SAQA

All qualifications and part qualifications registered on the National Qualifications Framework are public property. Thus the only payment that can be made for them is for service and reproduction. It is illegal to sell this material for profit. If the material is reproduced or quoted, the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) should be acknowledged as the source.

SOUTH AFRICAN QUALIFICATIONS AUTHORITY

REGISTERED QUALIFICATION THAT HAS PASSED THE END DATE:

National Certificate: Business Administration Services

SAQA QUAL ID	QUALIFICATION TITLE
23833	National Certificate: Business Administration Services
ORIGINATOR
SGB Administration
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY			NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
SERVICES - Services Sector Education and Training Authority			OQSF - Occupational Qualifications Sub-framework
QUALIFICATION TYPE	FIELD		SUBFIELD
National Certificate	Field 03 - Business, Commerce and Management Studies		Office Administration
ABET BAND	MINIMUM CREDITS	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	QUAL CLASS
Undefined	130	Level 2	NQF Level 02	Regular-Unit Stds Based
REGISTRATION STATUS		SAQA DECISION NUMBER	REGISTRATION START DATE	REGISTRATION END DATE
Passed the End Date - Status was "Reregistered"		SAQA 9999/99	2018-07-01	2023-06-30
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT		LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2026-06-30		2029-06-30

In all of the tables in this document, both the pre-2009 NQF Level and the NQF Level is shown. In the text (purpose statements, qualification rules, etc), any references to NQF Levels are to the pre-2009 levels unless specifically stated otherwise.

This qualification does not replace any other qualification and is not replaced by any other qualification.

PURPOSE AND RATIONALE OF THE QUALIFICATION

This qualification is for any individual who is, or wishes to be, involved in the Administration function in any organization or business in any sector, or field as well as in non-commercial organisations such as clubs and charitable organisations. It contains all the competencies, skills and values required by a learner who wishes to access the National Certificate in Business Administration Services at NQF: Level 3.

The core component contains competencies in Information Handling, Communications, Enterprise/customer service, Technology, Organisation skills, Self-development, Teamwork and Business policies and procedures. The elective component allows the learner to gain specialist knowledge, skills and insight in the areas of Reception, Executive Administration, Financial Services and Banking or in the field in which the learner is employed.

Learners working towards this qualification will find that the acquisition of competence in the unit standards, which make up the qualification, will add value to their work performance. This qualification is intended to enhance the provision of entry-level service within the field of Administration within all sectors.

It will facilitate access to and mobility and progression within education and training for learners who:

Were previously disadvantaged or who were unable to complete their schooling and were therefore denied access to Further Education and Training.

Have worked in this field for many years, but have no formal qualifications and would like to achieve this through the process of RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) and / or formal study.

Wish to extend their range of skills and knowledge of administration within their respective industries so that they can extend their competency levels.

The qualification has building blocks that can be developed further in qualifications at a higher level. It contains all the competencies, skills and values required by a learner who wishes to access the National Certificate in Business Administration Services at NQF level 3.
It also focuses on the skills, knowledge, values and attitudes required to progress further. The intention is:

To promote the development of knowledge, skills and values that are required for service excellence within the field of administration.

To release the potential of people.

To provide opportunities for people to move up the value chain.

Rationale for the qualification:

The National Certificate in Business Administration Services: NQF Level 2 is designed to meet the needs of those learners who are already involved, or wish to become involved, in the field of Administration. It is applicable to employed and unemployed learners. It is particularly suited to those learners who are performing secretarial / administrative tasks, in commercial and non-commercial oreganisations across the entire spectrum, but have not had the opportunity to obtain a formal school qualification beyond NQF level 1.

Administration is an essential field of learning as the competences required by people doing administrative tasks are generic in nature and apply to all businesses in all sectors and to many non-business organisations such as sports and cultural clubs and the like. Administrative tasks and administration are done at various levels depending upon the nature and size of the organization and its management structure. People involved in administration are known by such terms as secretaries, administrative assistants, administrators and clerks depending on the organization in which they are employed. There is therefore an on-going need for highly skilled administration personnel and a need for a well developed learning pathway to cater for administrative personnel at the various levels at which they operate.

The National Certificate in Business Administration Services at NQF: Level 2 is the first qualification in a learning pathway that starts at NQF level 2 and ends with the National Certificate in Office Administration Level 5. It is planned to develop degrees in Administration at levels 6, 7 and 8 as the final steps in the learning pathway.
The National Certificate in Generic Business Administration Services at NQF: Level 2 supports the objectives of the NQF in that it gives the learner access to a registered qualification. It will ensure that the quality of education and training in the sub-field is enhanced and of a world-class standard. The qualification will allow learners not only to develop their knowledge and skills in the field of Administration, but will also enable them to benchmark their competence against international standards.

