INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY BTEC

Exam Board: Pearson Edexcel, Level 3 National Extended Certificate.

What are the benefits of the course?

This qualification is designed for learners who are interested in an introduction to the study of creating IT systems to manage and share information, alongside others fields of study with a view to progressing to a wide range of higher education courses, not necessarily in IT.

What will I study?

Students study a variety of topics including:

• Unit 1 Information Technology Systems

• Unit 2 Creating Systems to Manage Information

• Unit 3 Using Social Media in Business

• Unit 6 Website Development

How will I be assessed?

This course comprises 360 guided learning hours (GLH) and is equivalent in size to one A-Level.

There are four units which are assessed through a range of written assignments and practical tasks.

Unit 1 is assessed by written examination (2 hours) set and marked by Pearson.

Unit 2 is assessed via a set task that is completed over two days by creating a complex database solution.

What does it lead to?

Employment opportunities: With the international recognition of BTEC courses such as this, you can progress straight into employment. If successful there are a wide variety of potential careers that you can explore, within sectors such as the growing computer games industry, product development, technical support, technical sales, telecommunications and hardware engineering. Jobs that are commonly taken after completion of the qualification are: systems analyst, computer service technician and computer operator.

Further vocational and academic qualifications: The BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma in Information Technology has the equivalence of 1 GCE A-Level, and it is possible for you to progress further into Higher Education, as successful BTEC National qualifications give UCAS points for university applications.

Entry Requirements:

GCSE Computer Science at grade 4, or a Merit at OCR Cambridge Nationals. A strong understanding in developing the world of IT and technical knowledge in databases is desirable.

Staff Contact:

Mr A George, Head of Business, IT and Computing [Assistant Headteacher]

ageorge@brakenhale.co.uk