Careers advice is always available from the National Careers Service - see flyer below.
Remember, you now have to stay in some sort of education or training until your 18th birthday. But you do have a number of options for the form this can take. This page helps to explain those options. There are also some very useful downloads at the bottom of the page, including the presentation Helen Cole (our previous careers advisor) did with current Year 11 students in her group sessions in July 2018.
The most popular option is to continue your studies into A Levels. You can do this at Herschel or at another school with a sixth form or a sixth form college. This provides you with the best basis to access university courses, although it's not the only way.
Experienced adviser Ray Le Tarouilly gives some invaluable tips on how and why to choose your A level subjects.
If you are a Year 11 student, you will likely have started thinking about what you are going to do when you have finished your GCSEs. For the first time in your life, you will have a choice over where you will go and what you will study, and with a bit of thought and care, you can make the right decisions and avoid making mistakes over your choices. As you may know, the government requires that all young people stay in some sort of learning until age 18. This does not mean that you have to stay on at school, but it does mean that you will need to take one of the following options:
- A place at college full time
- A place at a school sixth form full time
- An apprenticeship (paid job with training) of at least 30 hours per week
- A job or voluntary work which involves at least 20 hours per week attendance and includes recognized education or training leading to qualifications
One of the qualification pathways you may be considering is whether to take A levels. These are qualifications taken at schools that have a sixth form and at many colleges. The GCE (General Certificate of Education) Advanced (A) level has been in existence since the early 1950s and so your grandparents and possibly great grandparents may have taken them.
Key facts about A levels:
Reasons for choosing A levels should be based on the following:
- That you have the ABILITY to take them. For example, subjects such as sociology or government & politics may be new to you, but you need good English skills as they are essay based.
- That you are INTERESTED in them. A levels will require you to do a LOT more private study, reading etc outside of lessons. Having a passion for a subject will help!
What are facilitating subjects?
Returning to the question of facilitating subjects, if you take at least two from the following list, you will have better opportunities for entry to more competitive entry universities and/or degree courses generally. The facilitating subjects are:- Biology- Chemistry- English Literature- Further Mathematics- Geography- History- Mathematics- Modern Foreign or Classical Languages- Physics.
However, do not lose sight of your aims. For example, if you intend going into an art/design based degree, then you will need to take a subject such as art & design, likewise music if you intend taking a degree in this subject.
The button below links to a very simple but effective guide from Which University to which A Level options can be required for specific degree courses, so if you think you know where you want to be headed, you can use this to double check:
There is also a new A Level choices checker from the Russell Group of Universities which highlights that they are now placing less emphasis on the idea of 'facilitating subjects' and encouraging a wider range of A Level Choices. Click on the logo below to give it a go!
Click HERE for six other things you need to know before deciding!
There are also some very useful documents to do with A Levels available for download at the bottom of this page - these include the 'Informed Choices' guide from the Russell Group of universities, a guide to surviving A Levels written by ex-Herschel student and now Medicine undergraduate Zara Zeb, guides to choosing A Levels for and applying for medicine related degrees, and also some information on other careers that are available in the fields of health and science.
You can apply to do an apprenticeship, and get paid while you learn! See the apprenticeships page of this website for more details by selecting it from the menu on the left.
You can do a different course at a college. This could be a diploma or a vocational qualification such as an NVQ, a City and Guilds or a BTEC. Ms Cole, the school careers adviser, can help you with these, and there is a list of some of the college courses that are currently available locally further down this page.
The National Careers Service has a very good summary page for post-16 options - click on the logo below to visit.
Click on each one below to go to the college website. Note that Activate Learning is a group of colleges that includes Reading College. The Windsor Forest Colleges group includes Windsor College, Langley College and Strodes College.
You can also find a list of college open events in the downloads at the foot of this page.
Click the image below to be taken to the Big Guide for school leavers, containing info on graduate schemes, apprenticeships, volunteering, skills development.....loads of useful stuff if you are considering leaving full time education at the end of the year (and even if you're not!):
Click here for a good starting point website for school leaver programmes that don't involve heading to university (some require A Levels, but it's still worth a look):
All courses listed are equivalent to three A Levels unless otherwise stated
Level 3 Business BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at almost all colleges (not BCA)
Requires 4-5 grade C GCSEs often including English and Maths at grade C
AAT Certificate leading to the AAT Diploma
Available at Langley College
AAT Certificate requires 5 GCSEs at grade C including English and Maths
Level 3 Computing IT Practioners’ BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at Langley, Uxbridge, Reading Colleges
Normally requires 5 GCSE grade Cs including English and Maths
Information Technology (Software Development) Extended Diploma
Available at Henley College
Requires 5 GCSE grade Cs including English and Maths
Children and Young People’s Workforce CACHE Diploma Level 3
Available at Langley, Uxbridge, Reading, BCA
Requires 5 GCSE grade Cs including English
Children’s Care Learning and Development Level 3
As course above
Available at Henley College
Level 3 Health Studies BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at Langley, Uxbridge, Reading, BCA
Requires 5 GCSEs at grade C including English and Maths
Construction BTEC Diploma Level 1 and 2
Plastering Diploma Level 1, 2 and 3
Bricklaying Diploma Level 1, 2 and 3
Carpentry Diploma Level 1, 2 and 3
Painting and Decorating Diploma Level 1 and 2
Plumbing Technical Certificate Level 2 and 3
Electrical Technical Certificate
Gas Technical Certificate
All of the above are available at Langley College and some at Reading College
Entry requirements vary from none to 3 GCSEs at grade C including Maths English and Science for the Plumbing Technical Certificate Level 2
Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Construction
Available at Langley, Richmond Colleges
Requires 4 GCSEs at grade C or above including English, Maths and Science
This is a very interesting course which can lead to HE courses in construction management, surveying, civil engineering or to employment/training in the construction industry
Level 3 Art and Design BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at Langley, Reading, Uxbridge and Henley. Requires 4/5 GCSEs including an art and design subject plus a portfolio
Level 3 Fashion, Design and Textiles BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma
Level 3 Product Design and Enterprise BTEC Extended Diploma
Level 3 Photography and Digital Imaging Extended Diploma
Level 3 Graphics and Digital Design
All available at Reading College and require 4 C grades at GCSE often including an art and design subject and English and a portfolio of work
Level 3 Creative Media Production Extended Diploma
Level 3 Interactive Media BTEC Extended Diploma
Level 3 Digital Media Technologies BTEC Extended Diploma
Entry requirements are 5 GCSEs including English.
Available at Langley, Henley and Reading Colleges
Level 3 Music BTEC Extended Diploma
Level 3 Music Technology BTEC Extended Diploma
Level 3 Music and Media Technology BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at Reading College
Require 4 GCSEs grade C including English and preferably Maths
Level 3 Performing Arts BTEC Extended Diploma
Available at Uxbridge, Langley, Reading Colleges
Requires 4 GCSEs including English and Maths
Hairdressing NVQ Level 2 and 3
Available at Reading and Langley Colleges
Beauty Therapy NVQ Level 2 and 3
Available at Reading and Langley Colleges
Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Engineering
Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Mechanical Engineering
Level 3 BTEC Sub Diploma in Engineering – British Airways Pre-Apprenticeship
Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma in Electrical / Electronic Engineering
All available at Uxbridge College
They all require 5 GCSEs grade C including English, Maths, Science and possibly Design Technology
All (apart from the Sub Diploma) are 3 A level equivalent
Motor Vehicle Body Repair Certificate
Motorcycle IMI Level 1 Certificate and Level 2 Certificate
Motor Vehicle Engineering IMI National Diploma with Motorsport Option
All these are available at Langley College
Entry requirements range from none for the Level 1 Motorcycle course to 3 GCSE C grades including Maths, English and Science for the National Diploma course
There are also Level 3 BTEC courses in Travel and Tourism, Sport and Exercise Science, Sport Performance and Excellence, Public Services
Available at Reading, Henley, Langley Colleges and BCA
BCA also offers:
Name | Date | |
---|---|---|
![]() |
27th December 2014 | Download > |
![]() |
27th December 2014 | Download > |
![]() |
27th December 2014 | Download > |
![]() |
27th December 2014 | Download > |
![]() |
27th December 2014 | Download > |
![]() |
4th July 2018 | Download > |
![]() |
14th January 2019 | Download > |