What types of colleges
are there in Britain?
There is a wide choice of educational institutions in Britain,often offering very similar
courses. Before deciding to which institutions you wish to apply, you must decide which
type of college will suit you best. This will partly depend on the level of qualification
you hope to gain.
Post-school education in the UK is generally divided into ‘further ’and
‘higher ’education. Higher education (HE)includes advanced courses of a
standard equal to or higher than an undergraduate degree or HNDs.
Further education (FE)describes other courses from basic numeracy and literacy up to
degree level.In practice,there is some overlap with HE institutions offering sub-degree
courses,and some FE institutions offering degrees accredited by HE institutions.
Colleges of Further Education (FE)
FE colleges offer a broad range of courses including GCSE,AS and A levels,access
courses,BTEC, GNVQs and other vocational courses,professional and English language
qualifications.Colleges offering FE-level courses include sixth-form colleges,technical
colleges,colleges of arts and technology,city colleges of technology,colleges of education
in Scotland and accredited independent further education institutions.
Colleges of Higher Education (HE)
Colleges of HE include colleges of education, institutes of higher education,institutions
of technology,institutes and colleges of art and design, schools and academies of music
and drama.They may offer courses leading to degrees,postgraduate
qualifications,professional and vocational qualifications and higher education diplomas.
Universities
Universities offer higher education qualifications, including undergraduate and
postgraduate degrees, and professional qualifications. Many also offer access courses,BTEC
HNDs and,in Scotland,SCOTVEC.
Private colleges
There are many private or ‘independent ’colleges whose courses are independent
of government funding. They offer various courses to prepare students for
professional,technical or vocational exams,as well as GCSEs,A levels,English language
exams and, in some cases,degree courses.
The quality and efficiency of private colleges are not officially monitored,but there are
a few organisations which accredit colleges whose standards have been inspected and
approved.Accreditation is carried out by the British Accreditation Council (BAC), which
provides a list of accredited colleges.
Although accrediting bodies check the facilities at private colleges,they do not validate
the qualifications offered.You should therefore check that the qualification offered will
be relevant to your needs and also recognised in your home country. |
