The benefits of the changes to vocational qualifications
For learners
The changes to vocational qualifications allow learners to learn skills that employers need in a flexible manner suited to them.
Learners:
- Have more appropriate skills. They will be sure they have the skills that are valued by employers and are relevant to their job and future prospects.
- Benefit from the flexible system. They can fit learning around their lifestyle. New vocational qualifications are designed so that they are flexible and can be taken in small chunks (units) of learning. They can mix and match the units that meet their skills needs to build up qualifications over time. No learning is ever lost – learners collect and bank it, and it is stored on their personal learner records.
- Have a better understanding of career opportunities. Their personal learner records will show the training they have done and help them see how they can progress further with their learning.
- Understand qualifications more easily. All new vocational qualifications have straightforward titles. Learners and employers can tell from the title how long a qualification has taken to complete, its difficulty and its subject matter. This means it is easier than ever to compare different qualifications and know what skills will be achieved from them.
For employers
Vocational qualifications are changing to become more responsive to the specific needs of employers. Employer influence is central to the system and the content of qualifications will cover what employers want.
Employers:
- Have a greater say in what qualifications are developed. The employer’s voice is heard through Sector Skills Councils (SSCs). They decide on the qualifications that will be developed, approve these qualifications and advise on those that should be priority for funding in their sectors.
- Have a more appropriately skilled workforce. SSCs have been working with employers, awarding organisations and the qualifications regulator to define and develop the relevant qualifications for each sector – employers can be sure that these qualifications are both robust and relevant to industry needs. And through the recognition of their in-house training, employers can ensure that their employees are highly skilled in the areas that employers want.
- Benefit from the more flexible qualifications system. New vocational qualifications allow for flexible learning by employees – they can be built up bit by bit and recorded along the way.
- Understand qualifications more easily. All new vocational qualifications have straightforward titles. Learners and employers can tell from the title how long a qualification has taken to complete, its difficulty and its subject matter. This means it is easier than ever to compare different qualifications and know what skills will be achieved from them.
