City and Guilds 2395 Course Pass Rate - Want to gain your Qualification?

gazza — Mon, 07 Apr 2014 23:00:00 +0000

gazza Tue, 08/04/2014

If you are taking this examination this year or indeed if you thought that electrical qualifications these days were dumbed down, then you may well be mistaken. City and Guilds, the leading provider of vocational qualifications – meaning virtually every electrician will hold a City and Guilds qualification has issued feedback to training centres to help candidates improve exam performance in the future.
Must do better....
The feedback in the form of a chief examiners report gives detailed feedback on candidate performance and the national pass rate. Neither make particularly good reading and certainly for anyone thinking that exams were an easy ride may like to take a read of this report in more detail. Although the report paints a rather bleak picture, it should be a very useful resource for training centres as they busily prepare the next round of hopeful candidates for their 2395 courses.
The chief examiners report has been re-introduced following a period of time out of production. Hopefully it will go some way to assisting those outlets responsible for preparing trainee electricians for this exam by ensuring they are fully prepared and know what to expect within the exam.
Pass Rate in 2013
The latest pass rate issued in the report dates back 1 year to April 2013. It is interesting to note that more candidates actually fail their 2395 than pass it. Last year, the pass rate for the 2395 course was 41% with 59% of candidates failing the exam. The previous year is no exception with more candidates failing the exam than passing it. In June 2012, only 24% passed the city and guilds 2395 exam. The last figure reported for 2012 in December showed exactly the same figure indicating that candidates are not being prepared fully for the exams.
What is going wrong?
Despite opinion amongst more experienced electricians that qualifications are easier than they used to be, indications from City & Guilds clearly state this not to be the case. It is not the candidates fault either if they are not prepared for the exam. We are not talking here of exceptions to the rule, currently it seems to be the norm to fail. This needs to change if we are to build confident and competent electricians of the future.
The latest chief examiners report relates solely to the April 2013 2395 course paper. After investigating the exam papers layout, it seems that the paper itself is not the cause for low pass rates. The exam appears to be user friendly, and the answer format seems to be followed correctly by candidates. It is the content recorded in the answers given where the problem lies. In City and Guilds own words “ The candidate responses for this series indicated that a surprisingly large number of candidates were not familiar with the inspection and testing of electrical installations in any capacity. There were basic errors which indicated a lack of understanding of electrical circuits and the requirements for electrical installations.”
Other key areas which candidates are struggling to understand include:
Little understanding of the requirements for periodic inspection.
Little understanding of what needs to be inspected and why.
Answers produced were either generic or did not answer the question.
Questions relating to voltage drop caused difficulty for many candidates.
Incorrect calculations.
Incorrect titles for test instruments.
Difficulty carrying out a resistance insulation test
Action Required
If pass rates are going to be approved for the city and guilds 2395 exam, candidates need to be better prepared. The production of the chief examiners report should go some way to indicating where the weak areas lie, and allow concentration in such areas to better prepare the candidates for their 2395 exam.
It is also important not just to concentrate on passing the exam, but to understand why the answer is being given. It appears currently that many answers are of a 'hit and miss' standard meaning that many candidates don't understand fully why they are giving their answers.
Of course, some training centres are preparing their candidates better than others The UK's number one City & Guilds Electrical Training Centre, Trade Skills 4 U are celebrating the fact that more people pass City and Guilds courses with them than with any other provider. They still retain this top spot and have done over the last 4 years.

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