Access To HE Science Content

Hi everyone. I am planning to start an Access to HE science diploma in September 2025. In the meantime I want to self study the content in preparation for when I start.

According to the college I want to join the subjects taught are biology, chemistry and psychology. I went to the spec for the diploma and got a list of the topics, but I want to know at what level the content is taught at. Is it GCSE or A-Level or a mix of both?

Reply 1

chelrra

Original post by N92929

Hi everyone. I am planning to start an Access to HE science diploma in September 2025. In the meantime I want to self study the content in preparation for when I start.
According to the college I want to join the subjects taught are biology, chemistry and psychology. I went to the spec for the diploma and got a list of the topics, but I want to know at what level the content is taught at. Is it GCSE or A-Level or a mix of both?

Hi,

Access to HE is a level 3 qualification and thus it is level 3/A level equivalent content. The course prepares you for university where you're largely independent in most of your studies, so some self-study prep will also help you get used to that way of studying.
I did Access to HE Humanities, and the course content and how it was taught was far more similar to uni than it was to school, and by the end of the course I was already writing essays that were undergrad level.

(edited 2 months ago)

Reply 2

ErasistratusV

Approach the course as you would undergraduate level study. Some of the content you are taught will be remedial A-level material. But you need to go beyond this really and it is in your best interests to do so because you will be asked to do this from day one at University. Learning how to seek out, reference and use research material will be vital.

Reply 3

Arden University

Official Rep

Original post by N92929

Hi everyone. I am planning to start an Access to HE science diploma in September 2025. In the meantime I want to self study the content in preparation for when I start.
According to the college I want to join the subjects taught are biology, chemistry and psychology. I went to the spec for the diploma and got a list of the topics, but I want to know at what level the content is taught at. Is it GCSE or A-Level or a mix of both?

@N92929
Hi, I've taught on Access to HE for over 10 years, it is a level 3 program which means like A levels.

When choosing an Access to HE pathway make sure that the modules match up with the career progression you want. Usually it is a Nursing and Midwifery pathway which has two 'natural' sciences and one social science like psychology (most providers do health studies instead). Some providers would let you do physics which would be useful if you wanted to go into radiography for instance.

If you are unsure, check with the admissions tutor at the University you want to progress onto

Marc
Arden University Student Ambassador