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING

Learners accessing this qualification are assumed to be competent in:

Communication at NQF level 1

Mathematical Literacy at NQF level 1

Recognition of prior learning:

The structure of this Unit Standard based Qualification makes the Recognition of Prior Learning possible. Learners who are able to demonstrate competence in the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes implicit in this qualification and/or any of its constituent unit standards must receive the appropriate credits. Assessment of Prior Learning must be done by means of Integrated Assessment

Recognition of prior learning may allow:

For accelerated access to further learning at this or higher levels on the NQF

Gaining of credits towards a unit standard

The obtaining in whole or in part of this qualification

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING?

QUALIFICATION RULES

The unit standard "Demonstrate an understanding of the financial services Business Environment Level 4, 10 credits" is currently under review and cannot be used in its current form.

In keeping with SAQA requirements, the qualification is made up of unit standards that are classified as Fundamental, Core and Elective for the purpose of this qualification. A minimum of 130 credits is required to complete the qualification. A minimum of 72 of the 120 credits must be at level 2 or above.

Credits for the Elective Component:
Learners are required to select electives that add up to at least 13 credits. Unit standards may be selected from the unit standards indicated in the elective component.

EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES

On achieving this qualification, the learner will be able to:

Identify and maintain records

Maintain an information system

Process numerical and text data

Receive, distribute and dispatch mail in an office environment

Receive and execute instructions

Process incoming and outgoing telephone calls

Behave in a professional manner in a business environment

Attend to customer enquiries

Operate and take care of equipment in an office environment

Manage time and work processes within a business environment

Investigate the structure of an organisation

Demonstrate an understanding of the business environment

Keep informed about current affairs relating to one`s own industry

Learners exiting this qualification before completion, retain the credits for unit standards successfully completed and may carry them over to other qualifications to which they are applicable. Learners may also retain the credits until a later stage should studies be recommenced, provided the unit standards are still relevant to the qualification.

ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

In particular, assessors should check that the learner can demonstrate an ability to consider a range of options and make decisions and apply the skills that relate to:

Record keeping and the related processes

Information systems in relation to record keeping

Processing instructions

Processing telephone calls

Standards of professionalism in relation to handling customer queries, applying business ethics and behaving appropriately in a business environment

Ensuring that office equipment is properly maintained

Managing time and work schedules effectively

Understanding the work context and how to solve problems within that work context

Resolving customer problems and queries

Integrated Assessment:

Because assessment practices must be open, transparent, fair, valid, and reliable and ensure that no learner is disadvantaged in any way whatsoever, an integrated assessment approach is required for this qualification.

Learning, teaching and assessment are inextricably linked. Whenever possible, the assessment of knowledge, skills, attitudes and values shown in the unit standards should be integrated.

Assessment of the communication, language, literacy and numeracy should be conducted in conjunction with other aspects and should use authentic administration contexts wherever possible.

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. Where it is not possible to assess the learner in the workplace or on-the-job, simulations, case studies, role-plays and other similar techniques should be used to provide a context appropriate to the assessment.

The term `Integrated Assessment` implies that theoretical and practical components should be assessed together. During integrated assessments, the assessor should make use of a range of formative and summative assessment tools methods and assess combinations of practical, applied, foundational and reflective competencies.

Assessors must assess and give credit for the evidence of learning that has already been acquired through formal, informal and non-formal learning and work experience.

Assessment should ensure that all specific outcomes, embedded knowledge and critical cross-field outcomes are evaluated. The assessment of the critical cross-field outcomes should be integrated with the assessment of specific outcomes and embedded knowledge.

INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY

Benchmarking was done by comparison with Qualifications and Unit Standards / Outcomes for Administration in:

Australia

New Zealand

England

Scotland

A direct comparison of the title, specific outcomes, assessment criteria and embedded knowledge was undertaken with each.

The difference in levels across the different countries made direct comparison difficult. However the SGB was able to conclude that this qualification equates well with the Australian Administration qualification entitled, Certificate in Business (Office Skills) Code BSA 10197.

ARTICULATION OPTIONS

This qualification articulates with the following qualifications:

The National Certificate in Business Administration: Level 3

The National Certificate in Management: Level 3

The National Certificate in Public Administration: Level 3

It should also articulate with any other qualification at level 3 in the following fields:

Secretarial services

Reception services

Switchboard operations

Financial administration

Banking administration

Personal / executive secretarial services

Data capturing

MODERATION OPTIONS

Anyone assessing a learner or moderating the assessment of a learner against this Qualification must be registered as an assessor with a relevant Education, Training, Quality, Assurance (ETQA) Body or with an ETQA that has a Memorandum of Understanding with the relevant ETQA.

Any institution offering learning that will enable the achievement of this Qualification must be accredited as a provider with the relevant ETQA or with an ETQA that has a Memorandum of Understanding with the relevant ETQA.

Moderation of assessment will be overseen by the relevant ETQA or by an ETQA that has a Memorandum of Understanding with the relevant ETQA, according to the ETQA`s policies and guidelines for assessment and moderation.

