SAQA QUAL ID |
QUALIFICATION TITLE |
20774 |
National Certificate: Insurance: Long Term: Risk Assessment |
ORIGINATOR |
SGB Financial Services |
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY |
NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK |
Was INSETA until Last Date for Achievement |
OQSF - Occupational Qualifications Sub-framework |
QUALIFICATION TYPE |
FIELD |
SUBFIELD |
National Certificate |
Field 03 - Business, Commerce and Management Studies |
Finance, Economics and Accounting |
ABET BAND |
MINIMUM CREDITS |
PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL |
NQF LEVEL |
QUAL CLASS |
Undefined |
120 |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
Regular-Unit Stds Based |
REGISTRATION STATUS |
SAQA DECISION NUMBER |
REGISTRATION START DATE |
REGISTRATION END DATE |
Passed the End Date - Status was "Registered" |
SAQA 0639/01 |
2001-12-05 |
2004-12-05 |
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT |
LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT |
2005-12-05
|
2008-12-05
|
The purpose of the qualification is to build knowledge and skill required by employees in long term insurance who have had schooling at or below NQF level 4. It is intended to empower learners to acquire knowledge, skills, attitudes and values required to operate confidently as individuals in the South African community and to respond to the challenges of the economic environment and changing world of work in the financial services industry. It should add value to the qualifying learner in terms of enrichment of the person, status and recognition.
As a qualification that covers long term insurance related learning, it provides a framework for learners to develop competencies that will give them insight into the Long Term Insurance sub sector which includes life, healthcare benefits administration and employee benefits. It introduces a basic understanding of the key terms, rules, concepts and principles of the field that will enable learners to be informed workers in the industry. It provides a balanced learning experience that allows flexible access to life long learning, higher education and to productive employment in long term insurance. It provides an opportunity for learners to learn and apply academic skills in relation to the workplace and will allow for multi-skilling.
The National Certificate in Long Term Insurance: Level 4: Risk Assessment is intended for personnel employed in long term insurance which includes reinsurance and Healthcare Benefits Administration. The focus is on basic information gathering, analysis, presentation and the ability to apply knowledge of the field to solve routine problems within given frameworks.
Qualifying learners are capable of:
Carrying out basic research, information gathering and analysis.
Interpreting current affairs and their influence on long term insurance.
Operating a computer for business purposes.
Understanding the nature and scope of long term insurance.
Underwriting long term insurance policies to a limited level of authority.
Depending on the unit standards selected as electives, the learner will become competent in basic skills relating to:
Use of word processing and spreadsheets.
Showing insight into legislation that regulates long term insurance.
Applying legislation that regulates long term insurance.
Managing an information system
The relationship between needs and long term insurance products.
Understanding retirement funding in South Africa.
Describing funeral insurance.
Understanding the impact of a healthy lifestyle on insurance cover.
Understanding healthcare funding in South Africa.
Describing fraud in a long term insurance environment and identifying fraudulent claims.
Understanding reinsurance at a basic level in long term insurance.
Assessing long term insurance claims.
Managing risk in their own lives.
These unit standards are intended as building blocks for the further development of skills that will make the learner a more fulfilled, informed, efficient and cost effective worker in the industry. This should result, in turn, in more effective and efficient service to the consumer and should make the industry more competitive in the global market.
Rationale for the qualification
The National Certificate in Insurance: Long Term: Level 4: Risk Assessment is designed to meet the needs of long term insurance underwriters and claims assessors. It provides an introduction to the underwriting and the assessing of claims in Long Term Insurance and is the first step on a career path for learners who:
Have attained the National Certificate in Insurance: Level 3 and wish to continue on a path of life-long learning.
Were previously disadvantaged or who were unable to complete their schooling and were therefore denied access to Further Education and Training.
Have worked in the Long term insurance sub sector for many years, but have no formal qualifications in underwriting, reinsurance or claims assessing.
Wish to extend their range of skills and knowledge of the industry so that they can become knowledge workers in the industry.
Are in a learnership agreement in the Long Term Insurance sub sector.
Have recently taken up a position in underwriting, reinsurance or claims assessing in Long Term Insurance.
The National Certificate in Insurance: Level 4: Risk Assessment, allows the individual to work towards a nationally recognised qualification. It is flexible enough to accommodate both learners in formal education and learners already employed in the Long Term Insurance sub sector. It aims to develop informed and skilled learners in the Long Term Insurance sector. The qualification at this level is the start of a career path in underwriting, reinsurance and claims assessing, but is still generic enough to allow maximum mobility within long term insurance and Healthcare Benefits Administration. Skills, knowledge, values and attitudes reflected in the qualification are building blocks that will be developed further in Level 5. The intention is:
To promote the development of knowledge and skills that are required in the insurance industry.
To release the potential of people.
To provide opportunities for people to move up the value chain.
To provide opportunities for lifelong learning for people who work in long term insurance underwriting and claims assessing for which there was previously no recognised qualification.
