National Occupational Certificate: Credit or Loans Officer

Purpose

The National Occupational Certificate: Credit or Loans Officer is necessary to ensure responsible lending practices and enhance consumer interactions to ultimately foster trust and stability in various credit contexts. This qualification equips learners with the necessary skills to promote and sell credit products effectively, assess creditworthiness, and deliver exceptional customer service.

The qualification offers significant benefits, including enhanced knowledge and skills in evaluating and processing credit applications, which is highly valued in sectors like banking, microfinance, and credit facilities. Learners gain practical competence in customer service, helping them effectively interact with consumers, respond to queries, and manage complaints, which is essential for maintaining positive consumer relationships. It opens career opportunities in financial institutions, as demand grows for professionals capable of assessing credit risk and providing tailored financial products. Furthermore, it provides valuable insights into regulatory compliance, ensuring that credit decisions align with legal standards, and cultivates sales and marketing skills, enabling learners to promote and sell credit products effectively, contributing to the growth of financial institutions.

The purpose of this qualification is to prepare a learner to function as a Credit or Loans Officer. A Credit or Loans Officer analyses, evaluates, and processes credit and credit applications. They work in various financial environments, such as banks and credit institutions.

Typical learners include people who are already working within the Credit and/or Loans environment and those who wish to enter the field.

A qualified learner will be able to

• Promote and sell credit products.
• Process credit applications.
• Provide customer services.

Collaboration with relevant stakeholders

• Credit / Loan Officers.
• Finance Lenders / Credit / Loan Institutions Skills Development Providers.
• Financial Services Regulators.

A qualified learner will demonstrate the following key attributes

• Sense of urgency.
• Adaptability.
• Team player.
• Critical.
• Practically orientated.
• Customer-focused.
• Culturally sensitive.

Rationale

This qualification will benefit the sector by ensuring that credit products are managed by skilled professionals. Through having a thorough understanding of risk assessment and regulatory compliance the Officers will help the financial institutions minimise default rates while maximising consumer satisfaction. This qualification enhances professionalism which promotes responsible lending practices, ultimately strengthening the integrity and resilience of the financial institutions.

This qualification benefits society by equipping Credit or Loans officers with the skills to assess applications accurately, providing guidance and consumer education. This empowers consumers to make informed decisions about borrowing options thereby enhancing financial literacy and promoting economic mobility within communities.

A qualified workforce in the Credit and Loans sector contributes to the efficient allocation of financial resources, driving economic growth and innovation. By ensuring that credit is extended to creditworthy applicants, they support business development and job creation, which are essential for economic vitality. Furthermore, their ability to manage consumer relationships and respond to enquiries, fosters consumer confidence in financial systems, ultimately leading to a more stable and dynamic economy.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

RPL for Access to Training

Learners may use the RPL process to gain access to training opportunities for a qualification if they do not meet the formal, minimum entry requirements for admission. RPL assessment provides an alternative access route into a programme of learning or qualification.

RPL assessment may be developed, moderated, and conducted by the accredited Skills Development Provider which offers that specific qualification. Such an assessment must ensure that the learner is able to display the equivalent level of competencies required for access, based on the NQF level descriptors.

RPL for exemption from modules

Learners who have gained the stipulated competencies of the modules of a programme of learning or qualification through any means of formal, informal or non-formal learning and/or work experience, may be awarded credits towards relevant modules, and gaps identified for training, which is then concluded.

RPL for Access to the External Integrated Summative Assessment (EISA)

Learners who have gained the stipulated competencies of the modules of a programme of learning or qualification through any means of formal, informal or non-formal learning and/or work experience, may be awarded credits towards relevant modules, and gaps identified for training, which is then concluded.

A valid Statement of Results is required for admission to the EISA in which confirmation of achievement is provided that all internal assessment criteria for all modules in the related curriculum document have been achieved.

Upon successful completion of the EISA, RPL learners will be issued with the QCTO certificate for the qualification. Quality Partners are responsible for ensuring the RPL mechanism and process for qualifications is approved by the QCTO.

Entry Requirements

An NQF Level 3 qualification.

This qualification is made up of compulsory Knowledge, Practical Skill and Work Experience Modules

Knowledge Modules

• 331201-000-00-KM-01, Overview of The Credit Industry, NQF Level 3, 10 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-02, Prospecting in the Credit Cycle, NQF Level 4, 15 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-03, Management of Credit Portfolios, NQF Level 4, 5 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-04, Security at Lending Institutions, NQF Level 4, 3 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-05, Customer Service and Problem-Solving, NQF Level 4, 5 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-06, Credit Application Process for an Individual, NQF level 4, 7 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-KM-07, Credit Application Process for Business Entities, NQF Level 4, 7 Credits.

