Engineering. Level 3 BTEC (Foundation Diploma)

After the Government's review in December 2024 we are pleased to report that we will continue to offer the BTEC Foundation Diploma (1.5 A level equivalent award) - alongside this students will also study for an Engineering EPQ or extended project qualification worth 0.5 of an A Level.

The BTEC qualification is worth 1.5 A Levels. It consists of 60% coursework assignments and 40% externally examined units). Assignments, units and final marks will be graded as Pass (E), Merit (C), Distinction (A) or Distinction* (A*).

This ENGINEERING course is specifically aimed at young people wanting to study Engineering at university or take up an apprenticeship or a degree apprenticeship career in Engineering.

Local engineering employers tell us that they need skilled employees with a good technical knowledge as well as the ability to work well in a team and communicate effectively. This course addresses these needs.

It is ideal for students who would enjoy more practical and project work than they would experience studying 3 A Levels.

Depending on ability, students will study either ONE or TWO A Levels with the new Level 3 Engineering BTEC (National Foundation Diploma - 540 hours - 7 UNITS). They will also complete the Extended Project Qualification in Year 13 worth 0.5 of an A Level. Students NOT taking Maths A Level will be asked to take Core Maths (worth 0.4 of an A Level) over 2 years.

Students will leave the course with the equivalent of 4, 3.5 or 3 A Levels.

Example student 1 (mainly 7s and 6s at GCSE)

TWO A LEVELS

· Maths and

· one of…Product Design, Physics, Chemistry, Business, Computing (and others)

AND

· Engineering (7 units—worth 1.5 A Levels)

Student assignments during the 2 years mainly take the form of practical project work, case studies and presentations and are closely linked to the modern engineering industry but 2 of the compulsory units will be externally examined. There will be several site visits to engineering companies. Students learn the necessary skills in science and maths to equip them to be successful engineers and to access higher level courses.

The units we study are:

Unit 1 Engineering Principles (exam)

Unit 2 Delivery of Engineering Processes Safely as a Team

Unit 3 Engineering Product Design and Manufacture (extended exam from a brief)

Unit 4 Applied Commercial and Quality Principles in Engineering

Unit 10 Computer Aided Design in Engineering

Unit 19 Electronic Devices and Circuits

Unit 35 Computer Programming

Example student 2 (mainly 5s and 4s at GCSE)

ONE A LEVEL

· Product Design, Business or Computing

AND

· Engineering BTEC (7 units—worth 1.5 A Levels)

See the 7 unit titles listed above.

AND

Core Maths in one year (worth 0.4 A Level)

AND

Edexcel’s Project qualification (worth 0.5 A Levels) in Year 13

Students will work in school on an Engineering based project in Year 13 that can be a case study, essay or more likely an artefact (a redesigned and improved product or even a new invention). This project is worth 0.5 of an A Level and is initially assessed in school. Many students have achieved A* (and 70 UCAS points) grades in the last 3 years.

Grade 4 in English Language and grade 5s in Maths and Sciences. Level 2 BTEC Merit or better in Engineering will be useful (in some cases a Pass will be sufficient). A grade 5 in a Design & Technology subject or a Pass Level 2 BTEC Engineering.

TO ENSURE YOUR SUBJECT CHOICES FIT INTO THE TIMETABLE PLEASE SEE OUR BLOCKING TIMETABLE BY CLICKING ON THE LINK BELOW. SUBJECTS SHOULD BE CHOSEN IN DIFFERENT BLOCKS TO AVOID CLASHES.

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