Learners already employed in the Long Term Insurance and Healthcare Benefits Administration sub sectors and Reinsurance at this level do work that requires a well developed knowledge medical conditions, knowledge of appropriate legislation and the industry in general, and a range of skills. The work roles are linked to risk assessment in underwriting and claims assessing. They include but are not limited to:
Claims assessors
Underwriters
Internal Broker Consultants
Call centre operators
Client Service providers
Reinsurers
Life administration personnel
The National Certificate in Insurance: Level 4: Risk Assessment should produce knowledgeable, multi-skilled workers who are able to contribute to improved productivity and efficiency within the long term insurance industry. It should provide the means for current workers to receive recognition of prior learning, to upgrade their skills and achieve a nationally recognised qualification. It should also assist new entrants to the industry. The qualification is structured in a way that exposes learners to long term underwriting, reinsurance and claims assessing as there is often a natural progression from underwriter to claims assessor or reinsurer within the long term insurance industry. It is anticipated that this qualification will promote the notion of life long learning. |
Integrated assessment:
Assessment practices must be fair, transparent, valid, reliable and should ensure that no learner is disadvantaged. Learners who wish to be assessed against this standard should direct enquiries to the Insurance Sector Quality Authority, INSQA.
The focus of assessment must be on the assessment of the learning outcomes rather than learning outputs. The specific outcomes guide the learning and training process towards the outcomes on a continuous basis. The purpose is to determine whether the outcomes have been attained. Situations should present a wide range of options. Applications should require significant choices from a wide range of procedures and in a number of contexts.
Learning, teaching and assessment are inextricably linked. Where appropriate, assessment of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values indicated in the various unit standards should be integrated. Assessment in communication, mathematical literacy and financial literacy should use authentic insurance contexts wherever practical.
Assessment has a formative monitoring function. Formative assessment should be used to assess gaps in the learners` skill and knowledge and to indicate where there is a need for expanded opportunities. The goal is to promote learning and to assess the efficacy of the teaching and learning process. Feedback from assessment informs teaching and learning and allows for the critique of outcomes, methodology and materials. Formative assessment is diagnostic and as such it should guide the learner and the trainer. It is continuous and is used to plan appropriate learning experiences to meet the learner`s needs. It provides information about problems experienced at different stages in the learning process. As it is criterion referenced, if the learner has met the assessment criteria, s/he has achieved the outcomes.
Assessment should also have a summative component. Summative assessment may be used on completion of a unit standard, but should not be the only form of assessment.
A variety of methods must be used in assessment and tools and activities must be appropriate to the context in which the learner is working. Assessment should take place in an authentic context as far as is possible. Where it is not possible to assess competence in the workplace, simulations, case studies and other similar techniques should be used to provide a context appropriate to the assessment.
Integration implies that theoretical and practical components should where possible be assessed together.
Integrative techniques should be used to assess applied competence. Learners should be required to demonstrate that they can perform the outcomes with understanding and insight. The unit standards Underwrite a standard risk in long term insurance (40 hours); Assess a long term insurance claim (20 hours); Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of reinsurance at a basic level in long term insurance (30 hours) require practical work experience before learners are credited with the standards.
Assessment should ensure that all specific outcomes, embedded knowledge and critical cross field outcomes are evaluated. Assessment of the critical cross field outcomes should be integrated with the assessment of the specific outcomes. The critical cross field outcomes are implicit in some unit standards and programmes should be designed to extend and further reflect the integration. |
This qualification has been replaced by qualification 49529, which is "Further Education and Training Certificate: Long-Term Risk Assessment", Level 4, 150 credits.
Fundamental credits:
SAQA stipulates that at least 36 credits are allocated to Communication and Mathematical Literacy. For the purpose of this qualification 10 credits are also required for Financial Literacy at level 4. Although this is not a SAQA requirement, the industry believes that if learners are to function in a field that manages people`s money, they should be able to manage their own finances. In this qualification they also serve as an introduction that will lead to an understanding of financial underwriting in later qualifications. This means that 46 credits are allocated to fundamental and will add value to learners both socially and economically in terms of
Their ability to manage their own finances.
Their ability to operate as literate and numerate workers in a global economy.
Their ability to be informed consumers of the financial services industry.
An awareness of the need to avoid the debt spiral that undermines the economy of South Africa.
At this level, financial decisions are based on management of own finances including responsibility for dependents and finances of a small business or organisation.
Core:
Fifty five credits have been allocated to unit standards designated as core for the purpose of this qualification. This is to ensure that the qualification has a strong long term insurance: risk assessment focus. The unit standards classified as Core describe THE BIG PICTURE. They answer the question, What are underwriting and claims assessing all about? They provide an opportunity to develop knowledge of the industry through research and the application of study skills. The core unit standards provide the basic knowledge and skills that workers in long term insurance: risk assessment in general need to know about the industry. They also promote personal development that will enable learners to make informed decisions about their career paths.
Electives:
Learners are required to select electives that add up to at least 19 credits. There are two Healthcare Benefits Administration and ten long term insurance related unit standards at level 2, 3 and 4 in this category. It is anticipated that additional unit standards will be written by the year 2003 when the qualification is reviewed.
