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: Banking 
SAQA QUAL ID QUALIFICATION TITLE
20183  National Certificate: Banking 
ORIGINATOR
SGB Banking and Micro Finance 
PRIMARY OR DELEGATED QUALITY ASSURANCE FUNCTIONARY NQF SUB-FRAMEWORK
BANKSETA - Banking Sector Education and Training Authority  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 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 0695/12  2012-07-01  2015-06-30 
LAST DATE FOR ENROLMENT LAST DATE FOR ACHIEVEMENT
2016-06-30   2019-06-30  

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 intended to equip the learner to meet the demands of worldwide banking, now and in the future.

The introduction of new banking qualifications also recognises the skills that the learner may already have.

The purpose of the qualification is in line with the objectives of the National Qualifications Framework (Section 2 of the South African Qualifications Act, 58 of 1995). The South African Qualifications Authority Act, 38 of 1995, states that the objectives of the National Qualifications Framework are to "... to create an integrated national framework for learning achievements; ... facilitate access to, and mobility and progression within education, training and career paths; ... enhance the quality of education and training; ... accelerate the redress of past unfair discrimination in education, training and employment opportunities; and thereby ... contribute to the full personal development of each learner and the social and economic development of the nation at large."

The qualification recognises the importance of equity. It should reflect all the skills a learner has, regardless of that learner's previous educational background. This qualification can also reflect the unique sets of skills any learner has, and allows for individual needs, potential and talents.

In line with the needs and requirements of the banking industry, this qualification represents a planned combination of learning outcomes in the field of business, commerce and management studies and other related fields, and specifically the sub-field of banking. It will provide qualifying learners with competence and a basis for further learning. Because there are core, fundamental and elective unit standards, the qualification should enrich and add value to the learner by providing status and recognition by means of a recognised qualification.

The qualification also promotes the marketability and employability of learners. It should open roads to additional education and training. All of this will benefit society and the economy because people will be better educated, can become better citizens, and increase social and economic productivity. 

LEARNING ASSUMED TO BE IN PLACE AND RECOGNITION OF PRIOR LEARNING 
Learners who want to do the NBC2 should have unit standards from the General Education and Training Certificate and a combination of competencies obtained in the Further Education and Training band.

See "Notes" for further details.


Role of recognition of prior learning:

The qualification is specifically designed to accommodate a broad range of recognition of prior learning. This intention is reflected in the structure of the qualification and also in the rules for combination of credits towards the qualification. The intention is to provide recognition for all the relevant skills which learners already possess and even to provide recognition for skills which might not be absolutely relevant to the job through the elective category. It is recognized that these suites of skills will differ radically from employee to employee and from bank to bank. The philosophy of flexibility expressed elsewhere in this document arises from a desire not to unnecessarily deny access to an appropriate qualification to any learner.

Recognising that skills development in banks will in any case be specific to specific learners, rather than rigid career paths, which in any case appear to be rapidly disappearing in banking, the same philosophy requires that this qualification will be so designed as to accommodate as far as possible recognition of whatever skills the learner will need to acquire both now and in the future.

The principle of portability is honoured in this way in the qualification. It is viewed as irrelevant at what institution credit towards a particular qualification was acquired. Prior learning for example may occur through the formal education system. To accommodate appropriate recognition of this prior learning, the qualification may contain up to fifty-nine credits which are transferred from formal schooling. Nor is there any prohibition of using appropriate credits towards this qualification which have already been used towards any other qualification.

It is not envisaged that this qualification will ever be a "whole" qualification. It is not intended that evaluation towards any constituent unit standard will ever be subsumed in broader evaluation towards the qualification as a whole, in consequence. This arrangement particularly suits the contingencies of recognition for prior learning. It is expected that every learner will plan his/her own progress toward the qualification by obtaining assessment from an appropriate source towards the unit standards which he/she intends to incorporate in the qualification. Such a system will draw heavily on recognition of prior learning, and will enable learners to obtain qualifications as far as possible on the basis of recognition of prior learning.

In conclusion, the qualification may be achieved in whole or in part through the recognition of prior learning, which will include the learning outcomes achieved through formal, informal and non-formal learning and work experience. 

RECOGNISE PREVIOUS LEARNING? 
Y 

QUALIFICATION RULES 
Any combination of banking unit standards may be used to make up the minimum total of credits required for the qualification subject to the approval of the relevant ETQA

To be awarded the Qualification learners are required to obtain a minimum of 120 credits as detailed below.

Fundamental Component:

All Unit Standards in the Fundamental Component comprising 36 credits are compulsory:
  • 20 credits from Communication Studies and Language at level 2;
  • 16 credits from Mathematics at level 2.

    Core Component:

    There are no compulsory Core Unit Standards.

    Elective Component:

    Learners are to choose Unit Standards to the value of 84 credits from the Unit standards listed as Electives. 
    		•

    EXIT LEVEL OUTCOMES 
    Exit-level outcomes:

    The exit-level outcomes of the qualification (i.e. once the qualification has been obtained) will be the total of the outcomes of all the unit standards forming the qualification. It is not possible to be more specific about the exit-level outcomes because the flexibility in the qualification makes many options possible. This flexibility is desirable because it reflects the multi-disciplinary nature of banking work, and the way that jobs and roles change in the banking profession.

    Any combination of unit standards that match the minimum requirements for the qualification include all the critical cross-field outcomes, as required by the South African Qualifications Authority. In this way, the qualification will have played an important role in promoting life-long learning.

    The total of the specific outcomes of the unit standards in the qualification should make the learner good at his/her job in banking, although no set of unit standards will make the learner good at all jobs in banking, even at a particular level of work.

    It is not possible to list the assessment criteria of all the unit standards which might form a part of the qualification. However, the assessment criteria important to the exit-level outcome of the qualification will be the assessment criteria from every individual unit standard making up the qualification. Exiting from the qualification is possible from every point, because the learner would keep the credit for every unit standard which he/she obtained credit. While it is not possible to be more specific than that about early exit outcomes, it is possible to guarantee that every learner will enjoy the benefit of the portability of unit standards. In other words, the learner can "bank" the credits that he/she has and use them at some other stage.

    If the learner stops and does not finish the qualification, he/she can always carry on with the qualification later, or even re-enter a qualification at a higher level, using the unit standards for which he/she already has credit. The specific and critical cross-field learning outcomes which are required for competence in terms of the qualification should match the requirements for effective performance in the job.


    Specific outcomes:

    The NBC 2 is highly flexible, because it allows for the combination of a wide range of unit standards. This flexibility is necessary because the banking sector changes rapidly and also reflects the fact that general education is valued in the banking sector. Learners can have as much opportunity as possible to use what they learn in and for the workplace in getting this qualification.

    However, because of the flexibility, it is not possible (and nor is it desirable) to list a narrow set of specific outcomes which will be associated with this qualification. Instead, the specific outcomes of the qualification must always be seen as the total of the specific outcomes of all the unit standards.

    This means that different learners with this qualification may have different "sums of specific outcomes". This should not be a problem as long as learners and employers are aware that this qualification does not imply a single, unchanging set of specific outcomes. Learners should not see this qualification as an end-point in their learning but should rather continue learning towards further qualifications. As banking is such a wide environment with many career paths possible, it seems better to recognize the skills the learners possess, and to encourage them to build on these than to limit them to sets of specific outcomes.


    3. Critical cross-field outcomes

    The unit standards making up this qualification will include the appropriate critical cross-field outcomes.

    No matter what the unit standards are, the learner who acquires the qualification should be able:
  • To identify and solve problems by thinking and making responsible decisions;
  • To work with others as a member of a team;
  • To organise and manage him/herself and his/her activities responsibly and effectively;
  • To collect, analyse, organise and critically evaluate performance;
  • To communicate well using mathematical and language skills;
  • To demonstrate an understanding of the world as a set of related systems by recognizing that problem-solving situations do not exist in isolation; and
  • To benefit by full personal development, thus contributing to the social and economic development of South African society at large. 
    		•

    ASSOCIATED ASSESSMENT CRITERIA 
    Section 8 of the Regulations under the South African Qualifications Authority Act of 1995, published in Regulation Gazette 6140 of 28 March 1998, provides a number of requirements for the registration of qualifications, inter alia that a qualification shall:

    (g) "... incorporate integrated assessment appropriately to ensure that the purpose of the qualification is achieved, and such assessment shall use a range of formative and summative assessment methods such as portfolios, simulations, work-place assessments, written and oral examinations ...".

    It is recognized that skills development within banking is more and more individually based. Individuals will develop unique career paths to equip themselves for an environment that changes constantly and rapidly.

    The intention in postulating this qualification is to provide recognition for the skills which bank employees already possess. It is recognized that the combination of skills will differ from employee to employee and from bank to bank. A philosophy of flexibility is required to ensure that appropriate qualifications are easily accessible to any bank employee. It follows that qualifications in banking will be determined by the needs of the individual and not by a prescribed formula.

    This qualification consists of unit standards drawn from a wide range of fields. Each unit standard is a self-contained exit level outcome. Each constituent unit standard contains its own assessment criteria, and it is not intended that admission to this qualification will be accorded on any basis than the granting of individual constituent unit standards on the basis of compliance with those assessment criteria. The unit standards prescribe competent performance and lay down the assessment criteria by which competence should be judged, as well as the range of circumstances in which competence should be demonstrated.

    The assessment tools used include:
  • Written instruments (e.g. tests/case studies/projects);
  • in-situ (on-the-job) observations;
  • simulation;
  • role-play;
  • structured classroom discussions;
  • portfolio of evidence and
  • technology-based testing

    These methods must be carefully selected based on the purpose of the assessment (For example, the written method of assessing knowledge or on-job demonstration of practical competence). The assessment should as many different methods as are necessary to give the assessor reliable and valid proof of competence and evidence of required attitudes.

    The portfolio of evidence referred to in the previous paragraph, if used for assessment purposes, must provide valid, reliable and authentic evidence of past achievements and experience which served to supplement the assessment of applied competence. The portfolio should include:
  • written statements from reliable persons (for example current and/or previous employers, colleagues, peers, managers, and/or external customers) confirming the competence of the learner;
  • relevant certificates and/or awards;
  • previous assessment records; and/or
  • journals and/or logbooks.

    Because the qualification is not offered as a "whole" qualification, the question of formative and summative evaluation towards the qualification does not arise. Moreover, the question of formative evaluation does not arise in respect of credits awarded as recognition of prior learning. It is to be hoped that in respect of unit standards representing new learning by the learner the formative and summative evaluation will take place, in order to ensure integrated assessment results. 
    		•

    INTERNATIONAL COMPARABILITY 
    The demands of worldwide banking, international comparability of unit standards and qualifications are essential. The following focus were the factors of international benchmarking, which occurred continuously throughout the project:
  • the standards writing approach;
  • contents of the standards themselves and
  • appropriateness of the chosen standards format.

    In terms of the South African approach to unit standards, the standards itself and the appropriateness of standards, international benchmarking has already been built in and has been taken care of by the time unit standards are accepted on the National Qualifications Framework.

    Benchmarking was done on the following qualifications: The NVQ from Britain, The SVQ from Scotland, Australian, New Zealand and German Qualifications. In terms of the Australian and New Zealand approach to qualifications the unit standards were to an extent non-existent and qualifications were very hard to find. The German approach to qualifications is very limited in that it actually pertains to job streaming and is not in line with the approach that the South African Qualification Authority or the National Qualifications Framework wants us to take in South Africa.

    The NVQ and the SVQ qualifications were to an extent similar to the South African approach. It was therefore decided to make use of those two qualifications to determine our own international benchmark throughout the process. The NVQ and SVQ qualifications designed in 1996, consist of four standards, plus a selection of any four optional unit standards from the remaining fourteen banking unit standards. The approach of unit standard writing from an NVQ, SVQ perspective leaves us with broad generic unit standards. This is not in line with the South African Qualifications Authority National Qualifications Framework approach for writing unit standards.

    The philosophy on standards generation from the NVQ SVQ allows for flexibility. This can be seen in that the qualifications allows for optional unit standards to be used in part to complete a full qualification. This approach is highly applicable to the current globalised banking industry and specifically on the South African environment. This concept for allowing flexibility in the generation of qualifications makes South Africa a trendsetter in the generation of banking qualifications. 
    		•

    MODERATION OPTIONS 
    Internal and external moderation of learner achievement is essential to meet requirements of transparency, affordability, fairness, reliability and validity.

    Specifications relating to moderation of unit standards are included with the unit standards in question, and these specifications must of course be adhered to on a piecemeal basis. That being the case, there is no need for a second moderation process in respect of the qualification itself.

    Any additional moderation requirements stipulated by legislation, regulation and moderating bodies appointed by the South African Qualification Authority will naturally receive preference in the identification and implementation of moderation options in relation to this qualification, and severally constituent unit standards. 

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

    NOTES 
    Additional Notes:

    It is stated in section 8 (1) (b) of Regulation Gazette 6140 of 28 March 1998 that a qualification shall "? add value to the qualifying learner through the: provision of status, recognition, credentials and licensing; enhancement of marketability and employability; and opening up of access routes to additional education and training?". It is noted that no qualification can do these things in, on and of itself; supporting initiatives are required to ensure that a qualification will provide status, will enhance the marketability and employability, and will open up access routes to additional education and training. It is noted that such initiatives are contemplated in the banking sector and many of them are already underway within individual organisations.

    It is consistent with the philosophy of this qualification that core learning in respect of any of the new qualifications being proposed will be specified only in general terms. This is because it is not possible to be more specific as to the learning required in situations contextually relevant to the particular qualification without excluding many of the diverse and evolving jobs in banking. Any credit undertaken under the category of core learning will be subject to a test of relevance administered by the sectoral education and training quality assurance body, but it is envisaged that as long as a member organisation can make a case for the relevance of any credit to work being undertaken in that organisation, or work which has been undertaken in that organisation, then it will not be the business of the relevant education and training quality assurance body to obstruct the inclusion of the elective credits in question in a banking qualification.

    Elective learning, comprising the additional credits acceptable for the qualification in question, will permit as broad a selection as may be necessary to capture the particular contingencies applicable to particular jobs in particular contexts within particular organisations. Whereas any credit undertaken under the category of elective learning will be subject to a test of relevance administered by the sectoral training and quality assurance body, such a test will not be stringent since the purpose of the elective component would be to accommodate the interests of the employee. Nor will the range of fields and sub-fields from which elective credits are drawn be narrowed or specified, subject only to the loose test of relevance already mentioned.

    This qualification presumes that credits may be transferred from formal schooling. Until and unless the South African Qualifications Authority provides another basis for doing so, and the application of this alternative basis for doing so carries mandatory and statutory force, the following principles shall apply:
  • In respect of any school course in a language or in mathematics, a pass in standard 5, 6 or 7, or a standard grade pass in standard 8, shall be deemed to confer twenty credits at level 2 per subject. In respect of any other school course than a language or mathematics, a pass in standards 5, 6 or 7 shall confer five credits at level 2 in that subject. However, in respect of any other school course than language or mathematics, a pass in the standard rate in standard 8 shall confer twenty level 2 credits per subject.
  • A higher-grade pass in standard 8 or 9 in any school course shall confer twenty level 3 credits per subject, and a standard grade pass in any subject in standard 9 or standard 10 shall confer twenty level 3 credits per subject.
  • A pass in the higher grade in standard 10 in any school course shall confer twenty level 4 credits per subject.
  • In respect of all of the above credits, credits shall not be repeated within a particular subject category. For example, a candidate who passes both standard 8 and standard 9 English in the higher grade shall receive only twenty credits for communication studies and language, and not forty. However, a candidate who passes both English and Zulu (first or second language) in the higher grade in standard ten shall receive forty level 4 credits for communication studies and language. Credit towards this qualification shall be only in respect of the highest level at which a school course in any particular subject category was passed. A learner who obtained a higher grade pass for standard 10 mathematics, for instance, may count only 20 level 4 credits in mathematics toward the qualification, not a further 20 level 3 credits in respect of his/her higher grade pass in standard 8, et cetera.
  • For any technikon or university course which has been duly registered with the South African Qualifications Authority, and provided that the course is not designed to compensate for deficiencies in school education (e.g. academic support courses), the candidate shall obtain credit for every course passed, regardless of whether categories are repeated, unless it is precisely the same subject at precisely the same level which has been repeated.
  • For a pass in any SAQA-registered first-, second- or third-year diploma course, or for any SAQA-registered first-year course for a bachelor's degree, level five credits shall be awarded on the basis of fifteen credits per multiple of 120 tuition hours comprising the course.
  • For a pass in a SAQA-registered fourth-year diploma course or a SAQA-registered second-year course towards a bachelor's degree, level 6 credits will be awarded on the basis of fifteen credits per multiple of 120 tuition hours comprising the course.
  • For a pass in any SAQA-registered fifth-year diploma course or a SAQA-registered third-year course towards a bachelor's degree, level 7 credits will be awarded on the basis of fifteen credits per multiple of 120 tuition hours.
  • For a pass in any SAQA-registered post-graduate course towards a higher degree, level eight credits shall be awarded on the basis of fifteen credits per multiple of 120 tuition hours.

