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These qualifications tend to be more work-related than academic and can put you on a fast-track route within your current career, into a new career or onto a degree course. Career based courses in the UK often involve strong links between institutions and industry. This ensures the continuing relevance of these qualifications to the world of work, which, in turn, improves the career prospects of the students who take them.

Courses at this level tend to be particularly flexible. Many do not have specific entry requirements, so, no matter what qualifications you currently have, you can find a course that will let you get a foot on the educational ladder. And, as you'll see from the table below, some of these courses meet the entrance requirements for degree courses, allowing you to supplement your newly found practical skills with academic knowledge.

These courses involve classroom instruction, essays, projects and practical work. Class sizes tend to be relatively small, so students benefit from personal contact with tutors. There is continuous assessment of coursework plus exams. Some career based/professional programmes are offered only as degree courses - e.g. medicine, dentistry, law - so it's best to also check the degree section of the section as well.

Qualifications offered	Purpose of course	Entrance requirements	Duration
General National Vocational Qualifications (GNVQs) Offered at two levels: Foundation and Intermediate	An alternative to more traditional academic courses. Sometimes taken alongside one or more GCSEs and can lead to A-level study or as a preparation for a general career area.	Foundation:general education Intermediate: four GCSEs (grades D to G) or Foundation GNVQ or equivalent.	Usually one year.
BTEC/Edexcel First Diploma. Comparable to GNVQ Intermediate	As above.	General education.	One year.
Vocational A-level (formerly Advanced GNVQ)	A new alternative to more traditional academic courses. Sometimes taken alongside one or more A-levels or Scottish Highers and is of an equivalent standard. Recognised for admission to undergraduate study.	Four/five GCSEs (grades A* to C) or Intermediate GNVQ or equivalent.	One year, or two years for a double award.
BTEC/Edexcel National Diploma	An option if you want to change career direction, but wants to obtain a good qualification in a short space of time. Roughly comparable to vocational A-level and can be used for entry to undergraduate study.	Four/five GCSEs (grades A* to C) or BTEC First Diploma or equivalent.	Two years.
BTEC/Edexcel Higher National Diploma (HND)	Offer gradual progression into higher education for those who want to develop their academic skills on a practical, career based course. Success at this level may allow you to transfer into an undergraduate degree programme with advanced standing - this means you could be eligible to enter in the second or third year of a three-year degree course.	Two A-levels or BTEC National Diploma or equivalent.	Two years.

**The qualifications are differentiated by volume of outcomes and may be offered at either level.

Career based learning in Scotland

Higher National Certificates (HNCs) (SCQF level 7) and Higher National Diplomas (HNDs) (SCQF level 8)

All HNCs and HNDs in Scotland are awarded by SQA and are subject to SQA’s national quality assurance system.

HNCs and HNDs are advanced, higher education group awards covering broad occupational areas and are offered by colleges and some universities. They are made up of Higher National Units which are assessed against outcomes and performance criteria to ensure national standards and all centres are subject to external moderation and other quality assurance requirements.

In the SCQF HNC and first year degree are aligned at level 7 and HND and second year degree at level 8 (see SCQF diagram below). There are opportunities for holders of HNCs to progress to second year of degree studies and for holders of HNDs to third year where the HNC/D articulates with the degree. However, individual institutions and departments make their own decisions on the specific credit to be granted to HNCs and HNDs for particular degree programmes.

SCQF level	SQA National Units, Courses and Group Awards	Higher Education	SVQ
12		Doctorates
11		Masters	SVQ 5
10		Honours degree Graduate Diploma/Certificate**
9		Ordinary Degree Graduate Diploma/Certificate**
8		Higher National Diploma Diploma in H.Ed	SVQ 4
7	Advanced Higher	Higher National Certificate in H.Ed
6	Higher		SVQ 3
5	Intermediate 2 Credit Standard Grade		SVQ 2
4	Intermediate 1		SVQ 1
3	Access 3 Founation Standard Grade
2	Access 2
1	Access 1

**The qualifications are differentiated by volume of outcomes and may be offered at either level.

NOTE:The SCQF is intended to show the relative size and level of qualifications in the Scottish education and training system in a way which allows a wide range of users to understand the system better, and to track progression routes through the system.

Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) (SCQF levels 4, 5, 6, 8 and 11)

SVQs are available at five levels - SVQ 1 (SCQF level 4), SVQ 2 (SCQF level 5), SVQ 3 (SCQF level 6), SVQ 4 (SCQF level 8) and SVQ 5 (SCQF level 11). They are based on the skills and competences required to do a job or range of jobs in a specific industry, from basic operative to senior management. They are accredited by SQA and offered by a range of awarding bodies, including SQA. SVQs are analogues of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) accredited for England, Wales and Northern Ireland by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA).

SVQs are unit based and are assessed in the workplace or in simulated workplace conditions. They incorporate national occupational standards identified by National Training Organisations (NTOs). Although the focus is on performance, the importance of underpinning knowledge and understanding, particularly at the higher levels, is now well recognised.

SVQs at levels 3 and 4 may be are used for entry to HE whereas levels 4 and 5 might be used for entry to higher degrees and are sometimes offered in HE as part of postgraduate programmes.

Full information on all the SQA qualifications can be obtained via the SQA website www.sqa.org.uk or by contacting:

Scottish Qualifications Authority Helpdesk
Hanover House
24 Douglas Street
Glasgow
G2 7NQ

Tel: 0141 242 2214
Fax: 0141 242 2244
e-mail: helpdesk@sqa.org.uk

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