Business (Level 3 Extended Certificate)

Please head over to www.MyChoice16.co.uk, our home area portal to make your application.

This is a Level 3 Extended Certificate course. It is the equivalent size to one A Level - 60 credits.

The Extended Certificate is a two year, full-time course that meets entry requirements in its own right for students who want to progress to higher education courses in business areas before entering employment. It can also support students who want to progress directly to employment in job roles in business or business management and Higher Apprenticeships in the business sector.

• Unit 1: Exploring a Business (mandatory)
• Unit 2: Developing a Marketing Campaign externally assessed control assessment (mandatory)
• Unit 3: Personal and Business Finance exam (mandatory)
• Unit 27: Work Experience in Business students undertake two weeks work experience

The course is delivered through taught sessions which lead to preparation for external assessments or the completion of assignments. Group discussion, individual written preparation, practical exercises; practice questions and assessments are all used throughout the course.

Achievement in the qualification requires a demonstration of depth of study in each unit, assured acquisition of a range of practical skills required for employment or progression to HE, and successful development of transferable skills. Learners achieving a qualification will have achieved across mandatory units including external and synoptic assessment. Units are assessed using a grading scale of Distinction, Merit, Pass and Unclassified. Qualifications in the suite are graded using a scale of P to D*.

Assessment is specifically designed to fit the purpose and objective of the qualification. It includes a range of assessment types and styles suited to vocational qualifications in the sector. There are three main forms of assessment that you need to be aware of: external, internal and synoptic. Each assessment is taken under specified conditions, then marked by Pearson and a grade is awarded. Learners must achieve all external units at pass grade or above. You are permitted to re sit any external assessment only once during their programme.

The styles of external assessment used for qualifications in the Business suite are:

• Examinations - all learners take the same assessment at the same time, normally with a written outcome
• Set tasks and assignments - learners take the assessment during a defined window and demonstrate understanding through completion of a vocational task. Some external assessments include a period of preparation using set information. External assessments are available twice a year.

The qualification carries UCAS points and is recognised by higher education providers as contributing to meeting admission requirements to many relevant courses, for example:

• BSc (Hons) in Business and Management
• BA (Hons) and BSc(Hons) in Business Studies
• BSc (Hons) in International Management.