As one of the first Awarding Organisations to deliver the Technical Qualification element of eight T Levels, we’re proud to be celebrating the success of our students this T Levels Celebration Week. We started offering T Levels in both Digital and Construction back in 2020. We have now expanded our T Level offer to include Media, Broadcast and Production, alongside Craft and Design courses available from September 2024, with more arriving next year. With a lot of attention on T Levels from the UK’s Department for Education this week, we were pleased to hear from Minister for Skills Jacqui Smith, who said:
"This government is backing T Levels as a top-quality qualification, helping young people develop skills to seize opportunity. T Levels offer hands-on experience in the workplace and excellent career prospects for young people seeking skilled work or further study. I’m delighted to see more employers getting behind T Levels by offering industry placements, including Amazon and Lloyds Banking Group helping to nurture future talent and support the development of in-demand skills.”
T Levels explained
T Levels are two-year courses that young people can take following GCSEs. Broadly equivalent in size to 3 A-levels and accruing UCAS points. T Levels were developed in collaboration with employers to ensure that students will be equipped with the skills they need for the workplace. They offer a mixture of classroom learning and ‘on the job’ experience with at least 45 days spent on an industry placement with an employer.
Our T Level students are moving on to a wide range of next steps, with some going straight into the workplace and others starting a higher-level apprenticeship or going to university.
What T Level students say
Fernanda Vargas Mendez’s T Level in Digital Production, Design, and Development gave her essential practical skills such as coding and creating apps, which she now uses daily in her role at IBM. The hands-on projects and theoretical knowledge in areas like GDPR and digital security equipped her to handle real-world challenges.
“Having real-world projects and an industry placement at IBM made me feel I was learning beyond the classroom. I was treated as a team member rather than a student; it gave me a true taste of the professional world. I would encourage any student interested in hands-on education to consider T Levels,” said Fernanda.
T Level student Fernanda Vargas Mendez
Jenson Davies studied a T Level in Accounting at East Sussex College in Eastbourne. He found the 45-day work placement particularly beneficial, helping him understand the daily work of an accountant in a real-world setting.
Jenson explained: “I chose to study a T Level because I thought it would be a good level of difficulty in a topic I wanted to choose, instead of doing accounting as an A-level alongside other courses I wasn’t as interested in. I gained in-depth knowledge that I was able to put into action in my work placement. I would recommend T Levels for the great balance of studying and on-the-job learning.”
We’re looking forward to seeing how they succeed in the future. Join us on social media as we celebrate more of our students this December, we will be sharing content with the hashtag #TLevelsWeek
For more information on T Levels and for advice on applying, visit T Levels from Pearson.