Pros of doing BTEC vs A-Levels

[IHeartHarryStyles]

Those on the corona cohort threads know that DD didn’t get what she (we) hoped for today in her GCSE results. She has been offered places on BTEC courses at 6th form as opposed to her preferred A-Levels.

She can transfer to a different 6th form to do a mixture of BTEC and A-Level but it means leaving her friends and a really highly regarded school.

She isn’t sure what to do. Right now it feels like the end of the world to her. What are the pros of a BTEC qualification. Can she realistically still go to uni or are BTEC the poor relation which will rule her out of all decent courses? I’ve tried geeing her up and bigging up BTEC courses but some real life examples would be great. From what I’ve read they seem like they could be a great option.

[TeenPlusTwenties]

Instead of doing 3 BTECs in 3 different subjects each worth 1 A level, she could do one gigantic BTEC worth 3 A levels (called an Extended Diploma).

This is our local vocational college: www.eastleigh.ac.uk/school-leavers/ e.g. www.eastleigh.ac.uk/careers/care/course-listing/level-3-health-and-social-care-full-time/ or www.eastleigh.ac.uk/careers/event-management/course-listing/level-3-media,-marketing-and-event-management-full-time/

Your DD's 6th form probably doesn't offer the Extended Diplomas as it offers the BTECs so people can do a mix of subjects.

My DD1 did Travel & Tourism, and it did give her a good mix of topics, though it was more written and less practical than we had been expecting. Also she wasn't ever going to be a university person.

[IHeartHarryStyles]

Ah ok, thank you this is helpful, so as it stands she is looking at:

AQA Level 3 certificate/extended certificate in applied business.
Pearson edexcel certificate extended certificate in ICT
Level 3 Cambridge technical diploma in sport and physical activity (although can do at extended certificate).

As you say, no option at the school to do an extended diploma and I’m not sure she’d be be at off limiting herself at this stage as she has no idea of what path she wants to take so I think staying broader might be helpful.

It’s difficult as I guess all of this would have ordinarily been discussed with them regularly as they were at school during the normal course of things.