‘TechBacc’ for Vocational Course Students Announced

23 Apr 2013

The government has announced plans for an option for 16-19 year olds aimed at boosting the profiles of students who opt not to go to university: the ‘Technical Baccalaureate’. The “TechBacc” will enable young people working towards vocational qualifications to showcase their strengths in their course, literacy and maths, and is expected to be “on a par” with A-levels.

The planned TechBacc will be designed as a measure to gauge the achievement of students on vocational courses. It is not a qualification in itself, rather designed to show the student’s achievements.

So what will the TechBacc involve?

“The TechBacc will be a mark of achievement for young people who successfully study three key elements – a rigorous high quality vocational course, maths and literacy,” said Skills Minister Matthew Hancock. He said it would be “on a par” with A-levels.

Students taking the TechBacc will focus on three different areas: a high quality Level 3 vocational qualification, a Level 3 “core maths” qualification and an ‘extended project’, which would assess skills in communication, writing and research. The “core maths” element could also incorporate AS-level maths. The Department of Education will be giving a more in-depth explanation of this at a later date.

With the costs of university rising and the increasing development of schemes such as school leaver programmes from companies that were traditionally only graduate recruiters, currently 50% of English students choose not go on to university. Development of technical skills will help those taking alternative routes to improve their chances with prospective employers.

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