Levels and Qualifications explained

Our technical qualifications allow you to develop the practical skills needed to prepare for a career in industry. You may wish to study a two-year full-time programme, such as a Higher National Diploma (HND) or foundation degree and then add a top-up year to complete the degree.

The flexibility of our offer means that if you’re a mature student who wants to fit your studies around work and family commitments, you may choose to study part-time, stepping on and off programmes, rather than committing to a three-year programme of study, and you may still achieve a degree when you complete.

Our qualifications are as follows;

• Higher National Certificate (HNC): A Level 4 qualification for progression to higher-level study. This may form the first year of the HND.
• Higher National Diploma (HND): Typically, a two-year full-time commitment and three years part-time to achieve a Level 5 award or may be a follow-on year after HNC.
• Higher Technical Qualification (HTQ): A one or two-year commitment to achieve a Level 4 or Level 5 award, specifically developed with employers.
• Foundation degree (FdA): A two-year commitment to achieve a Level 5 award. Progression to a one-year top-up to achieve the full honours degree.
• Top-up degrees: One-year full-time programmes or two years part-time designed to follow HND, FdA and HTQ to achieve the full Bachelor of Arts, Science or Engineering.
• Post-graduate: Level 7 Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) for aspiring teachers, or those working in alternative education settings.

Professional qualifications: Management and professional qualifications up to level 7, include those awarded by the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).