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Level 3 qualifications.. Doing it again?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Hey!
In 2009 I completed a BTEC National Certificate in Business and got two A levels at A grade. I haven't done a course since and so now my Connexions advisor says that doing a Access to he diploma would be a good idea. I love writing so potentially want to study journalism. I also have some work experience behind me so I guess that could help in showing I'm passionate about the field. Would there be point in going for the access course which is essentially an alevel? But would it make more sense to just do a degree straight away. I haven't been in education for four years now so I can see why my connexion advisor said that. Also I've heard the government doesn't pay for a second level 3 course? I'm looking around at the courses and have found one in London at a Uni which sounds really good but it's costly and I've already done a level 3 so would I need to pay? As I don't have very much experience in journalism I would probably get a bit stuck doing the degree or is that okay? By doing an access course I would learn the basics before applying that into my degree later on. Also it's only a year though the downfall to it is the cost and whether or not the government would pay for it. I am on ESA benefits at the moment.
In 2009 I completed a BTEC National Certificate in Business and got two A levels at A grade. I haven't done a course since and so now my Connexions advisor says that doing a Access to he diploma would be a good idea. I love writing so potentially want to study journalism. I also have some work experience behind me so I guess that could help in showing I'm passionate about the field. Would there be point in going for the access course which is essentially an alevel? But would it make more sense to just do a degree straight away. I haven't been in education for four years now so I can see why my connexion advisor said that. Also I've heard the government doesn't pay for a second level 3 course? I'm looking around at the courses and have found one in London at a Uni which sounds really good but it's costly and I've already done a level 3 so would I need to pay? As I don't have very much experience in journalism I would probably get a bit stuck doing the degree or is that okay? By doing an access course I would learn the basics before applying that into my degree later on. Also it's only a year though the downfall to it is the cost and whether or not the government would pay for it. I am on ESA benefits at the moment.
Post edited by JustV on
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Comments
Nope. My BTEC which was worth two alevels were in Business so it's irrelevant to what I want to do now. The Alevel that I wanted to look into and maybe go onto do is in Media which is what I want to go into ie Journalism.
Being in smaller groups is easy for me as I have Aspergers Syndrome and really bad anxiety and panic.
It might be a good idea to have a look at some of the universities that offer journalism degrees and see what their entry requirements are - that way you can work backwards from there. Journalism is a pretty competitive course so any experience you can build up will definitely be helpful, but you may find that there are specific qualifications needed to get on the course too - in which case an Access course could help.
This site has lots of info about different unis and courses and the entry requirements needed.
Can you talk to your Connexions advisor about the funding side of it? I'm sure they'd be able to advise you on this.
If you are 24+ student finance now offer 24+ Advanced Learning Loans which work more or less in the exact same way as normal student finance (SFE) and are applicable to courses Level 3 and up. You have to make sure the college/training centre is approved for public funding though. Also if you are eligible for the loan it doesnt prevent you from then having a normal student loan through SFE when you go onto uni as although they are part of the same finance group they also work separately.
Also, have you considered a 2 year Foundation Degree then doing a top up year to give you a full degree? They tend to be more common for people who havent been in education for a while but dont want to do another course at the same level as they have already done. Or Open Uni? They offer intro courses to get you back into learning/studying and a variety of degrees. This means you can work whilst studying so can continue to build on your experience.
The other option..I dont know if it applies in journalism but some companies will employ you in a trainee role, will pay you a full time wage but would release you for 1 or 2 days a week to study at a local college/uni to study for a relevant qualification which they fund. This may just be the NHS so might not apply in journalism but could be worth a look?
Thanks for your message. I didn't know that. I'm 22 at
the moment will check if I'm considered a mature student or only if that's after I'm 24.
Yep have looked into a foundation degree but its outside of London and no accommodation-travel is very costly. Yep I will look into these trainee roles in journalism. I think they're will be some I've got to look in the right places. Thanks for this information I didn't know about the 24+ funding so that's really helpful
:yes: - I just looked it up and a few different uni websites say it's 21.
Also found this info on the gov.uk site about funding for mature students - hope it's helpful (it's a little vague!)