14-16 Options

Once you’re in Year 9 (or sometimes Year8) there are some subjects you’ll have to take (compulsory), but there are still plenty of options available.

Check with your school what choices are available. Most schools will hold a special Options Evening which allows you to talk to teachers and/or older students.

The Direct.gov website also has information on which subjects are compulsory and which are optional.

Other types of qualification

Years 10 and 11 aren’t just about GCSEs. Courses are taught in different ways and you may find that one way of learning suits you better than others. Here are some examples (remember though, not all schools offer these at present).

Young Apprenticeships

Taking a Young Apprenticeship means you will usually spend about one day a week in the workplace with an employer, training provider or college. You’ll also have to study the compulsory subjects on the curriculum to give yourself a broad range of options when thinking about what to do in the future.

For more information on Young Apprenticeships talk to your Personal Adviser.

Key Skills

Key Skills are the skills that you need in order to be confident and successful in school, college, university, work, training, and life in general. There are four levels of Key Skills qualification which you can study towards. Level 1 being roughly equivalent to GCSE grade D-G level or NVQ Level 1.

Level 2 is about the level of GCSE A* to C or NVQ Level 2 and Level 3 is about the same level as AS/A2 level or NVQ Level 3.

Talk to your Personal Adviser for more information on Key Skills Courses.

Key Skills Course Search

Diplomas

A Diploma is a new qualification in England designed to provide young people between the ages of 14-19 with the skills and knowledge needed for work.

Diplomas are structured at three levels.

• Level 1 Foundation Diploma (ages 14-16) will be broadly comparable to doing four to five GCSEs at grade D to G.

• Level 2 Higher Diploma (ages 14-16 or 16-18) is broadly comparable to doing seven GCSEs at grade A* to C.

• Level 3 Progression Diploma (ageS 16-18) is broadly comparable to doing 2 ½ A Levels.

• Level 3 Advanced Diploma (ages 16-18) is broadly comparable to doing 3 ½ GCE A levels.

Each Diploma will generally be taken as a two-year full-time course.

More information on Diplomas

Vocational Skills programmes

These involve spending part of the week out of school e.g. at a college or training centre. Ask about them at school

And more…!

There are lots of other qualifications that you might be able to choose such as Applied GCSEs, BTECs and NVQs – check what’s on offer at your school.

What next?

ApplySheffield

There are many different ways to learn, train and gain qualifications in Sheffield. Whether you want to study full-time or gain experience in the workplace while you study, the ApplySheffield website lists all the education, training and work-based learning courses in the city.

You can search the database by course provider (e.g. Newfield School, Sheffield College, etc…), qualification type (Diploma, BTEC etc…) and qualification level.

ApplySheffield Course Search

To make it easier, you can now complete an online universal application form which you can use to apply to the course of your choosing.

The online application form is available on the ApplySheffield website. If your school doesn’t use Applysheffield you can also complete an offline version.

Talk to the Personal Adviser at your school for more information.