RPL for Certificate III in Carpentry

Certificate III in Carpentry takes 34 units. Through Recognition of Prior Learning, each unit is assessed on evidence of work you have already done rather than on training you sit through.

What the assessment looks at

Every unit sets out what you must be able to do and what you must know. An assessor works through them one at a time, asking the same question each time: does this person's evidence show they can do this reliably, in a real workplace, recently enough to count?

You can read the full requirements for CPC30220 on the national training register. They are public, and worth a look before you spend anything — if the units describe work you have never done, RPL is not your route.

Evidence worth gathering before you start

• Photos of completed jobs, ideally showing a few stages of the same job, with their original dates intact.
• Job sheets, dockets, work orders or site diaries covering a spread of jobs.
• Supervisors, employers or clients who will confirm specifically what you did.
• Any licences or tickets you already hold.

How the guided process works

You work through the 34 units one at a time, talking about jobs you have actually done. You can speak rather than type. Add photos as you find them, and stop whenever you like — progress saves itself, and most people spread this over weeks while they dig out records. At the end you have an evidence portfolio your RTO's assessor can work through.

What this does not do

It does not assess you, and it cannot promise you CPC30220. An assessor at a registered training organisation makes that decision and may require further evidence or training. What a complete portfolio buys you is a fair assessment rather than a rejection over paperwork.

See what CPC30220 involves →

The 34 units you complete, chosen from these 60

You do not do all 60. Certificate III in Carpentry is 27 core units, which everyone does, plus 7 chosen from the 33 electives below. Read both lists before you spend anything — it is the fastest way to tell whether RPL is your route. If most of this describes work you have done, you have a case to make. If whole sections describe work you have never touched, an assessor will say so, and doing the course is the honest answer.

Worth knowing: 45 of them have a prerequisite unit, so the order you gather evidence in matters.

Core units — everyone does these

• CPCCCA2002 — Use carpentry tools and equipment
• CPCCCA2011 — Handle carpentry materials
• CPCCCA3001 — Carry out general demolition of minor building structures
• CPCCCA3002 — Carry out setting out
• CPCCCA3003 — Install flooring systems
• CPCCCA3004 — Construct and erect wall frames
• CPCCCA3005 — Construct ceiling frames
• CPCCCA3006 — Erect roof trusses
• CPCCCA3007 — Construct pitched roofs
• CPCCCA3008 — Construct eaves
• CPCCCA3010 — Install windows and doors
• CPCCCA3016 — Construct, assemble and install timber external stairs
• CPCCCA3017 — Install exterior cladding
• CPCCCA3024 — Install lining, panelling and moulding
• CPCCCA3025 — Read and interpret plans, specifications and drawings for carpentry work
• CPCCCA3028 — Erect and dismantle formwork for footings and slabs on ground
• CPCCCM2006 — Apply basic levelling procedures
• CPCCCM2008 — Erect and dismantle restricted height scaffolding
• CPCCCM2012 — Work safely at heights
• CPCCCO2013 — Carry out concreting to simple forms
• CPCCOM1012 — Work effectively and sustainably in the construction industry
• CPCCOM1014 — Conduct workplace communication
• CPCCOM1015 — Carry out measurements and calculations
• CPCCOM3001 — Perform construction calculations to determine carpentry material requirements
• CPCCOM3006 — Carry out levelling operations
• CPCCWHS2001 — Apply WHS requirements, policies and procedures in the construction industry
• CPCWHS3001 — Identify construction work hazards and select risk control strategies

Electives — you choose from these

• CPCCCA3009 — Construct advanced roofs
• CPCCCA3011 — Refurbish timber sashes to window frames
• CPCCCA3012 — Frame and fit wet area fixtures
• CPCCCA3014 — Construct and install bulkheads
• CPCCCA3018 — Construct, erect and dismantle formwork for stairs and ramps
• CPCCCA3019 — Erect and dismantle formwork to suspended slabs, columns, beams and walls
• CPCCCA3020 — Erect and dismantle jump form formwork
• CPCCCA3022 — Install curtain walling
• CPCCCA3026 — Assemble partitions
• CPCCCA3027 — Set up, operate and maintain indirect action powder-actuated power tools
• CPCCCM2002 — Carry out hand excavation
• CPCCCM3001 — Operate elevated work platforms up to 11 metres
• CPCCCM3005 — Calculate costs of construction work
• CPCCJN3003 — Manufacture components for doors, windows and frames
• CPCCJN3004 — Manufacture and assemble joinery components
• CPCCJN3100 — Process materials to produce components using static machines
• CPCCLSF2001 — Licence to erect, alter and dismantle scaffolding basic level
• CPCCOM1013 — Plan and organise work
• CPCCON3048 — Construct tilt panels on site
• CPCCPB3001 — Fix standard plasterboard wall sheets
• CPCCPB3002 — Fix standard plasterboard ceiling sheets
• CPCCSF2004 — Place and fix reinforcement materials
• CPCCSF2005 — Arc weld reinforcement steel
• CPCCSF3002 — Carry out monostrand post-tensioning
• CPCCSF3003 — Carry out multistrand post-tensioning
• CPCCSF3004 — Carry out stressbar post-tensioning
• CPCCST4001 — Prepare to undertake the heritage restoration process
• CPCCST4002 — Undertake the heritage restoration process
• CPCCWC3003 — Install dry wall passive fire-rated systems
• CPCCWC3004 — Install suspended ceilings
• CPCPCM2043 — Carry out WHS requirements
• CPCPCM2052 — Weld mild steel using oxy-acetylene equipment
• CPCPCM2053 — Weld using metal arc welding equipment

Each unit breaks down further into elements and performance criteria — the specific things you have to be able to show. The guide works through them one unit at a time and asks about jobs you have actually done, rather than making you read the register yourself.

Related qualifications

Same training package, and a common second choice for people who find this one is not quite their trade:

• Certificate III in Concreting (CPC30320, 22 units)
• Certificate III in Demolition (CPC30426, 20 units)
• Certificate III in Painting and Decorating (CPC30620, 29 units)
• Certificate III in Rigging (CPC30720, 19 units)
• Certificate III in Shopfitting (CPC30120, 18 units)
• Certificate III in Signs and Graphics (CPC30216, 16 units)

More RPL in construction, plumbing and services

Every qualification in this industry, which of them have a guide ready, and what assessors here accept as evidence: RPL in construction, plumbing and services.

When you are ready, see what CPC30220 costs and what the guide asks you for, or read what counts as evidence and how RPL compares with doing the course.