NVQ awards for UCL

The programme, which began in 1999, is run by Andrew Taylor (UCL Staff Development and Training Unit) in conjunction with West Hertfordshire College, who help assess the candidates. The qualifications are gained by candidates demonstrating their competence in the workplace and require the individual to reflect on what and how they do their work and where necessary, change what they do.

"During the six years of the programme the success rate has been quite exceptional. Apart from staff that have actually left UCL for other employment during their programme only three staff who started their programme failed to complete their assessments. With each group the flexibility of the NVQ programme meets with all manner of challenges - from changing jobs internally, physically moving departments between buildings and having babies" commented Andrew Taylor.

The NVQ awards have brought benefits to the programme participants, their departments and UCL. Independent research, reported to HRPC, overwhelmingly established that UCL candidates' workplaces had benefited from their participation in one of the NVQ programmes.

Explaining the benefits of the scheme to both participants and UCL as a whole, Andrew Taylor said: "The participants who join the programme benefit from working with other participants who work in a wide range of areas of UCL. Those doing the management awards have been divided quite equally between departmental administrators, Corporate Support Services managers and technical managers from labs and IT."

UCL has now produced almost 60 management-qualified staff since the awards began, some of whom have gone on to do MBAs, using their level 5 management award as a credit exemption.