The Student Room Group

Abe certificate uk

Hi guys,
I'm starting my ABE certificate course next week. I need a link to a website that will give me the ABE certificate specification or syllabus. Also a link that will give me access to past papers would be nice. However, I've already gone on the official ABE website: www.abeuk.com and they don't seem to offer the specification or the past papers so I would like another link, if you know of any.

Finally, is ABE harder than A levels? Any how are you supposed to prepare and study for ABE? What are the revision techniques for ABE? How many hours a day should you study if you're doing ABE?
Reply 1
When you register with ABE, you will get access to past papers and the full syllabus. You have to buy the teaching materials from ABE if your college does not provide them. They are not available in shops or other online provides. ABE have recently changed their syllabus, so avoid buying second hand teaching material.

ABE is not directly comparable to A levels, it is more like a BTEC Diploma. Technically it is equivalent to 2 A levels, but is does not count for UCAS point purposes in the UK. An ABE certificate can get you a university, but only for specific courses and you may require other qualifications e.g. the equivalent of Maths and English GCSE.

ABE is exam only, no coursework, so you need to allow sufficient time to read the material and do all the practice exercises. Exam preparation is very important, some universities require you to achieve a Merit (grade B) or above for admission purposes. It is very easy to lose marks for simple mistakes.

Each module comes with an estimate of Guided Learning Hours, at Certificate level the typical value is 100 hours, I suggest you do a minimum of 200 hours self study or more in addition if you want to pass well. But it will depend on how well you understand the material.
Reply 2
Original post by edjunkie
When you register with ABE, you will get access to past papers and the full syllabus. You have to buy the teaching materials from ABE if your college does not provide them. They are not available in shops or other online provides. ABE have recently changed their syllabus, so avoid buying second hand teaching material.

ABE is not directly comparable to A levels, it is more like a BTEC Diploma. Technically it is equivalent to 2 A levels, but is does not count for UCAS point purposes in the UK. An ABE certificate can get you a university, but only for specific courses and you may require other qualifications e.g. the equivalent of Maths and English GCSE.

ABE is exam only, no coursework, so you need to allow sufficient time to read the material and do all the practice exercises. Exam preparation is very important, some universities require you to achieve a Merit (grade B) or above for admission purposes. It is very easy to lose marks for simple mistakes.

Each module comes with an estimate of Guided Learning Hours, at Certificate level the typical value is 100 hours, I suggest you do a minimum of 200 hours self study or more in addition if you want to pass well. But it will depend on how well you understand the material.


Have you done ABE before? Or are you doing ABE currently? The syllabus has changed now. Before it was ABE certificate, then diploma 1, diploma 2 and then advanced diploma. But now certificate has turned into level 4 and then level 5 and level 6, level 7. Can you explain to me these level 5 and 6 and how long will they take to complete. Also please explain more about level 7 (post graduate study)
Reply 3
I had to research the ABE qualification on behalf of someone who went on to do it. The ABE certificate was previously a level 3 qualification, it has now been revised to a level 4 qualification. In terms of what it allows you to do, the is no real difference in progression paths.

ABE introduced the integrated diploma which combined the level 5 and 6 diploma into 2 year course, which is beneficial for students coming to the UK to study. It allows 4 exam sittings to achieve the all the units required for the level 5 and 6 diploma, without having to reapply for a visa between levels.

The previous the ABE Diploma had level 4 and 5 units. With the revision, there only level 5 units, you need to pass 8 to get the diploma. The old course had 9 units, 4 at level 4 for the Diploma part 1 and 5 at level 5 for the Diploma part 2.

The ABE certificate can be completed in as little as 6 months, but that requires you to sit all 4 units at one exam session, but one academic year is more manageable. The Integrated Diploma is designed to be complete in 2 academic years. Each of the remaining qualifications level 5, 6 and 7 designed to be completed in one academic year each. Which allows you split your unit exams over two exam sittings. I think you are limited to the number of exams you can take in one sitting.

If you want to have good qualification recognition, you should progress to traditional degree, there are different entry points depending on what level you progress to in ABE.
A level 7 ABE post graduate diploma, gets you to enough credits to exceed the credits necessary for a UK degree, but not enough for a UK Masters. You may gain admission to a Masters course, without doing a degree if you successfully complete the level 7 diploma. But recognition will depend on the admitting university, you may still have to complete the full masters course.
(edited 11 years ago)

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