Further Education
If you choose to carry on in full time education after Year 11 you will be taking part in further education. It may be in a school sixth form, a sixth-form college, or a further education college. Further education courses are generally up to the standard of GCE A-level or NVQ Level 3.
Staying on for further education at school or college is free, unless you go to a fee-paying school. There are no course or exam fees, but there are costs such as travel, books, paper and pens, etc. You can get help with your learning costs. For full details visit the Money for Study pages
School Sixth Form
You might be thinking of staying on at school after Year 11. Lots of schools have sixth forms and you don't have to have been at the school in Year 11 in order to join it.
School sixth forms are generally quite small but can vary in size and in the range of courses they can offer you. Sixth forms can range from between 100 and 400 students. The courses and subjects on offer will depend on the size of the sixth form. Some schools will have arrangements with other local schools or colleges so they can give you a wider choice and more options.
Sixth Form College
After Year 11 you might be thinking of going to college. A sixth form college is more informal than a school sixth form and because they are usually bigger they are able to offer you a wider range of options.
At college you will be a student, so with support, you will be expected to manage your own time and deadlines. This will give you the opportunity to learn new skills that you might need at university or in the workplace.
Generally colleges offer mostly full time courses such as AS and A level programmes. But you can also study general courses, vocational courses and occupational courses (usually day-release) such as BTEC, OCR and NVQ courses.
Further Education (FE) College
FE colleges are usually larger than sixth form colleges. What they provide can vary a lot, depending on what else is on offer locally. Some FE colleges have more than one site and some have separate 'sixth form centres.' Most students at FE colleges are over 16. Some will be adult students. All colleges publish free prospectuses that have information about the facilities and the courses on offer.
Nationally a small number of colleges have been awarded 'Beacon'
status which is an award for outstanding learning and teaching.
For example Wyggeston and Queen Elizabeth I College in Leicester
has been awarded a 'Beacon' status. The departments of some colleges,
including 'Beacon' colleges, are also classified as Centres of
Vocational Excellence (CoVEs).
CoVEs excel in a particular area of vocational learning which meets the skills
needs of employers either locally or in within a region. CoVEs offer basic skills,
and (NVQ equivalent) levels 1 - 4. The number of CoVEs is increasing all the
time. In Leicester and Leicestershire the following colleges have already established
CoVEs.
- Brooksby Melton College: Engineering (Agricultural)
- Leicester College: Print skills, construction, and retail.
- Loughborough College: Sport
- South Leicestershire College: Leadership and management
- Stephenson College: Motor vehicles and construction
Guaranteed offer of a course, apprenticeship or other learning
If you’re aged 16 or 17 and coming towards the end of a school or college course, the ‘September Guarantee’ means that you’ll definitely be able to continue learning. Everyone in this age group due to leave education is guaranteed an offer of a place on an appropriate course. The offer can be of:
- Full or part-time education in a school 6th form, 6th form college or FE college.
- An apprenticeship.
- Foundation Learning (formerly E2E)
The offer must meet your needs. So, it will have to take account of the qualifications you already have, be somewhere that you can travel to, and the sort of learning you want to do. Your Connexions personal adviser will be able to help you find and apply for a suitable course, apprenticeship or other learning opportunity.
Students with Disabilities
Most schools and colleges have a Disability Statement. The Statement sets out their policy for disabled students. If you ask them they will send it to you. They have to make sure that their disabled students are treated as well as non-disabled students. Find out how other disabled students have got on.
Visit the Skill website for more info on students with disabilities.
Open Days
Colleges usually have open days that you can go to. These are great opportunities to go along, see what a college is like, find out information, meet tutors and other students and have a look around and ask lots of questions! Find out from school, Connexions, your local paper or the colleges themselves when their open days are.
This could be one of the most important decisions you will ever have to make so make sure you go along and have a good look round and ask lots of questions.
Colleges and Sixth Form performance: test results and Ofsted reports
Every year the Department for Education and Skills publishes information on the achievement and attainment of all schools, sixth forms and colleges. These performance tables provide a guide to how well a sixth form or college is doing.Sixth form and college results are presented in Post 16 tables which include:
- AS and A levels
- Key Skills at level 3
- Advanced Extension Awards
- other vocational qualifications
Find Achievement
and Attainment Tables for sixth forms and colleges
Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education) is responsible
for inspecting and publishing reports on colleges and sixth forms,
similar to those done on primary and secondary schools. Inspection
reports provide you with detailed information on the performance
of individual institutions, pointing out strengths and weaknesses
of each.
Find
Ofsted reports for sixth forms and colleges
Ofsted reports and test results will not give you a complete picture
of a sixth form or college, but they may help you to form a fuller
impression of the sixth form or college you are considering. It's
important to go to open days, read prospectuses, and think about
the courses on offer when you are choosing a college or sixth form.
Last Updated: 19-Aug-2010