Checkpoint 2

Cambridge Technicals Checkpoint 2 has been introduced to make sure each student can receive their results as planned this summer.

For each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023, we need you to check the qualification entries (registrations) and the status of each unit contributing to the qualification.

A declaration must then be submitted between 15 and 23 June to confirm the details are correct.

Schools and colleges complete the qualification and unit checks and submit the declaration using the Cambridge Technicals Progress Tracker.

Our Cambridge Technicals Progress Tracker makes it easier to check qualification entries and track the progress of students’ unit achievements to identify whether they're eligible to receive their full qualification award.

The Progress Tracker can be accessed via our 'single sign-on service', My Cambridge. The user roles within My Cambridge which allow access to the Progress Tracker are 'Exams Officer' and 'Teacher'.

Our dedicated page provides guidance on accessing and using the Progress Tracker, including:

• how to filter, search and download student data to a .csv file
• descriptions of the different unit statuses
• how to submit the Checkpoint 2 declaration.

The Progress Tracker is updated daily, but please allow 24 hours for any changes to qualification entries or the status of units to be updated. You can see when the data was last updated on the Progress Tracker welcome page.

Please be aware, the Progress Tracker will not be updated between 24 July and 14 August as we prepare to issue the summer results.

The Head of Centre must make sure the required checks are carried out and the details are correct for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023.  

How the checks are managed will depend on your school or college. However, we recommend it's led by those involved in the delivery of the qualifications, eg teachers and/or heads of department, who have the required knowledge of qualifications, students and units contributing to qualifications.

Teaching staff may also require support from exams officers, eg when checking qualification entries and tracking students' progress.

The Head of Centre decides who submits the declaration on behalf of the centre. However, this staff member must have the ‘Exams Officer’ role within My Cambridge in order to view and submit the declaration. Those with any other user role will not be able to view or submit the declaration, but they will be able to see if the declaration has been submitted.

Before submitting the Checkpoint 2 declaration, the following must be checked for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023:

• certification status
• qualification entries (registrations)
• unit rules of combination and guided learning hours (GLH)
• required examined units
• required moderated units
• reduction in assessment from 2021/22.

You must also check all final moderation visits have been scheduled.

These checks can take place now – you do not have to wait for the declaration window to open.

We’ve provided full guidance on completing these checks below and we’ve also produced a handy checklist that can be given to those carrying out the checks.

You must contact us about any students where units will not be achieved without additional centre and/or OCR action. 

To help you resolve any issues when completing your checks, we’ve provided troubleshooting guidance below. Please also refer to the troubleshooting advice provided in each of the Checkpoint 2 data checking sections on this page.

You must contact us about any students where units will not be achieved without additional centre and/or OCR action.

Depending on the type of issue, you may need to submit a ‘Missing and incomplete results request’ using our new online form. For some requests you will also need to complete and upload a separate spreadsheet – we’ve provided details below.

The ‘Cambridge Technicals: Missing and incomplete results’ online form is accessed via Interchange – hover over ‘Post-results’ in the left hand menu and click ‘Missing and incomplete results’. From this page, you can view and download the spreadsheet templates. Links to these additional documents are also provided in the online form.

Users with the following roles can access the ‘Missing and incomplete results’ page on Interchange:

• Centre Administrator
• Post Result Full Access
• Post Result Read Only

Using the ‘Cambridge Technicals: Missing and incomplete results’ online form, you can make requests for the following:

Candidate/unit missed from moderation claim

Where a moderation visit has taken place, you can tell us about students/units that have been missed from the claim.  

You’ll also need to complete and upload the following spreadsheet template when submitting the form:

• Cambridge Technicals: Candidate/unit missed from moderation claim

Do not submit the online form if the visit has not yet taken place – follow the troubleshooting guidance provided in the Moderated units section below.

