Academic Qualifications

There are five levels on offer for Post 16 study, though Intermediate and Higher are the most common.

Access is a qualification seen as equivalent to a Standard Grade Foundation award.

Intermediate 1 is equivalent to a Standard Grade General Award.

Intermediate 2 is equivalent to a Standard Grade Credit award.

Higher is a one-year course.

Advanced Higher is a two-year course. Students take between 3 and 5 Highers or Advanced Highers. Those who wish to go onto university usually take 5 Highers, although those opting for degree courses such as Law and Medicine often sit Advanced Highers.

Scottish Group Awards are large-scale achievements which bring together a programme of study followed over one year, or more usually, two years. To complete the SGA at Higher a student has to pass 17 National Units (at least nine of which have to be at Higher level), pass three exams at Higher level with at least grade C and satisfy a set of Core Skills requirements.

Vocational Qualifications

Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) are completed in the workplace (or in workplace conditions at a training centre or college). These standards define what employees (or potential employees) must be able to do, how well, and in what circumstances, to show that they are competent in their work. There are five levels of SVQ.

Higher National Certificates (HNCs) and Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) are advanced vocational qualifications in specialised areas. They cover the majority of occupations in Scotland. Both HNCs and HNDs are qualifications at technician or junior- to middle-management levels. HNCs focus on a narrower range of subject area, whereas HNDs are more wide-ranging in what they cover. A HND can also be an acceptable qualification for entry to the second or third year of a university degree course.

The Scottish Qualifications Authority website contains further useful information: www.sqa.org.uk.

Based on an article by Lorna Smith

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