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Sam Sleight from Brooks and Kirk discusses the routes to become an IQA:
The Internal Quality Assurance (IQA), Internal Verifier (IV) or V1 course, what is it and who is it for?
Why are there three different names for the same course? The D34 unit was replaced by the V1, otherwise known as the Internal Verifier (IV). Then the V1, or IV qualification as most people know it, was replaced by the Internal Quality Assurance (IQA) course.
You will find that a lot of organisations do still refer to this qualification as either the IV or V1, but if you are looking to do the course, then it's the Internal Quality Assurance course that you need to be looking for.
Also worth knowing...
There are actually three different qualifications within the Internal Quality Assurance suite. The relevant qualification for you will depend on your job role.
The three qualifications are:
- Level 4 Award in Understanding the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Unit 1)
- Level 4 Award in the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Units 1 & 2)
- Level 4 Certificate in Leading the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice (Units 1,2 & 3)
Who are these qualifications for?
The vast majority of people who train to become an IQA are qualified and experienced assessors. For most people, the IQA course is the most logical progression route on from their career as an assessor.
Although, the role of an Internal Quality Assurer is very different to that of an assessor. So it is important that you are sure on what the roles of an IQA include.
If you are already V1 or IV qualified, then it may just be a case that you want to update yourself with the most recent knowledge based component in the IQA suite. If this is the case, then the Level 4 Award that only covers unit 1 will be the qualification you need.
The Level 4 Award that incorporates units 1 and 2 is the qualification you will need if you are either currently, or going to be internally assuring the quality of assessment.
Effectively, you are assessing the assessor! Every NVQ candidate needs to have an assessor and every assessor needs to have an Internal Quality Assurer.
You will need the Level 4 Certificate in Leading the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice if you are going to be the lead IQA within your organisation.
This course would qualify you to lead the process of ensuring that all standards are met during the delivery of training and within the training organisation as a whole.
What are the roles of an IQA?
If you are considering training to become an Internal Quality Assurer, then you can expect the following responsibilities to be included as part of your role as an IQA:
- Plan, operate and evaluate internal assessment and quality assurance systems
- Support and develop tutors and/or assessors
- Monitor and improve the quality of assessment practice
- Apply policies, procedures and legislation to meet external/regulatory requirements
What does the IQA course itself involve?
Obviously, it depends on which qualification you would be completing with regards to what your course would involve. Below is the titles for the three units and a short description of what they involve.
So whether you are just doing the unit one, or the full three unit qualification, this quick unit overview should give you a better idea on exactly what you will cover in your course.
Unit 1 - Understanding the Principle and Practices of Internally Assuring the Quality of Assessment
This is the knowledge based unit. You would gain the knowledge and understanding required to be able to internally assure the quality of assessment.
The theory for the course includes the following areas involved within Internal Quality Assurance:
- The Principles
- The Techniques, and
- The Planning
The delivery method for this unit can either be online or classroom based sessions.
Unit 2 - Internally Assure the Quality of Assessment
This unit involves you putting the theory into practice. As part of this unit, you would be required to monitor two assessors - each with a minimum of two candidates of their own.
This is a competency based unit, which means that you would have to be observed working with the two assessors.
Unit 3 - Plan, Allocate and Monitor Work in Own Area of Responsibility
This is another competency based unit. As part of unit 3, you would learn to plan, allocate and monitor work in your own area of responsibility. Not only this, but you would learn how to make any necessary changes to original work plans.
The evidence from this unit would come from you working with real learners/staff/customers.
Hopefully this article has helped you to build a better understanding of what an Internal Quality Assurer does, and even more importantly, if it's something that would be ideal for you.
Sam Sleight, Head of Marketing, Brooks and Kirk (Assessor Training) Ltd
About Sam Sleight: Sam is the Marketing Manager at Brooks and Kirk. Whenever he’s not working away on websites, managing advertising campaigns or creating new content, he’s probably watching football. But aside from his passion for football and Chelsea in particular, he is also passionate about helping those that are eager to start a new career in the FE industry to receive the best advice, guidance and support possible.
About Brooks and Kirk: Brooks and Kirk are an independent training provider with over 20 years’ experience in delivering assessor and internal quality assurance qualifications. They have loads of great content on their assessor training website for anyone that is interested in becoming an assessor. If you are interested in finding out more here is a link to the Brooks and Kirk assessor training website.
