly too. It is perfectly feasable to complete the work in six to ten months (I did the level IV in 12 months) but you have to be commited, confident and willing to go the extra mile.
   Bets of luck with it anyway.

7. Don’t Do It….
   I studied for the NVQ T&D at level IV… and with the benefit of hindsight I would not have taken this approach. There is a significant time requirement and no short cut. I took two years (but had to swap assessors / providers three times due to the problems I experienced. In reality when I got the support and advise it took me about 10 months, but, required a significant amount of ‘my time’ to help do this.

   Your colleague should ask themselves whether:
   1. They a self motivated
   2. They don’t need much help
   3. They grasp the concept of describing what they do in NVQ speak.

   I would describe this approach as ‘upside down learning’ – in short you are trying to convince an assessor that you can already ‘do’ that particular element and they assess you against the performance criteria.

   If they really want the NVQ then I would suggest looking for a taught programme.

   I would also encourage and recommend checking the pass rate of the college / supplier and perhaps most importantly the level of support they’ll receive to help achieve the NVQ.

8. Depends on the provider
   I both agree and disagree with Iain. I agree that a candidate for this award needs to be self-motivated and also needs the support of an assessor who understands a.) the award itself and b.) the workplace environment. It is important, for that reason, to shop around and, if possible, talk to people who have done it through the providers under consideration.

   A good assessor will make things easy for the candidate by helping him/her to put together their evidence in an efficient and holistic way – a way which makes the most out of the smallest amount of evidence.

   At the moment, I have a Learning and Development candidate (as T&D has been superceded by L&D, the latter is the one to go for) on the basis of supporting two individual learners for whom she devised learning plans (and whom she is training/coaching), two medium to large group sessions of courses delivered regularly, and one group for whom she is delivering custom-devised training. These, taken together, cover all of the different stages of learning/training as described in the S/NVQ. The performance evidence is bound together and rounded out through a number of personal statements and tape recorded professional discussion where she can show how and why she devised and delivered and evaluated the training given (the knowledge component). It has been a useful learning experience for her BECAUSE it is being delivered in the workplace and therefore the learning she is gaining from it is directly related to what she is doing and therefore very practical.

   Taught courses are very useful and helpful for providing theory about the training/learning process, but a workplace-based award can help you directly on a day-to-day basis and can show others what you can do in practice, rather than in theory.

9. For a subordination

   For a subordination to really mean something it has to be hard to achieve whether it’s in liveliness and blinds or any other commerce for that matter cmi qualification