Vocational Training / VRQS

‘… there are far too many different IT qualifications being offered. As a result learners and businesses are confused about the purpose and value of many awards. There should be a dramatic reduction in the number of awards and the current system should be simplified. Only then will the value of awards be improved in the eyes of businesses.’

- ‘Skills for the Information Age – Final Report from the Information Technology, Communications and Electronics Skills Strategy Group’ (DfEE, 1999)

As a consequence, in October 2000, QCA produced a guidance document for those devising IT qualifications and those regulating them in order to provide a clear statement of what industry needs from vocationally-related IT qualifications (IT VRQs).

QCA's IT Sector Advisory Group identified that there should be two strands of IT VRQs, aimed at:

• IT Users
  - the vast majority of us who use IT on a day-to day basis
• IT Practitioners
  - people who work in the IT industries
  - people who have an IT role in a none-IT company
  - and people who wish to progress to such work

As a result of the advice of the IT Sector Advisory Group, QCA commissioned work via the NTOs in the ITCE sector (including the e-skills NTO) to ascertain what employers require at different levels of the framework.

Please click here for an overview of the IT related-vocational qualifications identified as the qualifications required by industry in National Qualifications Framework and for further information on what these qualifications represent .

To date, the e-skills NTO has developed the IT Practitioner (ICT Systems Support) Level 2 RVQ (or IT Systems Support Technician ) and is currently working on developing Level 3 with industry and education partners.

Contact : Terry Killer on or e-mail

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