What does ARP stand for?
ARP stands for Annual Review of Progression. As the name suggests it is an annual event where we collect feedback from HSST trainees and their supervisors about the progress they are making and whether they have any questions or concerns.
How does it work and how long does it take to complete?
Trainees and their supervisors complete the ARP by filling out an online questionnaire. The questionnaire indicates a trainee’s current progress on the programme and is also used to identify any potential barriers or challenges they may be facing. It’s important we get a separate response from both the trainee and the supervisor, and each are sent their own individual link to the questionnaire.
We ask questions about particular HSST milestones. For example, the academic programme, professional qualifications, the workplace learning, and meeting the standards of proficiency.
The questionnaire should take you about 30 minutes to complete depending on how much feedback you add to the free-text sections. Make sure you review your training plan with your supervisor before completing the ARP.
What’s the purpose of conducting the ARP and what’s in it for me?
It’s important for HSSTs and their training supervisors to continually monitor their progress so they are aware of when any particular actions need to be taken. And that all links in with having a training plan. Some people see the ARP as a natural prompt to undergo a cycle of review, a chance to take stock of how you are getting on. It is designed to be an entirely supportive process to assist those who may have barriers towards their completion. For example, if you or your supervisor identify barriers in your progression, we can arrange a support call following the ARP to discuss these and offer support. Or if you have significant delays to your progression, we can organise a full support meeting with you and your supervisor, and develop an action plan to get you back on track with your training.
As well as monitoring an individual’s progress the ARP enables the School to look at the HSST at a programme level and to identify any potential trends or themes that come out in the responses that might need to be addressed. Which in turn can improve the provision of support and inform any potential development of the programme and its delivery.
Who needs to participate in the ARP?
All HSST trainees in years 2 to 5 are asked to complete an evaluation form. There’s one standard ARP form for all trainees and one standard form for their supervisors.
Is ARP mandatory and what happens if I don't complete it?
Yes, the ARP is mandatory for HSSTs trainees and supervisors. As described above ARP is helpful to both individual trainees and the programme as a whole and so is very important. As such failure to engage with the ARP can jeopardise your departments accreditation, your HSST funding and ultimately your continuation on the programme. Therefore it is a requirement of the programme that you engage in this process.
Does my workplace supervisor have to complete the ARP?
Yes, your workplace supervisor has to complete the ARP. If your supervisor has changed since starting the programme, please ensure that we have the correct supervisor details including a contact email to send the ARP link to.
Once again failure of a supervisor to engage with the process can jeopardise your departments accreditation, funding and ultimately your continuation on the programme.
Should I meet with my workplace supervisor prior to completing the ARP?
Yes, you should review your training plan, make any updates and adjustments, and meet with your supervisor to discuss this prior to completing the ARP.
These meetings should be occurring regularly as part of the programme. But the ARP is a good opportunity to review progress against your training plan, the outcomes from the previous year and importantly starting to address any needs for the next year. Planning and putting things in motion to ensure next years progress.
Do I need to complete the ARP if I’m out of the programme?
If you are in your unfunded HSST window and you have completed an ARP in your fifth year you won’t ordinarily be asked to complete ARP again in this year. However, it’s important to inform the School if you foresee any challenges with meeting your HSST completion deadline, as at that point in time you will be focused on getting everything that is required for completion, finished.
What is the MSF and do I need to complete one with every ARP?
MSF stands for Multi-Source Feedback and it provides an opportunity to obtain feedback from a range of colleagues and to reflect on this feedback. It is always useful, and especially so at this level, to understand how others perceive you. We offer an MSF service on Agilio and all you need to do to get started is register on the Agilio website.
Completing and reflecting on an MSF allows you to identify development needs you may not be aware of and can also provide evidence towards some standards of proficiency (SoP). Completion of MSF isn’t an absolute requirement of HSST, as it is for the STP so you do not need to complete an MSF prior to ARP. However, MSFs are beneficial professionally and in meeting the SoP, so we strongly recommend that you complete a couple of MSFs at points in your programme most useful to you.
What are the targets I must meet prior to each ARP?
Unlike the STP progression monitoring there is not a set OneFile completion at each ARP. It is important to note here that the OneFile ‘target’ associated with the HSST portfolio is a percentage of progress of time on the five-year programme and not really a target for OneFile completion as it is on the STP.
The HSST SoP are high level and it is likely that more will be signed off later in the programme and we do not expect a particular percentage sign off on OneFile each year.
However, we do expect engagement with OneFile throughout the programme and evidence should be uploaded continuously to demonstrate development. For example in year 1 you may upload evidence of attending a meeting, by year 3 you will have evidence of presenting at that meeting, and by year 5 you will have evidence of chairing that meeting.
Your targets for the academic and professional qualification will be dependent on your bespoke training plan, so you will be asked if you have met, are on target to meet or expecting barriers to progression for each aspect.
How can I get confirmation I have completed the ARP?
After completing the ARP process, you can request a receipt after being prompted to do so. We highly recommended you take up the option of downloading your submission and saving it as a PDF. Be aware that you will only have 15 minutes after completing the ARP to do this! You’ll then have something to refer to at any subsequent support call or meeting or any other follow up.
What do the outcomes mean after I’ve completed it?
There are a number of outcomes following the ARP:
- Progress satisfactory
- Progress mostly satisfactory
- Evidence shows that progress is not as anticipated for this stage on programme
- Complete evaluation of progression form not received from either trainee or their workplace supervisor
- Review evidence not expected
What happens following receiving my ARP outcome?
It does depend on what outcome you get. If you have an outcome that progression is not as expected following ARP, the School will organise a support meeting with you and your workplace supervisor to gather more information and to develop an action plan to get things back on track.
If your outcome is satisfactory but you have raised some concerns about the programme or asked specific questions, the School will offer to organise a support call to answer your questions or signpost you to the most appropriate resources.
Will I have to complete the ARP again in the future?
You will be asked to complete the ARP each year between years 2 to 5.
If you are currently in the HSST unfunded window and have previously completed the ARP in your fifth year, then you will not ordinarily be required to complete this again. However if you’re having issues please contact the School for support.
Can I ask for help from the School outside of the ARP process?
Yes, definitely. We always encourage you to ask questions about the programme and raise any concerns you have in a timely way at any point during your training, so that we can facilitate your progression throughout.