Four end-user computing standards on the use of word processing, spreadsheets, the World Wide Web and electronic mail are included in this category. This is because most long term insurance organisations operate using electronic data transfer and e-mail and the Internet is regarded as essential for knowledge workers in the industry. There are very few positions in the industry that do not require the use of a computer.
Two mathematics unit standards at level 4 have been included as these address advanced mathematical knowledge and skills sometimes required in long term insurance.
There are unit standards for communication at level 2 to 4. This qualification makes provision for communication in a South African language other than the language of business to be offered as an insurance related elective at level 3 or above as part of the National Certificate in Long Term Insurance: Level 4: Risk Assessment. It is assumed that the language of business is probably English. The other official languages are Sepedi, Sesotho, Setswana, siSwati, Tshivenda, Xitsonga, Afrikaans, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, IsiZulu and sign language. The selection of an additional official language should be based on the language(s) of the people who are the target market of the industry in a selected area, provided that
The language has not been offered under fundamental.
The learner has not already received credit for the language at the same level in the National Certificate in Insurance Administration: level 3.
Only one language from the Nguni group may be offered as either elective or fundamental.
Only one language from the Sotho group may be offered as either elective or fundamental.
This reflects the multi-lingual nature of South African society and acknowledges the fact that the largest untapped market for long term insurance products is in the Black community. Ability to communicate in more than one South African language is an advantage in many roles within the sector. The inclusion of an additional official South African language in long term insurance qualifications will lead to better customer service in a growing market sector.
It is strongly recommended that learners who do not already have a level 4 equivalent qualification do 20 credits in an additional South African language as an elective. This will enhance the exchange value and is important for the social grading of the qualification. It will ensure that the National Certificate in Insurance: Long Term: Level 4: Risk Assessment is equivalent to other FET qualifications at this level and will expand the scope of the qualification in terms of qualifications that could be accessed in the Higher Education and Training band.
Unit Standards from NSB 07: SGB Democracy, Human Rights, Peace Education Ethical Foundation of Society may be included in this qualification once they are registered. This will contribute to the personal and social development of the learners and enable them to function as informed members of a democratic society. |
|
ID |
UNIT STANDARD TITLE |
PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL |
NQF LEVEL |
CREDITS |
Core |
8988 |
Describe life insurance |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
2 |
Core |
8996 |
Indicate the scope of life insurance in South Africa |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Core |
12326 |
Analyse new developments reported in the media that could impact on long term insurance |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
10 |
Core |
14433 |
Underwrite a standard risk in long term insurance |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
40 |
Fundamental |
9302 |
Access information in order to respond to client enquiries in a financial services environment |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
2 |
Fundamental |
8968 |
Accommodate audience and context needs in oral communication |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Fundamental |
8971 |
Analyse and respond to a variety of literary texts |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Fundamental |
9303 |
Communicate verbally with clients in a financial environment |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Fundamental |
10713 |
Identify possible ways of improving employment prospects |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Fundamental |
8972 |
Interpret a variety of literary texts |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Fundamental |
8969 |
Interpret and use information from texts |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Fundamental |
10712 |
Manage personal expenditure |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Fundamental |
10714 |
Research costs associated with marriage, birth, divorce and death in own circumstances |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
4 |
Fundamental |
8973 |
Use language and communication in occupational learning programmes |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Fundamental |
8970 |
Write texts for a range of communicative contexts |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
5 |
Elective |
8103 |
Maintain an existing information system in an insurance environment |
Level 2 |
NQF Level 02 |
3 |
Elective |
8995 |
Describe funeral insurance |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
2 |
Elective |
9002 |
Describe healthcare funding in South Africa and the role of intermediaries in the sector |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Elective |
8992 |
Describe retirement funding in South Africa |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
2 |
Elective |
8998 |
Describe the importance of a healthy lifestyle for members of medical schemes and explain the concept of corporate wellness |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
2 |
Elective |
8994 |
Manage risk in own life |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
3 |
Elective |
8986 |
Research the history of the Financial Services Industry in South Africa |
Level 3 |
NQF Level 03 |
10 |
Elective |
14314 |
Analyse the different products available in the Long Term Insurance Industry and the benefits of each |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
10 |
Elective |
14431 |
Assess a long term insurance claim |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
2 |
Elective |
14315 |
Demonstrate knowledge and insight into the Income Tax Act (58 of 1962 and the accompanying regulations) as amended as it applies to insurance and investment products |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
2 |
Elective |
14316 |
Demonstrate knowledge and insight into the Long Term Insurance Act (1998) |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
2 |
Elective |
12332 |
Demonstrate knowledge and insight into the Policyholder protection legislation |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
2 |
Elective |
12323 |
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of different products marketed by Healthcare Benefits Administrators |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
4 |
Elective |
14432 |
Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of reinsurance at a basic level in long term insurance |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
3 |
Elective |
14318 |
Describe the control of fraud in Long Term Insurance |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
3 |
Elective |
12183 |
Indicate how different needs lead to the development of different investment products |
Level 4 |
NQF Level 04 |
5 |