SGS study plan
SGS · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 7 hours per week
Management system standards and normative requirements & Risk-based thinking and the process approach
Map clauses 4-10 of the harmonized high-level structure across three management system standards (e.g. quality, environmental, OH&S) and list the common core text from memory
Classify 30 clause statements as requirement, recommendation or permission, and justify each classification using the verb form
Draw a process turtle diagram for one real process, naming inputs, outputs, sequence, interaction, criteria, resources and measures
Distinguish risk, risk-based thinking and risk assessment, and locate where each of clauses 4-10 calls for risk consideration
Your checkpoint
One-page cross-standard clause comparison matrix plus a 10-item self-quiz on requirements and process approach, scored at 8/10 or better
Audit execution: evidence collection, sampling and interviewing
Build a sampling plan for a three-day audit that justifies sample size, stratification and selection method
Conduct and record a 20-minute mock interview using open, closed, probing and clarifying questions, then self-score against a question-type checklist
Sort 20 pieces of audit evidence into physical, documentary, observational and testimonial categories and state what each does or does not prove
Trace at least 12 pieces of evidence to a specific clause requirement and record the audit trail
Your checkpoint
A written sampling plan with rationale plus a recorded mock interview and a 12-entry evidence-to-requirement traceability log
Audit principles, ethics and impartiality & Auditor competence and professional development
Identify threats to independence and impartiality in 8 short scenarios and state the safeguard or the reason to decline the assignment
Apply a four-step ethical decision framework to 5 conflicts of interest and document the reasoning path
Map the knowledge and skills an auditor needs to the competences in the audit guidance standard, clause 7
Rate your own competence against that map and name the evidence you would need to close each gap
Your checkpoint
Ethics case log covering 8 scenarios with decisions, rationale and safeguards, plus a competence self-assessment matrix with a prioritised gap list
Audit planning and preparation
Draft an audit programme covering scope, objectives, criteria, frequency and risk-based prioritisation
Write a full audit plan that allocates time to processes by risk and defines sampling for each
Prepare a document review log and two process checklists derived from the applicable criteria
Script an opening meeting agenda that states purpose, scope, method, sampling caveat and confidentiality
Your checkpoint
A complete planning package: audit programme, audit plan, document review log, two checklists and an opening meeting script, reviewed against a self-made planning checklist
Findings, reporting and follow-up
Classify 15 written situations as major nonconformity, minor nonconformity, observation or opportunity for improvement
Write 10 nonconformity statements that each contain evidence, the requirement reference and the objective evidence gap
Draft an audit report that includes conclusions on conformity, effectiveness and system suitability
Design a corrective action follow-up that defines verification evidence and a closure decision rule
Your checkpoint
A full mock audit report with 6 findings, graded against a self-built rubric, achieving at least 4 of 5 on every criterion
Management system standards and normative requirements & Risk-based thinking and the process approach & Audit planning and preparation & Audit execution: evidence collection, sampling and interviewing & Findings, reporting and follow-up
Chain requirement, risk, evidence and finding for 15 randomly selected clauses to demonstrate end-to-end reasoning
Complete a timed 40-question mixed-domain quiz under exam conditions
Categorise every wrong answer by domain and root cause (knowledge gap, misreading, reasoning error)
Re-teach your weakest domain by rewriting its key content into your own summary sheet
Your checkpoint
A 15-entry clause-to-finding traceability table plus a timed quiz scored at 75% or better with a written error-cause analysis
Management system standards and normative requirements & Audit principles, ethics and impartiality & Audit planning and preparation & Audit execution: evidence collection, sampling and interviewing & Findings, reporting and follow-up
Sit two full-length timed mock exams with no notes and record time per question block
Build an error log that tags each miss by domain and question type
Redo all missed items after study and confirm mastery on a second pass
Practise 20 scenario-style questions that require choosing the best next auditor action
Your checkpoint
Two completed mock exams with an error analysis sheet, and a second-attempt score of 80% or better
Audit principles, ethics and impartiality & Risk-based thinking and the process approach & Auditor competence and professional development
Remediate the three weakest sub-topics identified in the error log with targeted practice sets
Recite from memory the clause structure, audit principles and auditor competence requirements using spaced-repetition cards
Sit one final timed exam covering all seven domains
Write a one-page personal exam rule sheet covering question-reading traps, timing and when to flag for review
Your checkpoint
Final timed mock exam scored at 85% or better plus a completed one-page personal exam strategy sheet
Milestones
Week 2: Can explain the harmonized clause structure and the process approach without notes, and has produced a justified sampling plan and evidence traceability log
Week 4: Has a complete, self-reviewed audit planning package covering programme, plan, checklists and opening meeting, with risk-based time allocation visible
Week 6: Scores 75% or better on a timed 40-question mixed-domain quiz and can trace any given clause from requirement to finding
Week 8: Scores 85% or better on a final full-length timed exam across all seven domains, with no domain below 70%