Is there a difference between being qualified and being registered as a qualified assessor and/or moderator? The answer is simply yes.
All assessors and moderators must first and foremost be qualified as such. To become a qualified assessor or moderator the candidate must first be trained on unit standard 115753 - Assess outcomes based assessment. Following training the candidate must produce a portfolio of evidence and must be assessed as competent.
What does it mean to be a qualified assessor?
Following the assessment, moderation and verification process the candidate is declared competent and is then issued with a certificate by the ETDP SETA. A certificate from anyone else is not valid. This now means the candidate is only qualified. It does not give the newly qualified assessor the right to commence assessing any unit standard based programme or qualification.
In order to commence assessing or working as an assessor for a company the newly qualified assessor must apply to one or more of the SETA's to register as a constituent assessor. The choice of programmes for which the new assessor applies for registration will be dependent on the education and/or experience of the new assessor. Should the SETA deem the applicant to be qualified then they will register the applicant as a constituent assessor and will issue a certificate of registration. This certificate of registration will indicate the qualifications and/or unit standards against which the new assessor may not carry out assessments.
Without both these certificates and without both certificates being current and up to date an assessor may not carry out assessments. The registration of constituent assessors normally falls away after a period of five years and a new application must be submitted and approved.
Anyone making use of an assessor should request sight of both certificates and should keep these on file as the moderator and verifier will want to have sight of these.
From assessor to moderator
Following on from this the new assessor may continue with his/her studies and decide to qualify as a moderator. The candidate would then complete training on the moderator unit standard 115759 and would follow the exact same process as outlined above - certification by the ETDP SETA and registration as a constituent moderator with the relevant SETA.
Des Squire (Managing Member) and Associates cc
