I recently sat the Statutory Supervisor exam with DMIRS and here are some of my insights. But first, some facts about the exam.

Statutory Supervisors have new pre-requisites under Schedule 26 of the WHS Mines Regulations. Statutory Supervisors must be appointed for the following places at a mine:

• Laboratory
• Processing plant
• Quarry and
• Workshop

The mine may also decide on other places that require appointed Statutory Supervisors based on risk and how it is managed.

Under Schedule 26 Statutory Supervisors must have:

• At least 2 years’ experience in a similar industry
• Completed an approved WHS risk management unit(s) and
• Passed the Statutory Supervisor law exam.

To book a date for the law exam, you need to set up a log on in the Mines Statutory Positions Portal. It is important to remember your log on and password as you will use this to access the portal on exam day.

Exams are currently being held at Cliftons on St George’s Terrace in Perth. Give yourself plenty of time to get there, as late entry will not be permitted.

The exam is computer-based and open book. Copies of the Act and Regulations are provided on the day for you to use. You can also bring in your own marked up copies.

There are 55 questions consisting of true/false, multiple choice and fill in the blanks style questions. You will have 3 hours to answer the questions. You can have 3 attempts at the exam in a year.

There are 3 pools of questions:

1. Pool 1 – Mandatory questions testing general knowledge of the Act and Regulations. This requires a 90% pass mark.
2. Pool 2 – Navigating the legislation questions requiring a 80% pass mark.
3. Pool 3 – Role specific questions requiring a 90% pass mark.

What do we know so far about the exam…..

Currently there is a 50% pass rate on the exam. I expect that this will increase as people gain a better understanding of the exam and how to manage it. The average time to complete the exam is 2 hours and 20 minutes.

And now to my thoughts on the experience…

The key to passing the exam is being able to navigate the content of the Act and Regulations. In some cases, an understanding of the law is beneficial. It means that you are able to answer questions without looking up the answer.

However, even with an exceptional understanding of the law you will still need to look up the answers. This is particularly important for the “fill in the blank” type questions where the exact phrase is required. So being able to find a section or a regulation quickly will help.

I managed to successfully complete the exam in an hour. However, I did not achieve 100% pass mark. Remember that the pass marks are 90% and 80% which allows for an incorrect answer or 2 in each category.

My incorrect answers included ones where I didn’t read the question carefully. So, my advice is:

• Spend some time before enrolling in the exam in preparing yourself. Understand the overarching content of the Act and Regulations.
• Make sure you are relaxed on the day of the exam and take your time in reading the questions.
• Use your time fully. Flag questions you are unsure of and come back to them with any additional time you have.
• Remember you have 3 attempts at this in a year. If you don’t pass it is not the end of the world.

And good luck!