BTEC Level 3 Diploma in Professional Competence for IT and Telecoms Professionals

Professional Competence qualifications give learners the opportunity to:
 engage in learning which is relevant to them and will provide opportunities to develop a range of skills and techniques, personal skills and attributes essential for successful performance in working life
 gain knowledge, understanding and skills they need to prepare for employment

 gain a nationally recognised vocationally specific qualification to enter employment in the IT sector or to progress to higher education vocational qualifications
 develop functional skills and personal learning and thinking skills essential for successful performance in working life

 certificate smaller blocks of learning which are designed to motivate them and encourage widening participation in education and training.

Key features of the Professional Competence for IT and Telecoms Professionals qualifications

These qualifications:

• are nationally recognised

• are based on the National Occupational Standards (NOS) for IT and Telecoms Professionals.

The NOS assessment requirements/strategy and qualification structure are owned by e-skills UK. The e-skills UK NOS detail the range of discrete areas of competence needed to describe the diverse job roles in the IT and Telecoms industries, and IT professional jobs in other sectors. The e-skills UK NOS also include the discrete areas of competence needed by IT users in all sectors of industry. They have been developed in consultation with employers, and are articulated and maintained by e-skills UK on behalf of industry. NOS provide a common industry-recognised reference framework that can be used for a variety of training and development purposes, for example writing and reviewing job descriptions, assessing staff or developing training programmes such as apprenticeships. NOS also underpin vocational qualifications – i.e. National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) in England and Wales and the Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) in Scotland. The Pearson BTEC Professional Competence for IT and Telecoms Professionals suite of qualifications has been approved as the components required for the IT apprenticeship framework.

What is the purpose of these qualifications?

These qualifications are designed to prepare learners for employment in the IT and Telecoms sector and are suitable for those who have decided that they wish to enter a specific area of work within the IT and Telecoms industry.

These qualifications are for all learners aged 14 -19 and above who are capable of reaching the required standards.

Pearson’s policy is that the qualifications should:
 be free from any barriers that restrict access and progression
 ensure equality of opportunity for all wishing to access the qualifications.

You must be working in the sector in order to generate the evidence.

What are the potential job roles for those working towards these qualifications?
 Business Analyst
 Computer Games Designer
 Computer Games Technical Support person
 Computer Hardware Engineer
 Computer Service Technician
 internet/Web Professional
 IT Product Developer
 IT Technical Sales Specialist
 IT Trainer
 Telecommunications Technician