Incorrect unit/grade claimed at moderation

You can tell us if there’s an error with a submitted claim and an incorrect unit or grade has been claimed. You’ll also need to complete and upload the following spreadsheet when submitting the form:

• Cambridge Technicals: Incorrect unit/grade claimed at moderation

Missing/incorrect reduction in assessment

Where you’ve submitted a late request for reduction in assessment from 2021/22, you can tell us about any students who urgently need their qualification result.

The reduction in assessment request must be made in the ‘Reduction in assessment’ area of Interchange before the online form is submitted.

Qualification entry (registration) change

If a student is entered for the wrong size qualification, you will need to make top-up/move down entries. You can tell us about any students who urgently need their qualification result – remember, you must still make the required entry via EDI or Interchange.

Merge duplicate candidate numbers/records

If a student has more than one OCR candidate number, you can ask us to merge the duplicate student records.

Duplicate records need to be merged so that unit achievements are ‘banked’ against a single OCR candidate number. A duplicate record is normally caused by using different student demographics when making entries.

Missing teacher assessed grades (TAG) from June 2021

Students who were part way through their course in 2020/21, and who would have taken assessments that year, were eligible to be given unit level teacher assessed grades (TAGs) for the units they would have done.

Schools and colleges were asked to submit Cambridge Technicals unit level TAGs for ‘mid-flight’ students in autumn 2021.

If you have students on a three-year programme who are missing unit TAGs, you use the online form to make a late request. Teacher assessed grades should only be submitted where assessment was planned between 1 August 2020 and 31 August 2021.

You’ll also need to complete and upload the following documents when submitting the form:

• Cambridge Technicals: Missing mid-flight teacher assessed grade (TAG) from June 2021
• Cambridge Technicals: Missing unit TAGs Head of Centre declaration

Each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023 must show as ‘certificating in August 2023’ in the Progress Tracker

You can search for students with a status of ‘certificating in August 2023’ using the ‘filter by’ panel in the Progress Tracker. This will show the information you provided in Checkpoint 1. 

You must also tell us about any students who are no longer able to complete their qualification this summer so their status can be amended in the Progress Tracker – see below.

Troubleshooting

If a student’s certification status changes or is incorrect before or after you’ve submitted your declaration, please email us at vqprocessing@ocr.org.uk with the details. 

For example:

• they were missed in your Checkpoint 1 submission or
• they are no longer expecting/are eligible to achieve a qualification result in August 2023.  

We will update the student’s certification status in the Progress Tracker.

Each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023 must show against the expected qualification in the Progress Tracker

Students must be entered for the correct qualification – this is the qualification they’re expecting to receive a result for in August 2023.

You can view students’ qualification entries made after 1 September 2021 in the Progress Tracker. This includes top-up and move down entries – where a student was entered for a smaller or larger qualification after 1 September 2021, they will show in the Progress Tracker against the updated qualification.

Troubleshooting

If a student is entered for the wrong size qualification, you'll need to make top-up/move down entries via EDI or Interchange. Please check the students are showing against the updated qualification in the Progress Tracker before you submit the declaration.

Each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023 must be taking the right combination of units with the minimum number of guided learning hours (GLH) to achieve the qualification

When combining units for the chosen qualification, the rules for the qualification/pathway must be followed and the combined guided learning hours (GLH) for the units students are taking must total at least the minimum GLH required for the qualification. You must check this for each student.

You can use the Cambridge Technicals entry codes booklet and centre handbooks to see how qualifications are structured, including the total GLH required and unit rules of combination. You can also use the ‘Qualifications calculator’ tool, available on the Cambridge Technicals qualification pages, to check unit combinations are correct.

Troubleshooting

• If a student doesn’t have enough guided learning hours for the qualification and is unable to complete the additional unit/s required, you can consider moving them down to a smaller qualification provided they’ve achieved the right combination of units.
• If a student has enough guided learning hours for the qualification but the combination of units is incorrect, please contact us at srteam@ocr.org.uk. 

