Guidance

PTQ Timetable: guide to the data submission process

Published 6 September 2022

© Crown copyright 2022

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ptq-timetable-guide-to-the-data-submission-process/ptq-timetable-guide-to-the-data-submission-process

Introduction

In order to fulfil our regulatory and accreditation functions as set out in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009, we require awarding organisations to provide exams delivery data for regulated qualifications.

What data will be collected?

Data should relate only to vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs) that are included in the Department for Education’s performance tables (PTQs) for the academic year being submitted.

When will data be collected?

Data will be collected according to the reporting schedule which is agreed and maintained by Ofqual’s data services team.

Updates to formats and guidance

This guidance document will be updated regularly. Any changes to procedure will be incorporated into the guidance document.

How to submit your data

Your data should be submitted to us in CSV format. Please refer to the ‘Connecting to Ofqual’s data portal and uploading data’ document on our webpage to help you submit your files to us. If you need to ask us about a data submission please do contact the Data Services team by emailing data.services@ofqual.gov.uk, please do not send your data files via email to Data Services or to any other Ofqual email address, or via Contact the Regulator in the Portal.

Uploaded data

Once files have been successfully uploaded, the data will be validated against a set of validation rules. These are detailed in the sections below. If validation is successful, the data is automatically transferred into our systems and you will receive email confirmation. If the file is unsuccessful at any stage of validation you will receive an email with details of the validation failure. Please correct your file and resubmit it.

Amendments to data

Ofqual staff will not alter data once it has been submitted. If you find an error or omission after you’ve had a successful upload, please notify us by emailing data.services@ofqual.gov.uk. We need to reject the existing submission before you can upload a new file.

How your data will be used

This data will be used to undertake our regulatory activities and, where required, to produce Official Statistics to fulfil our responsibility as a government department.

General completion guidelines

  • Data should relate only to VTQs that are included in the performance tables, this includes all level 1/2, level 2 & level 3 qualifications in performance tables (but not GCSEs, AS or A levels).

  • Data should relate only to assessments available to learners in centres in England.

  • Data should include all timetabled assessments.

  • Both internal and external assessments should be included.

  • All fields are mandatory unless otherwise specified.

File format

The file must be CSV format and the first row must be headers as displayed in the ‘Name’ column of the table below. The subsequent rows must have the values of the data to be reported which must match the format and validation rules below.

Name Description Position Validation Regular Expression Description of Regular Expression
ReportingDate Date the file was due to be submitted regardless of when it was actually uploaded.This date to be provided by Ofqual. Format accepted 120 ODBC canonical yyyy-mm-dd 1 ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits)
ExamSeries Exam series that the data relates to 2 ^(Autumn|Winter|Spring|Summer)([ ][0-9][0-9][0-9][0-9])$ Exam series and year. For example, “Autumn 2022”, “Winter 2022”, “Spring 2023”, “Summer 2023”
AwardingOrganisation Name of the awarding organisation 3 ^.{1,100}$ 1 to 100 characters accepted
QualificationNumber Qualification Number, for example, 123/1234/1 4 ^.{1,10}$ 1 to 10 characters accepted
QualificationTitle Title of qualification 5 ^.{1,150}$ 1 to 150 characters accepted
AssessmentCode Unique identifier for the assessment.

When one unit is assessed by one assessment, it must be the URN (Unit Reference Number)		 6 ^.{1,50}$ 1 to 50 characters accepted
AssessmentTitle Title of the assessment 7 ^.{1,150}$ 1 to 150 characters accepted
AssessmentStartDate Start date of assessment window or date of assessment if it is a single day (for example the earliest date on which the learners may take the assessment).

Format accepted 120 ODBC canonical yyyy-mm-dd		 8 ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits)
AssessmentEndDate End date of assessment window or date of assessment if it is a single day (i.e. the final date on which the learners may take the assessment).

Format accepted 120 ODBC canonical yyyy-mm-dd		 9 ^(20)\d\d[-](0[1-9]|1[012])[-](0[1-9]|[12][0-9]|3[01])$ The date in the following format: year (4 digits), a dash, month (2 digits), a dash, day (2 digits).

Repeat the start date value for assessments which are only taken on one day
AssessmentType Internal assessment or external assessment(external assessment means externally set and marked) 10 ^(Internal|External)$ Accepted values: Internal, External
AssessmentMethod Description of the assessment method used for the component.

If multiple assessment methods are used, please use the value “Mixed”.

Please choose the most appropriate one		 11 ^(Aural assessment|Coursework|E-assessment|Multiple choice examination|Oral examination|Portfolio of evidence|Practical demonstration/assignment|Practical examination|Task-based controlled assessment|Written examination|Mixed)$ Accepted values:
• aural assessment
• coursework
• e-assessment
• multiple choice examination
• oral examination
• portfolio of evidence
• practical demonstration/assignment
• practical examination
• task-based controlled assessment
• written examination
• mixed
DeliveryMode Mode of the primary assessment method used for the component.

Please choose the most appropriate one.		 12 ^(Paper based|Computer based|Face to face|Remote|Product based|Mixed)$ Accepted values:
• paper based
• computer based
• face to face
• remote
• product based
• mixed

Annex A: list of assessment methods

Please use the following list of assessment methods for entering values for the AssessmentMethod field given above. Where terms used by an awarding organisation differ from those given below, please select the closest match possible.

Assessment Methods

Aural assessment

Coursework

E-assessment

Multiple choice examination

Oral examination

Portfolio of evidence

Practical demonstration/assignment

Practical examination

Task-based controlled assessment

Written examination

Mixed (any combination of the listed methods)

Annex B – List of delivery modes

Please use the following list of component delivery modes for entering values for the DeliveryMode field given above. Where terms used by an awarding organisation differ from those given below, please select the closest match possible.

Delivery Mode Description and Examples
Paper based A delivery mode where an assessment is delivered on a paper to access and/or gather evidence of skills, knowledge and behaviours ofthe learner.

For example, tests, assignments, evidence logbook, etc.
Computer based A delivery mode where computers are used for assessing skills, knowledge and behaviours of the learner. Includes any “on screen” assessment.

For example, tests, practical exercises, taskbased challenge, etc.

Note: this delivery mode does not include remote video-based communication or performance assessments.
Face to face A delivery mode used for assessing learners’ learning with the learner and examiner sharing the same physical space.

For example, oral assessments such as interviews, professional discussions as well as practical observation, task-based challenge, etc.
Remote A delivery mode used for assessing learners’ learning with the learner and examiner not sharing the same physical space, but instead using a video recording, web cam or via online video communication, e.g. Skype or FaceTime.

For example, oral assessments such as interviews, professional discussions as well as practical observation, task-based challenge, etc.
Product based A delivery mode where the learner is required to create a product/working model for assessment. Other delivery modes may be employed as part of the actual assessment process (e.g. face to face questioning).

Note: this delivery mode may primarily be used for projects.
Mixed Any combination of the listed modes

Contacts

For all queries relating to the data collection process, amendments to data previously provided, or for general guidance. please contact:

Data services

Ofqual
2nd floor, 1 Friargate
Station Square
Coventry
CV1 2GN

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