Digital Technologies and Computer Science - Level 3 Access to Higher Education Diploma

If you would like to study Computing at university but left school without the qualifications you need, then this Access to HE course could be for you. Each year, over 20,000 Access to HE students apply for a degree course at a UK university; if you complete a relevant degree at university, your Advanced Learner Loan will be written off by Student Finance England.

This course will help you get the qualifications you need to study computing, or a related course, at university. The qualification will provide you with an intensive introduction to the ideas, mathematical and computing skills, in a variety of areas of study including programming, web development and networking.

You will also learn key presentation, seminar, and writing skills that will be crucial at the university level. Throughout the course, you will undertake a research project and participate in lessons to prepare you for higher education, helping you focus on developing your academic, literacy and examination skills.

You will learn:

• Report Writing
• Sourcing and Reading Information
• Examination Skills: Preparing for and succeeding in an Examination
• Writing & Delivering Seminar Papers
• Preparation for Higher Education
  
• Extended Project
  
• Database Theory and Normalisation
  
• Arrays and Data Type
• Introductions to Robotics
  
• Cyber Security
• Computer Networks
• Software Testing Principles
• Numerical Methods
• Algebra
• Mathematics for Computing
• Vectors and Matrices
• Handling Scientific Data

You will need:

• To be aged 19 or older
• GCSE English and Maths at grade 4 or above (or A*-C) or English and Maths Functional Skills at Level 2
• Level 2 qualification in ICT or computing

All applicants must have an interview and assessment to confirm that the course suits them.

This course is assessed through coursework assignments, tests and examinations throughout the course, which are set and marked by your teachers and externally moderated by OCN London.

Assessment is continuous over the whole year and is based on a number of set pieces of work such as essays, projects, presentations and tests.

If you are aged 19-24, and this is your first Level 3 course, you may be eligible for free tuition. 

If you are 24 years or older, you will need to apply for an Advanced Learner Loan. Student Finance England will ‘write off’ any outstanding Advanced Learner Loan balances you owe for an Access to HE course once you complete a Higher Education degree course at university. This means you do not have to repay the Advanced Learner Loan if you then go on to complete a university degree course.

Once you have completed your Access to HE course, you can progress to a Higher Education degree at a university or college including Russel Group universities such as Queen Mary University, University College London, or King's College London. 

You should check requirements for specific degree courses - different Higher Education institutions may have different entry requirements for similar courses.