The Unique Student Identifier (USI) is mandatory for all students studying nationally recognised (accredited) training, where no exemption exists.
USI is a ten-character alpha-numeric code unique to a student that is kept for life and used for all accredited training within Australia.
VETtrak supports the USI scheme. Through VETtrak, you can:
- Verify a person’s existing USI
- Create a new USI for a student who does not have one
- Locate a student’s pre-existing but unknown USI
VETtrak integrates directly with the USI web services, allowing you to verify USIs individually or in bulk, as well as submit USI applications on behalf of your students to create USIs, individually or in batches.
For information regarding USI Exemptions, see our USI Exemption information article.
Verifying an existing USI
For a USI to verify successfully you must have the following data entered, and it must match a record in the USI Taskforce registry:
- Clients Full Name (Either Single Name, or Given and Surname where applicable)
- Date of Birth
- Valid USI entered
If the student has provided you with a USI, enter the code into the USI field (page 1 of the Client Wizard) and click Verify now.
The USI must follow a strict structure, which has verification built into VETtrak. This includes some forbidden characters and formatting requirements. If the number entered does not meet the requirements, VETtrak will display a message explaining the issue.
Creating a new USI
If the student does not yet have a USI (and they have granted permission for you to do so), you may create a USI on their behalf through VETtrak. You will need to following data entered in both the Client Wizard and the Client Personal Information Wizard in order to submit a USI creation request:
- Clients Full Name (Either Single Name, or Given and Surname where applicable)
- Date of birth
- Gender
- Country of birth
- Town/city of birth
- At least one contact detail (email, mobile or postal address)
- An Identity Document
Once you have recorded all the required information and added the Identity document, right click the Personal node node for the client, select Create USI followed by Create now…
If any required information is missing, an error message will display showing what details are still required.
Locating an existing USI
If a client already has a USI (and has given you permission to do so), you can send their details to the USI registry in an attempt to retrieve their USI.
To locate a USI, you need to have correctly entered the following client details:
- Name (Either Single Name, or Given and Surname where applicable)
- Date of birth
- Gender
If this is not sufficient to identify a single student, you will also need to enter at least one of the client's:
- Middle name
- Mobile number
- Email address
- Town/city of birth
On the first page of the Client wizard, click the Locate now button, next to the USI field. VETtrak will notify you of success or failure in locating the client’s USI.
USI Exemption Options
Options are available to mark a client as requiring an exemption from USI. The reasons for this can include a student having an individual exemption, being an international offshore student in VETtrak, or to represent that the student is enrolled to complete a short course taking place over a single day or less and the student is unable to provide a USI.
When a client is marked in this way, the client’s USI cannot be changed and is to be reported in AVETMISS as a unique code (“INDIV” for an Individual Exemption, “INTOFF” for an International Student and “SHORT” for a short course). This code would otherwise not be a valid USI.
To specify a students' exemption, you can click the Not Exempt text above the USI fields, and select the option you require.
When “International Offshore” is ticked, the USI field will be set to “INTOFF”, the USI field and Verify Now button will be disabled, and the USI format validation is skipped. Only one exemption can be ticked at any given time time - ticking one will untick any other.
The USI status for a client with this option selected will display as International offshore.
When “Short Course” is ticked, the USI field will be set to “SHORT”, the USI field and Verify Now button will be disabled, and the USI format validation is skipped. Only one exemption can be ticked at any given time time - ticking one will untick any other.
If students already have a USI, RTOs must collect it and verify it.
The option will remain in VETtrak for legacy students, but will cause an error during validation.
The USI status for a client with this option selected will display as Short course exemption.
When “Individual Exemption” is ticked, the USI field will be set to “INDIV”, the USI field and Verify Now button will be disabled, and the USI format validation is skipped. Only one exemption can be ticked at any given time time - ticking one will untick any other. A Client can only make use of the “Individual Exemption” if they have filled out the appropriate form provided on the USI website.
The USI status for a client with this option selected will display as Individual exemption.
Note: These options are present in the Client Importer, VETtrak API and Process Web Enrolment to allow a USI of “INTOFF” or “SHORT” to be specified for a client
Additional Information
Listed below is additional information you may need to get up and running with the USI.
- Read the Setting up Unique Student Identifier (USI) features in VETtrak article for an overview of what you need to do in order to be ready for the USI.
- If you encounter any errors while working with USIs in VETtrak, refer to the USI Error Codes for more information.