IT BTEC Extended Diploma - Level 3

This practical, work-related qualification will prepare you for an IT career path or for studying computer science at university level. You will work with industry-standard hardware and software to design and construct the systems that underpin modern business processes using our specialist labs. Visiting speakers, who are experts in the field, will share their experience and give you up-to-date information on subjects such as web analytics and building an effective security culture. We encourage and support you to enter WorldSkills competitions in web development and networking technologies. Our students often have the chance to work with local communities on website projects. We're a member of the CISCO community which gives us the chance to deliver CISCO units as part of your course. We also have an arrangement with Microsoft DreamSpark so you will be able to download MS programming and operating systems software for free.

This challenging course includes: Networking; Information systems and e-commerce; Computer programming and web development; Security and PC maintenance. You will be assessed throughout the year through coursework and exams. Achieve a 90-credit diploma in your first year of study then top up to 180 credits on the extended diploma in the second year. The extended diploma gives you much more detail on the subject - it's the same as three A-levels and is a great route into university. If you already have 90 credits from another college, you can choose to top up to the extended diploma with just one year of study. From the 90-credit diploma, move up to the extended diploma. From the extended diploma, you could go on to study computing at university level. Some students choose to specialise in security, networking or software development while others join mainstream computer science courses.