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Types of courses available at higher education level

When people consider higher education, they tend to think of degree courses. There are, however, several other qualifications that can be gained at university or college. The main courses offered are:

  • Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE): the first year of a degree course.
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  • Diploma of Higher Education (DipHE): two year, full-time DipHE courses are normally equivalent to the first two years of a degree and can often be used for entry to the third year of a related degree course. They are mainly linked to vocational areas such as nursing and social work.
  • Higher National Diploma (HND): a two-year course, which, if completed with high grades, can lead to the third year of a degree.
  • Foundation degree: the equivalent of the first two years of an honours degree, may be studied full- or part-time, and consist of academic study integrated with relevant work-based learning undertaken with an employer. It may be studied as a stand-alone qualification or upon completion you may progress to the final year of an honours degree.
  • Degree: a three- or four-year course where graduates obtain a bachelor's degree. There are different titles and levels of degree, such as:
    BA - Bachelor of Arts
    BSc - Bachelor of Science
    BEd - Bachelor of Education
    BEng - Bachelor of Engineering
    Ordinary/honours - this can vary between universities and colleges, although generally an 'ordinary' or 'unclassified' degree may be awarded if a student has completed a full degree course but hasn't obtained the total required passes sufficient to merit a third-class honours degree. In Scotland, an 'ordinary' degree is usually a three-year full-time course, whereas an 'honours' degree is usually a four-year full-time course.
  • Postgraduate: courses for graduates, which involve one or two years' additional work after a degree and lead to a master's degree. A longer period of postgraduate study is required for specialist degrees, for example, graduate entry to medicine.

 

Full-time degree courses can usually be gained over three years. Some courses take four years or longer, especially in Scotland.

Part-time degree courses are normally taken over a longer period, usually five years or more. Precise times may vary according to individual institutions, but increasingly they are able to offer flexible arrangements to suit your needs.

Single and combined courses

If you are interested in more than one subject, you may be able to study a combination as part of your course, eg English literature and psychology. You can often decide for yourself how much time you would like to spend on each subject.

Joint: the two subjects are studied equally, 50/50

Major/Minor: the time spent is usually 75%/25%

Modular courses

The majority of higher education institutions have now adopted a modular structure for courses. This means that you can build a personalised course by choosing modules or units of study from different subject areas.

Sandwich courses

Certain vocational courses include a year of working within the industry as part of the course. This will usually be for the third year of a degree course or the second year of an HND and, depending on the employer, may be full-time paid employment. The purpose of this is to introduce you to the world of work, whilst gaining valuable experience in a profession you might consider after completing your higher education course.