Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The candidate must complete CERFA form no. 2818*02 (Validation of Prior Learning (VAE) – Application for eligibility) and submit the signed form together with all the supporting documents required, either by post or electronically.

Download the eligibility application pack (Booklet 1) and the guidance notes.

Upon receipt of the application, aivancity has two months from the date of receipt of the complete application to review it and notify the candidate of its decision. An in-depth feasibility and guidance interview which, based on Booklet 1 and a thorough assessment, evaluates the candidate’s experience against the criteria for the intended certification. The eligibility application is examined by an internal eligibility committee, which issues a positive or negative eligibility opinion. This opinion determines whether or not the candidate may continue their VAE pathway with aivancity.

Validation of eligibility by the admissions panel does not guarantee validation of the competence blocks covered by the professional qualification. It simply certifies that the candidate’s professional and non-professional experience is indeed aligned with the requirements of the competence framework for the targeted professional qualification. It is during the second phase of this VAE process that the candidate must demonstrate mastery of the skills by providing tangible evidence of this mastery.

Candidates are required to describe and analyse their experience by detailing specific achievements. Once their application for eligibility has been approved and the contract signed, candidates begin the core phase of the VAE process, which involves preparing Booklet 2. The candidate must illustrate and formalise each competence in the qualification framework through professional and/or non-professional achievements. This phase takes place over a period of 12 to 18 months at most. The candidate may be supported throughout the VAE process by a VAE mentor.

• Support from a third party: Funding is available: The regional inter-professional joint committees (CPIRs), known as ‘Transitions Pro’ associations (ATpro), provide funding for employees’ career transition projects. The law stipulates that funding may only be provided once the ATpro has recognised the genuine and serious nature of the validation project. (Labour Code, Art. L 6323-17-6).
• Support from aivancity: Experts in the relevant profession and the skills framework for the qualification in question monitor the compilation of the candidate’s portfolio of evidence throughout the process, consulting the candidate whenever necessary to help them formalise their experience.

The objectives of this support are:

• To guide the candidate in selecting and describing professional or non-professional activities relevant to the school’s qualification.
• To help them highlight the key skills derived from their experience in relation to the qualification they are aiming for.
• To help them contextualise their experience within a theoretical framework
• To provide an opportunity to take stock of their skills and their career and training plans

Support arrangements: Support can take various forms depending on the participants’ needs:

• Methodology workshops and group work on selecting projects to showcase
• Individual interviews, which may take place in person and/or by telephone and/or by email.
• Experiential workshop: sharing of experiences by key skill area, enabling each participant to assess their own level of competence and familiarise themselves with the methodology.
• VAE Panel Preparatory Committee: The VAE Panel Preparatory Committee, made up of professionals, checks that applications comply with the requirements and may make recommendations to the candidate prior to their appearance before the VAE Panel.

After completing and submitting Booklet 2, the candidate must appear before a VAE panel. This panel assesses the candidate’s professional skills acquired through experience. Its role is to verify whether the skills and experience the candidate has declared correspond to the requirements set out in the reference framework for the certification sought, in order to obtain the relevant professional qualification.

The VAE panel consists of five members:

• 2 representatives from the school (the Academic Director of aivancity and the Head of Studies for the certification)
• 3 professionals from the field of the professional certification in question, one of whom is appointed as chair of the panel. Among these three professionals, there must be at least one current employee, one employer and one woman. If only one woman is present, she will automatically be appointed chair of the panel.

Full validation: the candidate is awarded the full certification sought.

Partial validation: the candidate is validated for one or more skill modules:

• If they have only submitted a selection of the competence blocks
• If they applied for the full certification but the VAE panel considers that the candidate’s prior learning is partly in line with the requirements of the targeted certification and enables them to partially meet the objectives of that certification. The candidate is awarded part of the targeted qualification. In this case, the VAE Panel specifies which competence blocks have been awarded, and the candidate retains these for life. Furthermore, the VAE Panel specifies the type of experience or additional training required to obtain the full vocational qualification.

Refusal of validation: the VAE panel considers that the candidate’s prior learning does not enable them to meet the objectives of the certification sought. The certification is not awarded.