is a diploma in art worth it for college?

i'm 16 going to college in september and i applied for a 'level 3 diploma in art and design'. i was told that it is equivalent to 3 A-Levels and i don't have to pick anymore subjects. i'm predicted a 9 for my gcse art and i'm hoping to go forward and study any kind of architecture or product design / industrial design for uni. would this diploma get me into a good uni?

Reply 1

PS Reviewer

Can you link to the college course page for the course?

There are a LOT of level 3 diplomas and they vary widely

Reply 2

paarmis

Original post by PQ

Can you link to the college course page for the course?
There are a LOT of level 3 diplomas and they vary widely

here's the one i applied for: https://www.derby-college.ac.uk/course/diploma-in-art-and-design-creative-level-3/

Reply 3

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by paarmis

Do you have specific degrees that you want to apply for?
Yes, I have noted that you are interested in architecture or product/industrial design, but they also vary widely in entry requirements. Most of these design based degrees don't require specific subjects or would want something akin to art and design. However. some might be particular about what qualifications they accept.

The link you have provided didn't specify what sort of qualification the diploma is. It sounds like an Extended Level 3 BTEC, but it doesn't look like it since you can "progress to the Level 3 Extended Diploma in Art and Design," which sounds more like what an extended BTEC diploma is.

Reply 4

paarmis

Original post by MindMax2000

Do you have specific degrees that you want to apply for?
Yes, I have noted that you are interested in architecture or product/industrial design, but they also vary widely in entry requirements. Most of these design based degrees don't require specific subjects or would want something akin to art and design. However. some might be particular about what qualifications they accept.
The link you have provided didn't specify what sort of qualification the diploma is. It sounds like an Extended Level 3 BTEC, but it doesn't look like it since you can "progress to the Level 3 Extended Diploma in Art and Design," which sounds more like what an extended BTEC diploma is.

thank you. i dont have any specific universities in mind so i'll look more into those, however the entry requirements on the websites confuse me a little! would you say the BTEC is worth it?
my second option is: https://www.derby-college.ac.uk/course/t-level-in-construction-design-surveying-and-planning/ which is a T-Level. however i have heard that most universities dont accept them so i am not sure

Reply 5

MindMax2000

Universities Forum Helper

Original post by paarmis

i dont have any specific universities in mind so i'll look more into those
Please do. Entry requirements can vary widely.

the entry requirements on the websites confuse me a little
Let's take the following accredited (hence appropriate) architecture degree for example:
https://www.aru.ac.uk/study/undergraduate/architecture
Under alternative entry requirements, you would see: "UCAS Tariff points acquired from BTEC Level 3 Diplomas in a related subject are accepted." In my book, that means a BTEC Level 3 Diploma in art and design should be sufficient (you can check with undergrad admissions with this). It doesn't on the other hand specified anything regarding T Levels, so chances are they won't accept it (unless there's an obscure link pointing to other qualifications they accept that I can't see, and that link specifies that they accept T Levels).

Take the following (another RIBA accredited degree) as another example:
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-students/undergraduate/degrees/architecture-bsc#tab3-other
If you scroll down to BTEC in the drop down menu, you would see "BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma (QCF) or BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (RQF - teaching from 2016) with Distinction, Distinction, Distinction. Comprehensive portfolio of creative work required upon invitation, at application stage". So yes, an extended BTEC diploma is fine. As it doesn't specify the subject of the BTEC, you can presume the subject of the BTEC doesn't matter.
If you scroll down for T Levels, you would see: "Not acceptable for entrance to this programme." So they have explicitly stated that they won't accept T Levels, so hard luck if you did T Levels and wanted to apply to this university.

would you say the BTEC is worth it?
I hate superficial questions asking whether something is worth it or not, so I am not going to bother answering this.

...T-Level. however i have heard that most universities dont accept them so i am not sure
I wouldn't recommend T Levels unless you are absolutely sure that the uni that you want to apply to specifically accepts T Levels for the specific degree that you want to do.

Side question: if you managed to get a 9 in Art at GCSE, why are you looking at BTECs and T Levels as opposed to standard A Levels? If you want the maximum range of degrees available to you based on your choice of qualifications, you should opt for A Levels. (Yes I know, the vast majority of design related degrees accept BTECs just as much as A Levels.) With A Levels, it makes understanding entry requirements a lot simpler and you have less to hassle yourself with.

Reply 6

paarmis

thank you very much for your help!

for your side question, the rest of my gcse grades aren't the best as they are sitting at 3s, 4s and 5s. i managed to get a 4 in maths and a 5 in english, and most of the A Level courses at my college require 5s in maths. furthermore, if i were to do A Level art, wouldn't i have to choose 2 more subjects? i'm not confident that i will do well in other subjects as i have little to no interest in them, and i don't want to end up failing because of this. my backup sixth form options are Art, Business and Psychology but realistically i don't see the point in taking these if i know i wont get top marks