In order to find a combination of optional units that will work best for you, your assessor should have carried out a skill scan exercise with you when completing your registration on this NVQ programme. You will be provided with a list of all the optional units and guided on how to carefully choose the units that reflect what you always do at work. While some of the optional units are mainly from business and administration, others have been imported from Finance, Accounting, IT User and Leadership & Management which makes it easier to match the NVQ with your job role.

You have to remember that your assessor is not a trainer and should not be teaching you your job. Your assessor should only assess your competence in the work that you do, therefore you will not choose an optional unit just because you want to explore a new skill, thinking your assessor will be there to help you out when you get stuck. If you do this, you will struggle when providing evidence.

The evidence you will provide must be judged by your assessor as being sufficient, valid, reliable and authentic and this should come easily from your daily duties and responsibilities at work. Always remember that the essence of an NVQ is to demonstrate competence in the work that you do.

To achieve a full NVQ award at Level 2 you must prove competence in five units, these consist of two mandatory and three optional units.

Level 2 Mandatory Units

Unit 201- Carry out your responsibilities at work

Unit 202- Work within your business environment

Level 2 Optional Units

Unit 110 – Ensure your own actions reduce risk to health and safety (if you are involved in Health and Safety at work).

Unit 203 – Maintain customer relations (if you deal with customers’ queries and requests-whether internal or external to your organisation).

Unit 204- Manage diary systems (if you control other people’s or room-booking diaries)

Unit 205- Organise business travel and accommodation (if you organize other people’s travel arrangements and hotel bookings).

Unit 206- Deal with visitors (if you attend to and meet the needs of visitors at the reception)

Unit 207- Process customers’ financial information (if you receive, make and monitor customer payments)

Unit 208 – Operate credit control procedures (if you assess non- payments and take action to recover monies due)

Unit 209 – Store, retrieves and archive information (if you use a manual or electronic information system to store, retrieve and archive information)

Unit 210 – Research and report information (if you search for, obtain, record and report information)

Unit 211 - Organise and support meetings (if you prepare for and support meetings and assist with follow-up activities after meetings)

Unit 212 - Use IT systems (if you set up hardware, and update software).

Unit 213 - Use IT to exchange information (if you use MS Outlook or similar and the internet frequently- using advanced email facilities such as setting up email groups, adding signatures, compressing file attachments and choosing search engines).

Unit 214 - Word processing software (if you use word processing software to a high standard to produce professional looking documents, for example, mail merged documents, reports and content for web pages)

Unit 215 - Spreadsheet software (if you use spreadsheet software to produce spreadsheets that use more complex formulae and functions)

Unit 216 - Database software (if you use MS Access or similar frequently and to a high standard to modify simple databases and create queries using multiple selection criteria and reports.).

Unit 217 - Presentation software (if you use MS PowerPoint or similar frequently and to a high standard to produce complex presentations)

Unit 218 - Specialist or bespoke software (if you use your company-based database frequently and to a high standard).

Unit 219 - Use a telephone system (if you use a telephone system frequently to make, receive and transfer internal and external calls; and to check and deal with recorded messages)

Unit 220- Operate office equipment (if you operate a range of office equipment to carry out administrative tasks)

Unit 221- Prepare texts from notes (if you often have to create type-written documents from notes taken by yourself or others).

Unit 222 - Prepare text from shorthand (if you often take shorthand notes and produce accurate and correct text in an agreed format from these notes)

Unit 223- Prepare text from recorded audio instructions (if you transcribe accurate and correct text in an agreed format from an audio recording.

Unit 224 - Produce documents (if you produce high quality, attractive documents to

agreed specifications)

Unit 225 - Work effectively with other people (if you work with other people in a way that achieves agreed goals and objectives)

To achieve a full NVQ award at Level 3 you must prove competence in six units, these consist of two mandatory and four optional units. The optional units are split into groups A and B; at least three optional units must be selected from group B.

Level 3 Mandatory Units

Unit 301- Carry out your responsibilities at work

Unit 302- Work within your business environment.

Level 3 Optional Units Group A

Unit 110- Ensure your own actions reduce risks to health and safety (if you are involved in Health and Safety at work).

Unit 204 -Manage diary systems (if you control other people’s or room-booking diaries).

Unit 205 - Organize business travel and accommodation (if you organize other people’s travel arrangements and hotel bookings).

Unit 212 - Use IT systems (if you set up hardware, and update software).

Unit 213 - Use IT to exchange information (if you use MS Outlook or similar and the internet frequently- using advanced email facilities such as setting up email groups, adding signatures, compressing file attachments and choosing search engines).

Unit 216 - Database software (if you use MS Access or similar frequently and to a high standard to modify simple databases and create queries using multiple selection criteria and reports).

Unit 217 - Presentation software (if you use MS PowerPoint or similar frequently and to a high standard).

Unit 218 - Specialist or bespoke software (if you use a company-based database frequently and to a high standard).

Unit 221- Prepare texts from notes (if you often have to create type-written documents from notes taken by yourself or others).

Level 3 Optional Units Group B

Unit 303 – Supervise an office facility (if you frequently oversee facilities such as desks/faxes/photocopiers in your place of work).

Unit 304 – Procure products and services (if you often call in services such as maintenance people, or bring in products to your workplace such as stationery).

Unit 305 - Manage and evaluate customer relations (if you deal with customers a great deal and improve services to meet their needs- internal and external customers to the organization).

Unit 306 - Managing payroll function (if you frequently control the accuracy and compliance of the payroll, provide information to employees and managers and implement redundancy pay procedures.

Unit 307 – Completing year-end procedures (if you frequently produce pay roll year-end returns and reports)

Unit 308 – Monitor information systems (if you frequently oversee the use of filing systems – paper and/or IT based)

Unit 309 – Run projects (if you oversee projects which have targets and a set timescale)

Unit 310 – Research, analyze and report information (if you often have to search out information, like statistics and results).

Unit 311 - Plan, organize and support meetings (if you plan and prepare meetings; support meetings and undertake follow-up activities after meetings).

Unit 312 - Make a presentation. (if you often present information to an audience and deal with their questions)

Unit 313 – Organize and co-ordinate events (such as functions or conferences).

Unit 314 - Word processing software Level 3 (if you work frequently on MS Word or similar to an advanced level to produce complex documents).

Unit 315 - Spreadsheet software (if you work frequently on MS Excel or similar to an advanced level to produce spreadsheets for analysing and interpreting complex data)

Unit 316 – Website software (if you have worked on creating/designing websites as part of your job).

Unit 317 – Artwork and imaging software (if you work frequently on MS Publisher or Photoshop or similar to create complex artwork and images).

Unit 318 - Design and produce documents (if you often produce leaflets or newsletters to a high visual standard).

Unit 319 - Plan and implement innovation and change (if you actively work to change and improve situations in your workplace).

Unit 320 – Develop productive working relationships with colleagues (if you work well with colleagues at all levels).

Unit 321 – Provide leadership for your team (if you frequently lead others to achieve).

Unit 323 - Prepare text from shorthand (if you frequently take shorthand notes and produce accurate and correct text from these notes in an agreed format)

Unit 324 - Prepare text from audio instruction (if you frequently transcribe accurate and correct text in an agreed format from an audio recording)