The vocational higher education courses include Foundation Degrees, BTEC Higher National Certificates (HNC), Higher National Diplomas (HND) and Diplomas of Higher Education (DipHE).
1. Foundation Degree
Foundation Degrees are employment-related higher education courses designed specifically to equip students with the skills required by employers. They take two years to complete, and are equivalent to the first two years of a bachelor degree.
Many universities offer one year ‘top-up’ degrees, which enable foundation degree students to further progress to third year top-up to full undergraduate bachelor degrees after completion of the courses. Foundation Degrees are not available in Scotland.
2. BTEC HNC/ HND (BTEC Higher National Certificate/Diploma)
BTEC Higher National Certificates (HNCs), one year full-time, and Higher National Diplomas (HNDs), two-year full-time, are industry-related UK vocational higher education qualifications, which are widely recognised by employers in the UK.
Though HNCs and HNDs are designed to prepare students for industry specific careers, they can also be converted to an undergraduate bachelor degree programme. For example, HNCs can be accepted for entry to the second year of a degree, while HNDs can gain entry into the second or third year of a bachelor degree.
3. Certificates and Diplomas of Higher Education (CertHE/DipHE)
Similar to BTEC HNCs/HNDs and Foundation Degrees, the Certificates and Diplomas of Higher Education also focus on particular careers with UK industry links, and are highly respected by employers both in the UK and overseas.
Certificates of Higher Education usually take one year full-time to complete. They are broadly equivalent to HNCs. In contrast, Diplomas of Higher Education are similar to HNDs, which take two years of study to complete. Although aimed at preparing students for particular careers, their teaching methods tend to be more academic, which enable students to convert to an undergraduate degree programme with extra one year or two years of study respectively after completion of the courses.
For vocational route to higher education click here.
For academic route to higher education click here.