Moderation must include both internal and external moderation of assessments at exit points of the qualification, unless ETQA policies specify otherwise. Moderation should also encompass achievement of the competence described both in individual unit standards as well as in the exit level outcomes described in the qualification.

CRITERIA FOR THE REGISTRATION OF ASSESSORS

For an applicant to register as an assessor for this qualification, the applicant should:

hold at least the National Certificate in Business Administration Services: Level 3

be declared competent in all the outcomes of the National Assessor Unit Standards as stipulated by South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA)

REREGISTRATION HISTORY

As per the SAQA Board decision/s at that time, this qualification was Reregistered in 2012; 2015.

NOTES

Level, credits and learning components assigned to the qualification:

The certificate is made up of a planned combination of learning outcomes that have a defined purpose and will provide qualifying learners with applied competence and a basis for further learning. It is a building block for the National Certificate in Administration: NQF Level 3.

UNIT STANDARDS:

	ID	UNIT STANDARD TITLE	PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL	NQF LEVEL	CREDITS
Core	14338	Attend to customer enquiries in an office setting	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Core	14359	Behave in a professional manner in a business environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Core	14353	Conduct basic financial transactions	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	110064	Contribute to the health, safety and security of the workplace	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Core	14344	Demonstrate an understanding of a selected business environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	10
Core	7568	Demonstrate knowledge of and produce word processing documents using basic functions	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	7571	Demonstrate the ability to use electronic mail software to send and receive messages	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	14339	Identify and maintain the types of records required in own industry and understand why it is necessary to create evidence and maintain confidentiality	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Core	14343	Investigate the structure of an organization as a workplace	Level 2	NQF Level 02	8
Core	14341	Keep informed about current affairs related to one`s own industry	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Core	14340	Maintain an existing information system in a business environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Core	14342	Manage time and work processes within a business environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Core	7547	Operate a personal computer system	Level 2	NQF Level 02	6
Core	8104	Operate and take care of equipment in an office environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Core	8420	Operate in a team	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Core	7566	Operate personal computer peripherals	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	8618	Organise oneself in the workplace	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	14348	Process incoming and outgoing telephone calls	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Core	14346	Process numerical and text data in a business environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Core	14349	Receive and execute instructions	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Core	11235	Maintain effective working relationships with other members of staff	Level 3	NQF Level 03	1
Fundamental	8963	Access and use information from texts	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Fundamental	9009	Apply basic knowledge of statistics and probability to influence the use of data and procedures in order to investigate life related problems	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Fundamental	7480	Demonstrate understanding of rational and irrational numbers and number systems	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Fundamental	8962	Maintain and adapt oral communication	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Fundamental	12444	Measure, estimate and calculate physical quantities and explore, describe and represent geometrical relationships in 2-dimensions in different life or workplace contexts	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Fundamental	8965	Respond to literary texts	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Fundamental	7469	Use mathematics to investigate and monitor the financial aspects of personal and community life	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Fundamental	9007	Work with a range of patterns and functions and solve problems	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Fundamental	8964	Write for a defined context	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Elective	120308	Apply knowledge of self in order to make a personal decision	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Elective	244608	Demonstrate ability to lead a team or group	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Elective	11816	Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the rights and responsibilities of the individual under the South African Constitution	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Elective	11817	Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the structures that reinforce and support human rights in South Africa	Level 2	NQF Level 02	3
Elective	8418	Do basic research	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Elective	10717	Examine the applications of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act and its effect on earnings in own contract	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Elective	14351	Maintain reception area	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Elective	14352	Manage a diary for self and others	Level 2	NQF Level 02	4
Elective	14355	Order and distribute office supplies	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Elective	14350	Receive, consult and direct visitors in a reception area	Level 2	NQF Level 02	5
Elective	14347	Receive, distribute and dispatch mail in an office environment	Level 2	NQF Level 02	2
Elective	13915	Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of HIV/AIDS in a workplace, and its effects on a business sub-sector, own organisation and a specific workplace	Level 3	NQF Level 03	4
Elective	10378	Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the statutory cover afforded under the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act, 130 of 1993, as amended (COIDA)	Level 4	NQF Level 04	3

LEARNING PROGRAMMES RECORDED AGAINST THIS QUALIFICATION:

NONE

PROVIDERS CURRENTLY ACCREDITED TO OFFER THIS QUALIFICATION:

This information shows the current accreditations (i.e. those not past their accreditation end dates), and is the most complete record available to SAQA as of today. Some Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionaries have a lag in their recording systems for provider accreditation, in turn leading to a lag in notifying SAQA of all the providers that they have accredited to offer qualifications and unit standards, as well as any extensions to accreditation end dates. The relevant Primary or Delegated Quality Assurance Functionary should be notified if a record appears to be missing from here.

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