Total number of credits for Knowledge Modules: 52

Practical Skill Modules

• 331201-000-00-PM-01, Promote and Sell Credit and Value- Added Products to Consumers, NQF Level 4, 15 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-PM-02, Provide Services to Consumers and Resolve Queries and Complaints, NQF Level 4, 15 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-PM-03, Process Credit Applications from Consumers, NQF Level 4, 20 Credits.

Total number of credits for Practical Skill Modules: 50

Work Experience Modules

• 331201-000-00-WM-01, Processes Related to Promoting and Selling Credit Products, NQF Level 4, 5 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-WM-02, Processes Related to Consumer Queries and Complaints, NQF Level 4. 6 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-WM-03, Processes Related to Providing Consumer Service, NQF Level 4, 6 Credits.
• 331201-000-00-WM-04, Processes to Engage with Consumers and Process Loan Applications, NQF Level 4, 15 Credits.

Total number of credits for Work Experience Modules: 32

Exit Level Outcomes

1. Sell credit products to potential clients.
2. Process credit application from specific types of consumers.
3. Finalise credit application process.
4. Provide customer services.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

ELO 1: Sell credit products to potential clients.

• Mark and promotes credit products based on consumer profiles.
• Sell credit products to consumers based on their profile and needs.
• Educate consumers on the different credit products, their features, benefits, and how they can meet their specific needs.
• Identify additional financial products and services for cross-selling to existing consumers.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

ELO 2: Process credit application from specific types of consumers.

• Obtain and validate relevant information for credit applications (from individual/s or businesses).
• Process credit applications using credit application forms and/or electronic systems.
• Evaluate credit information in credit application against credit granting criteria for specific type of consumer and in line with the relevant legislation.
• Make and formulate credit decision.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

ELO 3: Finalise credit application process.

• Conclude credit application and communicate outcome formulated to consumer or recommended for further action.
• Educate consumers on financial literacy, such as budgeting, managing credit repayments, and avoiding over-indebtedness.
• Conclude and clarify credit agreement.
• Check credit disbursement processes and prepare these to conclude the application process.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

ELO 4: Provide customer services.

• Examine consumer queries, requests and complaints for clarification.
• Analyse consumer queries, requests and complaints, formulate and communicate possible remedies or solutions.
• Scrutinise and document unresolved consumer queries, requests and complaints for escalation to relevant parties.

INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT

Integrated Formative Assessment

Formative assessments are conducted throughout the training of learners. A range of formal, non-formal, and informal ongoing assessment activities are used to focus on teaching and learning outcomes to improve learner attainment.

Formative assessments are conducted continuously by the facilitator to feed into further learning, to identify strengths and weakness, and to ensure the learner's ability to apply knowledge, skills and workplace experience gained.

Formative Assessments are conducted by the accredited Skills Development Provider (SDP), and a variety of ongoing assessment methods may be used, for example, quizzes, assignments, tests, scenarios, role play, interviews. Continuous feedback must be provided.

Integrated Summative Assessment

Integrated Assessment involves all the different types of assessment tasks required for a particular qualification, such as written assessment of theory and practical demonstration of competence. To achieve this, the Internal Assessment Criteria (IAC) for all modules as found in the QCTO curriculum document must be followed.

An accredited SDP should implement a well-designed, formal, relevant, final internal Summative Assessment strategy for all modules to prepare learners for the EISA. These assessments evaluate learning achievements relating to the achievement of each module of the relevant components of the qualification.

Internal Summative Assessments are developed, moderated and conducted by the SDP at the end of each module or after integration of relevant modules, e.g., applied knowledge tests, workplace tasks, practical demonstrations, simulated tasks/demonstrations, projects, case studies, etc.

The results of these final formal summative assessments must be recorded. These results, which include the Statement of Work Experience results, where applicable, contribute to the Statement of Results (SoR) that is a requirement for admission to the EISA. An SoR, using the template provided by the Quality Partner, is issued by the accredited SDP for qualifications. The SDP must produce a valid Statement of Results for each learner, indicating the final result and the date on which the competence in each module, of each component, was achieved. Learners are required to produce this SoR, together with their ID document or alternative ID document, at the point of the EISA.

External Integrated Summative Assessment (EISA)

The Quality Partner is responsible for the management, conduct and implementation of the External Integrated Summative Assessment (EISA), in accordance with QCTO set standards. Competence in the EISA is a requirement for certificating a learner.

For entrance into the EISA, the learner requires a valid Statement of Results issued by the accredited institution indicating:

The attainment of all modules for the Knowledge, Practical and Work Experience modules.