    All credits, in order to count towards this qualification, must be subject to a test of relevance. 
    		•

    UNIT STANDARDS: 
      ID UNIT STANDARD TITLE PRE-2009 NQF LEVEL NQF LEVEL CREDITS
    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  9008  Identify, describe, compare, classify, explore shape and motion in 2-and 3-dimensional shapes in different contexts  Level 2  NQF Level 02  3 
    Fundamental  8962  Maintain and adapt oral communication  Level 2  NQF Level 02  5 
    Fundamental  8966  Respond to selected 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  110200  Demonstrate an awareness of customer service  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  13999  Demonstrate an understanding of basic accounting practices  Level 1  NQF Level 01  4 
    Elective  13995  Demonstrate an understanding of contracts and their sources  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  10006  Demonstrate an understanding of entrepreneurship and develop entrepreneurial qualities  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  14001  Demonstrate an understanding of managerial expertise and administrative capabilities  Level 1  NQF Level 01  4 
    Elective  13998  Demonstrate an understanding of the principles of supply and demand, and the concept: production  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  10009  Demonstrate the ability to start and run a business and adapt to a changing business environment  Level 1  NQF Level 01  3 
    Elective  114232  Describe housing finance options and demonstrate an understanding of procedures to access housing finance and show how they affect own budget  Level 1  NQF Level 01  8 
    Elective  13994  Identify and discuss different types of business and their legal implications  Level 1  NQF Level 01  4 
    Elective  10007  Identify, analyse and select business opportunities  Level 1  NQF Level 01  3 
    Elective  13996  Identify, discuss, describe and compare major economic systems, with emphasis on the South African economy  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  243189  Manage personal finances  Level 1  NQF Level 01  8 
    Elective  15092  Plan and manage personal finances  Level 1  NQF Level 01  5 
    Elective  13157  Read, interpret and understand information on a payslip  Level 1  NQF Level 01  2 
    Elective  7095  Administer and maintain a security information library in a banking environment  Level 2  NQF Level 02  6 
    Elective  10358  Apply in-bound Contact Centre Operations within a commercial environment  Level 2  NQF Level 02  8 
    Elective  10350  Collect and record information queries and requests from customers  Level 2  NQF Level 02  8 
    Elective  10354  Contribute to a diverse working environment in a Contact Centre  Level 2  NQF Level 02  8 
    Elective  12765  Demonstrate an understanding of legal and ethical terminology in a banking environment  Level 2  NQF Level 02  4 
    Elective  114777  Demonstrate and apply an understanding of credit and debit card administration, production and distribution  Level 2  NQF Level 02  5 
    Elective  7098  Follow trading procedures in a treasury  Level 2  NQF Level 02  6 
    Elective  10348  Identify and respond to customer needs in a Contact Centre  Level 2  NQF Level 02  12 
    Elective  10349  Input data received onto appropriate computer packages within a Contact Centre  Level 2  NQF Level 02  12 
    Elective  119912  Investigate credit in own circumstances  Level 2  NQF Level 02  3 
    Elective  119911  Investigate the costs and benefits of using banking institutions for managing personal finances  Level 2  NQF Level 02  2 
    Elective  7096  Issue credit cards in a banking environment  Level 2  NQF Level 02  42 
    Elective  12751  Maintain and administer documents relating to client accounts  Level 2  NQF Level 02  5 
    Elective  10353  Meet performance standards within a Contact Centre  Level 2  NQF Level 02  6 
    Elective  14911  Participate in formal meetings  Level 2  NQF Level 02  3 
    Elective  7100  Perform administrative functions in the back office of a treasury  Level 2  NQF Level 02  15 
    Elective  13885  Provide information to customers in a Contact Centre  Level 2  NQF Level 02  12 
    Elective  119913  Use a personal budget to manage own money  Level 2  NQF Level 02  3 
    Elective  12429  Develop a personal financial plan  Level 3  NQF Level 03  2 
    Elective  117132  Explain basic economics  Level 3  NQF Level 03  3 
    Elective  119915  Manage personal expenditure  Level 3  NQF Level 03  3 
    Elective  114970  Manage risk in own life  Level 3  NQF Level 03  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.
     
    NONE 


    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.