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Learning in UK with BTEC diploma

I have done my government high school(Grade 10) education system in Myanmar, and in Grade 10 now I am taking O level (Edexcel). I am not planning to go to A level instead going to BTEC HND Level 3 .would you consider taking BTEC HND Level 3 ?? Plus in my country, I can attend HND BTEC L3 if we have done Grade 10. I saw BTEC Level 3 is equivalent to A level, is it true? For now, my plan is after taking a 2yr and a half course (Olevel) , I am going to take HND Level 4 directly. Is it a good idea? But I fear that O-level qualification will be wasted+high cost (in my country dollar sales are really high) if I take the HND BTEC program after O Level. After I did the Level 4 and 5 btec program in my country, is it easy to enter the final Level bachelor's degree in the top 500 ranking universities in the UK with a BTEC diploma?

(edited 8 months ago)

Reply 1

DataVenia

Volunteer Team, Clearing and Applications Advisor

Original post by John Sai Aung

I sometimes think that Pearson/Edexcel (who own the BTEC brand) have gone out of their way to use naming to confuse the casual observer. I'll try to summarise the different types of BTECs which are available, and relate them to your plan above.

The levels you refer to (level 3, level 4, etc.) essentially refer to how complex or advanced the qualification is. A levels are level 3 qualifications. The three years of a standard undergraduate degree are at level 4, level 5 and level 6 respectively. You can see lots more examples here.

Pearson/Edexcel offer a range of qualifications which they call BTEC Nationals. These are all level 3 qualifications and are often taken in the UK as an alternative to A levels. BTEC Nationals come in various "sizes" which describe how many hours of "guided learning" they are supposed to take. For example, a BTEC National Extended Certificate is the same size as a single A level, whilst a BTEC Nationals Extended Diploma is the same size as three A levels. (You ask above, "I saw BTEC Level 3 is equivalent to A level, is it true?" Yes - that is correct.)

Pearson/Edexcel also offer a range of qualifications which they call BTEC Higher Nationals. These are all level 4 or level 5 qualifications. The main such qualifications are the BTEC Higher National Certificate (HNC, a level 4 qualification) and the BTEC Higher National Diploma (HND, a level 5 qualification).

I've outlined the above as you have made reference "BTEC HND Level 3", which does't exist. A BTEC HND is a level 5 qualification. Later you've referred to your desire to "take HND Level 4 directly", Again, a BTEC HND is a level 5 qualification

Also, it's unclear to me what type of qualification an O level is in Myanmar. The Wikipedia page on Education in Myanmar (here) doesn't even mention it, and the Wikipedia page on O levels (here) doesn't mention Myanmar. I therefore have to assume it's a level 1 / level 2 qualification, as it is elsewhere (and as it used to be in the UK before it was replaced by the GCSE). You say above that "after taking a 2yr and a half course (Olevel) , I am going to take HND Level 4 directly" - that seems wrong to me. You cannot jump from level 2 to level 4. But I don't know whether it's wrong because of my lack of understand of O level qualifications in Myanmar, or because of your misuse of the term "HND Level 4", given that an HND is a level 5 qualification.

It sounds like you plan is actually as follows:
• Complete you O levels (which I'm assuming are level 2 qualifications).
• Take one of more BTEC Nationals (level 3 qualifications).
• Take a BTEC Higher National Certificate (HNC, a level 4 qualification)
• Take a BTEC Higher National Diploma (HND, a level 5 qualification)
• Attend a university in the UK to "top-up" that HND to a full bachelor's degree (a level 6 qualification).

That plan works. :smile:

One final thing which confuses me a little is that you make reference to entering "final Level bachelor's degree in the top 500 ranking universities in the UK". There are only about 160 universities in the UK, so they're all top 500. :confused: