RPL for Certificate II in Public Safety (Firefighting and Emergency Operations)

Certificate II in Public Safety (Firefighting and Emergency Operations) takes 11 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 PUA20622 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 11 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 PUA20622. 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 PUA20622 involves →

The 11 units you complete, chosen from these 26

You do not do all 26. Certificate II in Public Safety (Firefighting and Emergency Operations) is 6 core units, which everyone does, plus 5 chosen from the 20 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: 13 of them have a prerequisite unit, so the order you gather evidence in matters.

Core units — everyone does these

• PUAEQU001 — Prepare, maintain and test response equipment
• PUAFIR203 — Respond to urban fire
• PUAFIR207 — Operate breathing apparatus open circuit
• PUAFIR210 — Prevent injury
• PUAOPE013 — Operate communications systems and equipment
• PUATEA001 — Work in a team

Electives — you choose from these

• FWPCOT2256 — Trim and cut felled trees
• HLTAID011 — Provide First Aid
• PUACOM001 — Communicate in the workplace
• PUACOM002 — Provide services to clients
• PUAFIR015 — Undertake helicopter winch operations
• PUAFIR016 — Undertake hover-exit operations from helicopter
• PUAFIR017 — Work safely around aircraft
• PUAFIR204 — Respond to wildfire
• PUAFIR205 — Respond to aviation incident (specialist)
• PUAFIR206 — Check installed fire safety systems
• PUAFIR208 — Participate in community safety activities
• PUAFIR212 — Rappel from helicopter
• PUAFIR220 — Respond to isolated structure fire
• PUAFIR309 — Operate pumps
• PUALAW001 — Protect and preserve incident scene
• PUASAR001 — Perform land based swiftwater and floodwater rescue and recovery
• PUASAR022 — Participate in a rescue operation
• PUASAR023 — Participate in a first response urban search and rescue Category 1
• PUATEA004 — Work effectively in a public safety organisation
• PUAWHS001 — Follow defined work, health and safety policies and procedures

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 IV in Public Safety (Community Safety) (PUA41120, 12 units)

When you are ready, see what PUA20622 costs and what the guide asks you for, or read what counts as evidence and how RPL compares with doing the course.