Creating an Apprenticeship Service Cohort Export in PICSWeb

Owned by Tim Davies (Pellcomp) (Deactivated)
Last updated: Sept 19, 2023 by Rachel Bussey
4 min read

The Apprenticeship Service allows providers to upload a CSV file containing details of a cohort of Learners so that they can confirm that they are engaging with the Training Provider. These learners can be from different employers.

The bulk upload can only be used for learners on Apprenticeship Standards.

The instructions in this page cover making sure your learners can be included in the export and producing the file from PICSWeb.

An ESFA Guide is available explaining the required format for the bulk upload file.

Viewing the Agreement ID

For a learner to be included in the export, they will need an AS Agreement ID recorded.

The AS Agreement ID is available in the the Employment Status record in a learner’s ILR Summary. Selecting … > Details by a status will open a window where you can view the ID, and selecting … > Edit will open a window where you can edit the ID.

The field is also available when entering a New Learner with Employed status and can be imported as part of a Learner Import or entered using Learner WebForms.

Viewing the AS Cohort Code

If one is recorded against a learner, the AS Cohort code field will be included against them in the export file. This field can then be used to export a specific cohort of learners from PICSWeb, as explained below. It is not mandatory to have this field set for the learner to be included.

The AS Cohort code in a learner record should match the code given to you by the Apprenticeship Service when you registered. This code is shown in the ILR Learner tab in the ILR Summary.

If necessary, you can change the Cohort code by selecting Edit in this tab.

Learner Validation for the Export

For a learner to be included in the export, their learner record must contain the following details:

  • A Programme Aim

  • A Standard code

  • A ULN (but not the temporary 9999999999 number). If you are licensed to use the LRS Integration, the ULN can be downloaded and verified in the LRS tab in the Learner Summary.

  • An Employed ILR Employment Status record with an Agreement ID.

  • An Email Address

  • The learner must be Live, not archived or soft deleted.

Generating the Export File

After downloading the export file, you must upload it straight to the AS without editing the filename or opening the spreadsheet in Excel or any other editor. This is because opening it can cause the date format used in the spreadsheet to be changed, meaning that the AS will reject the file.

The export file is generated from the Learner List. You can filter this list only to the learners you want to include by choosing More > AS Agreement ID or More > AS Cohort from the filters at the top of the list. This will add new filters where you can enter the AS Agreement ID and/or AS Cohort you want to use to filter the list.

You can then use the tickboxes to select each learner you want to include in the export. The tickbox at the top of the list can be used to select or deselect all learners in the list.

The bulk processing actions will then appear above the list, provided that you have used the filters specified above. Once you have ticked all necessary learners, select Update All > AS Cohort Export.

The export will then begin. Once the file has been generated, a window will open with the file able to Download. You will be informed if any learners were excluded from the export and the reason for their exclusion.

Once a learner has been included in an export, the AS Status field in their ILR Learner tab will be set to Sent to Apprenticeship Service.