All required examined units must show as ‘Result achieved’ or ‘Entry received’ in the Progress Tracker for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023

Each of the required examined units must show one of the following statuses:

• ‘Result achieved’ – confirms the student achieved the unit with at least a Near-Pass grade for units at Level 3 or an Achieved or Pass grade for units at Level 2. The Near-Pass grade (which reports as ‘R’) allows a student to achieve an overall qualification without passing one or more of the examined units.
• ‘Entry received’ – confirms an entry has been made for the June 2023 series. However, if the unit entered in June 2023 was achieved in a previous series, the unit status will show as ‘Result achieved’.

Also check:

• students entered in the June 2023 series sit their exams for required units – action may be needed, see below.

Troubleshooting

An examined unit with the status ‘Unit attempted-Not achieved’ means the student was awarded an ‘Unclassified (‘U’) or Not Achieved (‘N’) grade for the unit in a previous series and has not been re-entered in the June 2023 series.

The status ‘Entry not received’ confirms an examined unit entry for the June 2023 series has not been submitted. If this is an optional unit and is not required by the student for their qualification, no action is needed.

Where a student is absent from an exam for a required unit:

• You can make an application for special consideration, ‘absent for an acceptable reason’, if all requirements are met – refer to the JCQ Guide to the special consideration process. Applications for special consideration must be submitted via the Special Consideration Online portal on Interchange. The window to make applications using Special Consideration Online closes on 5 July. If you have any queries, please contact our special requirements team at srteam@ocr.org.uk.
• If the student is unable to achieve all the units required for the qualification, you can move them down to a smaller qualification, provided they’ve achieved the right combination of units.

All required moderated units must show as ‘Result achieved’, ‘Claim submitted’ or ‘Claim sampled’ in the Progress Tracker for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023

Each of the required moderated units must show one of the following statuses:

• ‘Result achieved’ – confirms the student achieved the unit with at least a Pass grade.
• ‘Claim submitted’– confirms a moderation claim has been submitted in Interchange.
• ‘Claim sampled’ – confirms the sample has been selected by the moderator in advance of the visit.

You must also check all final moderation visits have been scheduled. Moderation visits that take place after 30 June may mean results for these units, and related qualification achievements, are not available by results day.

Claims for moderated units must be submitted in Interchange at least two weeks before any scheduled moderation visit. If the work has been marked, submit claims early so the unit status checks can be completed.

For any upcoming moderation visits, check the claim has been successfully submitted in Interchange and includes:

• all students and units required
• the correct units and grades
• units to be re-submitted (eg work was withdrawn by the moderator at a previous visit, an Unclassified grade was awarded, or the unit is being re-claimed at a higher grade).

Troubleshooting

A moderated unit with the status ‘Unit attempted-Not achieved’, means the student was awarded an Unclassified (‘U’) grade for the unit at a previous moderation visit and the unit has not been re-submitted.

Where a student or unit is missing from a submitted moderation claim:

• If the moderation visit has not yet taken place, submit a new claim for the missing student/unit in Interchange and contact your moderator to let them know. 
• If the moderation visit has taken place, submit a ‘Missing and incomplete results request’ using our online form. You’ll also need to complete and upload the ‘Cambridge Technicals: Missed from moderation claim’ spreadsheet when submitting the form.

If there’s an error with a submitted moderation claim and an incorrect unit or grade has been claimed, submit a ‘Missing and incomplete results request’ using our online form. You’ll also need to complete and upload the ‘Cambridge Technicals: Incorrect unit/grade claimed at moderation’ spreadsheet when submitting the form. 

See the Troubleshooting above for further guidance on accessing the online form.

All ‘pending’ reduction in assessment requests must show as ‘RIA received’ in the Progress Tracker for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023

For each student who used reduction in assessment in 2021/22, check they have the status ‘RIA received’ showing against the correct ‘pending’ unit(s). 

Where a permitted reduction in assessment has been used and a request submitted via Interchange, we will produce an assessed grade for the units where assessment has not been taken.

