Qualification Purpose

The purpose of this qualification is to provide learners, education, and training providers and employers with the standards and the range of learning required to work effectively within various industries, making use of electrical engineering knowledge and skills to meet the challenges of such an environment.

Qualifying learners will also be able to relate their learning to scientific and technological principles and concepts. They will also be able to maintain and support the various policies and procedures related to the safety, health, environmental, and quality systems that govern their workplace. This qualification will enable the learner to find employment as a skilled worker or become self-employed as a single-phase worker in the electrical field.

Qualifying learners at NQF Level 3 will be able to:

  • Understand electrical equipment and protection technology and interpret integrated circuit schematics.
  • Install and commission electrical equipment on integrated electrical circuits.
  • Maintain and repair electrical equipment on integrated electrical circuits.
  • Evaluate and solve familiar problems pertaining to electrical equipment, integrated electrical circuits, and related processes.
  • Accept responsibility for utilizing and maintaining equipment without working under direct supervision.

The status and relevance of this qualification will attract and retain quality learners and employees and is the second step along a recognized and meaningful career path. Qualifying learners will be able to relate the tasks and processes to scientific and technological principles and concepts. They will also be able to maintain and support the various policies and procedures integral to safety, health, and the environment. Learner achievements in this qualification will also serve as a basis for further learning to engage in more complex installation, maintenance, and repair activities and processes.

This is the second of a three-level qualification series that reflect the workplace-based needs of the electrical field that is expressed by employers and employees, both now and in the future. This electrical engineering qualification provides the intermediate competencies required to work on integrated electrical circuits and installations. This qualification provides the learner with accessibility to be employed within the electrical engineering field and provides the flexibility to pursue different careers across various industry sectors and articulate within industries such as:

  • Manufacturing and Engineering.
  • Energy Sector.
  • Mining.
  • Chemical.
  • Transport.
  • Other related engineering industry sectors.

This qualification will enhance the status and productivity of the learner as well as contribute to improved quality, production rate, and growth within the engineering sector. The range of typical learners at this level could include individuals preparing to qualify in occupations or trades such as:

  • Electrician.
  • Domestic Appliance Repair.

This intermediate set of skills acquired at NQF Level 3 enables the learner to work on integrated circuits and installations. Further learning at NQF Level 4 will enable the learner to work on integrated systems and installations and operate as a skilled worker performing Artisan duties in the electrical field.

This qualification could assist with the achievement of national government and industrial development policies and strategies to grow a pool of scarce and other related skills in support of sustainable economic growth. People working in the electrical engineering fields require specialized technical skills and knowledge in order to meet the requirements of the continually changing environment of the various industries. Through its design, this qualification will meet the needs of learners within the electrical engineering sectors who require technical expertise and essential knowledge needed to earn formal qualifications. This qualification facilitates access for previously disadvantaged groups and other learners to acquire the technical knowledge and skills that are required as well as provide access and mobility into higher-level more specialized occupations. This will allow the learner greater employability and support the development of small and medium enterprises (SME). 

SAQA ID: 72051 
NQF Level: 3
Credits: 133
Notional Hours: 1330
Duration: 1 Year