The DBA End Point Assessment Time Has (Finally) Arrived! | by Andrea Kaskova
If you are reading this, you are probably nearing your Gateway and might be wondering - what comes next? If this is you, you’ve come to the right place!
It’s really important for both you & your manager to know that the hard work doesn’t end at Gateway! In fact, it’s more important now than ever before how you’ll approach the following few weeks - how you’ll revise, what you should focus on and what will get you the qualification you have worked SO HARD for during the year!
So first, let’s recap what the EPA actually is - for DBA, the Data Technician level 3 assessment has two parts; the Professional Discussion underpinned by the portfolio and the Scenario demonstration. Both of these assessments are equally as important as each other, meaning that you have to pass both to complete the qualification successfully.
The assessment focuses on what you have learned and done in your work across the year but it’s also a chance for you to show you have gained the knowledge and skills you were supposed to get throughout the apprenticeship. Your KSBs will play a really important role in the assessment as they make up the assessment criteria against which you will be graded. By now your portfolio has been submitted and quality checked against the Assessment Plan, and it is time to start revising!
Preparing Before Your Assessment Day…
Your assessor is ultimately responsible for getting you the best grade possible and they are there to help you - not to catch you out! However, to truly assess your knowledge, they may have to approach certain concepts from different angles and ask sometimes repetitive questions. Remember you should understand how data is collected, used and communicated across the organisation, not just your own team!
Top Tip: Practice, practice, practice!
Use this time to focus on revising the key technical concepts such as data types, data formats, data architecture or data ethics, practise your discussion technique to perfection & work through as many mock scenarios as possible! Working with data as much as possible before taking the assessment is also great practice - your problem-solving skills will really be put to the test!
Set up time with other apprentices and your manager to practise answering questions, quiz each other on your decisions in scenario demonstrations and work together to understand what competencies you are not 100% certain about. Remember, you can and should ask for your coach’s help if you need it.
We find that the most successful apprentices are the ones that practice the most and are the most confident and comfortable with their data knowledge.
Top Tip: More than just your portfolio!
In the professional discussion, the assessor will have read your portfolio and created a line of questioning based on how well it meets the assessment criteria. This might mean they ask about specific projects or ask you to explain certain concepts and apply them to your workplace. This will especially be the case if your role doesn’t quite meet certain criteria - e.g. you do not work with external stakeholders.
This means that aside from making sure you know your own portfolio inside and out, ensure you revise the content we covered (including the Activates!) but also that you know what each word in the assessment criteria means and can think of an example from your workplace!
Top Tip: More than just functions!
In the scenario demonstration, your assessor will focus on practical elements such as how you work, and how you prioritise and cope with issues you may encounter.
It’s important that you remember, there are usually multiple ways to get to the same solution - it only matters that you can figure out how to get there and explain your process to the assessor!
To prepare properly, you should focus on mastering the tool you are choosing to use - whether it be Excel, Power BI or both. Make a note of the formulas & functions we covered and think about what situations you might use them in. After that, practise the mock scenarios you are provided with - both alone and with others. Practice justifying your decisions to other apprentices, your coach or your manager. Think specifically about the questions you may be asked about the criteria in the assessment plan and don’t forget to discuss things properly, the assessor can’t make any assumptions about your knowledge and understanding.
Top Tip: You are not alone!
Make sure you let your coach know if there are any concepts that your study group struggles with - your coach has been with you throughout this journey and they want you to succeed!
On Your Assessment Day
You will complete both parts of the assessment together. You will start with your professional discussion (60 minutes) followed by a break (15 minutes). Then you’ll proceed to scenario demonstration - each of those two exercises should take 30 minutes to complete, followed by 15 minutes of questioning. In total, your EPA will take around 3 - 3.5 hours.
For both sections, the assessor really wants to see you at your best and will guide you with questions to do as well as you possibly can. This is your chance to show off the great achievements and experiences you have had over the course of the apprenticeship.
And finally...GOOD LUCK!!
Andrea Kaskova is a Digital Business coach at Multiverse.