Troubleshooting

If you still need to submit outstanding reduction in assessment requests or make any changes, please submit these now in the ‘Reduction in assessment’ area of Interchange using the spreadsheet templates provided. See our step-by-step instructions.

A student doesn’t appear in the Progress Tracker, what should I do?

Check the date the qualification entry (registration) was made:

• If the entry was made before 1 September 2021 (and no top-up/move down entry was made after 1 September 2021), the student will not appear in the Progress Tracker – use Interchange to make your data checks.
• If the entry (including top-up/move down entries) was made after 1 September, please email the details to vqprocessing@ocr.org.uk.

Do all moderation visits need to have been completed before we can submit the declaration?

You don’t need to wait until your final moderation visits have taken place to submit the declaration.

If all final visits have been scheduled and the claims submitted in Interchange, you can complete the data checks in the Progress Tracker – all required moderated units must show as ‘Result achieved’, ‘Claim submitted’ or ‘Claim sampled’ for each student expecting a qualification result in August 2023.

Once all other data checks have been completed, you can submit the declaration.

The declaration has been submitted by mistake, what should I do?

If you’ve submitted the declaration in error, please contact us.

Where can I view students' results (grades)?

You can view results data in Interchange. The candidate achievement report in Interchange shows all qualification grades achieved and the unit results from a selected date range or series. You can generate it for individual candidates or the whole cohort.

Do I need to do anything for Checkpoint 2 if we don't have any students certificating in August 2023?

If you told us for Checkpoint 1 that your school/college does not have any students expecting a qualification result in August 2023, you do not need to submit the Checkpoint 2 declaration and no further action is required.

However, if this has changed and you now have students certificating in August 2023:

1. You must email us at vqprocessing@ocr.org.uk with the details.
2. We will update their certification status in the Progress Tracker.
3. You'll then need to complete the data checks and submit the declaration for Checkpoint 2.

The Checkpoint 2 declaration covers all students expecting a qualification result in August 2023 for all Cambridge Technicals qualifications delivered in your centre. 

The declaration must be submitted using the Progress Tracker between 15 and 23 June 2023. It must only be submitted once all the checks have been completed and the details confirmed as correct. The 'Complete declaration' button will be available on the Progress Tracker welcome page from 15 June.

At the point you submit the declaration, we recommend you download your student data to save a copy for your records. You can do this by clicking the ‘Download (.csv)’ button from the ‘Results detailed view’ in the Progress Tracker.

Who submits the declaration on behalf of your centre should be determined by the Head of Centre. This member of staff must have the ‘Exams Officer’ role within My Cambridge to be able to view and submit the declaration (those with any other role will not be able to view or submit the declaration).

You can view guidance on how to submit the declaration on our dedicated Progress Tracker page.

After you’ve submitted the declaration, we may need to contact you for further information or action.

Declaration for Cambridge Technicals summer 2023 results

The declaration states:

I confirm on behalf of our centre that for candidates who are expecting to achieve their Cambridge Technicals qualification this summer, we have checked the Progress Tracker and:  

• these candidates are showing as ‘Certificating in August 2023’  
• these candidates are showing against the expected qualification  
• any required examined units are showing as ‘Result achieved’ or ‘Entry received’  
• all required moderated units are showing as ‘Result achieved’, ‘Claim submitted’ or ‘Claim sampled’
• all ‘pending’ reduction in assessment requests are showing as ‘RIA received’.

I confirm our centre: 

• has checked these candidates are taking the right combination of units with the minimum number of guided learning hours to achieve the qualification 
• has scheduled all final moderation visits 
• has informed OCR about any candidates who are no longer able to complete their qualification this summer so their status can be amended in the Progress Tracker  
• has contacted OCR about any candidates where units will not be achieved without additional centre and/or OCR action 
• will respond to OCR requests for more information where candidates are at risk of a delayed or missing result.

If you have any queries or need support in completing the Checkpoint 2 activity, please contact our Customer Support Centre on 01223 553998 or email at support@ocr.org.uk.