Access GCSE Equivalences in English, Maths & Science (Pre-Access)
Access GCSE Equivalence(s) as an extension of any Access Diploma pathway
Who are GCSE Equivalences for?
GCSE Equivalences are sometimes known as Pre-Access because they form part of an Access Diploma but are studied before it.
They are for Access students who wish to enter university using an Access Diploma but are starting without GCSEs in English, Maths or Science, or more than one of these, at Grade C or above.
They are not a compulsory part of the Access Diploma course, even if you do not already have these GCSEs. However, as the competition for university places is increasing, we are finding that a growing number of universities are asking for GCSEs, or equivalents, in addition to the Access Diploma.
We recommend you contact your preferred university to ask about their particular entry requirements before you start an Access Diploma, so we can advise on the best pathway for you and help you to decide whether it would be advisable for you to study one or more GCSE equivalences.
How long do they take?
If you add GCSE Equivalences to your Access Diploma, it will obviously take longer for you to complete your qualification so you need to take this into consideration when planning when you aim to enter Higher Education.
For the full Access Diploma, we permit up to 365 days of study for the whole qualification. If you do not complete before that point, you can still continue by moving onto a regular monthly fee. It is the same for GCSE Equivalences except that for these we permit 110 days for Mathematics, 73 days for English and 91 days for Science, so when you are considering the total time it will take to achieve an Access Diploma, you need to add these on as appropriate.
What is a GCSE Equivalence?
GCSE Equivalences can only be taken as part of an Access Diploma, they are not 'stand alone' although you do receive a separate Certificate. You only have to pay the OCNNWR Registration Fee once. They are equivalent to a GCSE Pass at Grade C.
You can select any combination of the 3 subjects. The number and choice of subjects will most likely be determined by what your preferred university is asking for in terms of its entry requirements.
Successful completion of a relevant GCSE Equivalence (English or Maths) can be used as Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL), when you move on to the full Access Diploma, which means you will not have to study the Level 2 English or Maths.
See full details >>> of the Units covered in each subject.
