Key skills?

Ok what is Key skills? I know many people at college who are doing it but i'm not for some reason... because of gcse results I don't know.

Is it a graded subjects like grr.. General studies, or just like an acknowledgement that you have passed "key skills". I just find it strange that some people are doing it while others get away with it!

:thrasher:

Reply 1

username5154

15

Key skills are graded as pass or fail.

Some schools/colleges make it compulsary and some don't do it at all. If you do it, you need to do an exam and compile a portfolio. If you follow courses like IT,Maths, and English, you would be exempted from the exam, but you need to compile a portfolio to pass it though.

Reply 2

kellywood_5

17

At my school, the only people who have to do Key Skills are the ones who got Es or below in English or maths at GCSE because the school thinks they won't get a C if they resit. They're level 2, GCSE standard, and worth 10 UCAS points each. My local FE college makes everyone do Level 3 Key Skills in English, maths and IT, A-level standard and worth 20 UCAS points each. Some universities count them and some don't, but I think more universities accept Key Skills than those that accept General Studies. If you pass all 3 Key Skills at level 3, youi'd have the same amount of points as a grade D at A-level or a grade A at AS level. Luckily I don't have to do General Studies or Key Skills at my sixth form :cool:

Reply 3

username5154

15

kellywood_5

At my school, the only people who have to do Key Skills are the ones who got Es or below in English or maths at GCSE because the school thinks they won't get a C if they resit. They're level 2, GCSE standard, and worth 10 UCAS points each. My local FE college makes everyone do Level 3 Key Skills in English, maths and IT, A-level standard and worth 20 UCAS points each. Some universities count them and some don't, but I think more universities accept Key Skills than those that accept General Studies. If you pass all 3 Key Skills at level 3, youi'd have the same amount of points as a grade D at A-level or a grade A at AS level. Luckily I don't have to do General Studies or Key Skills at my sixth form :cool:

You're very lucky that you don't need to do GS or KS.

In our school, no matter what grade you get in GCSE maths and/or english, they have to repeat it. They just need to do the level 2 key sills portfolio though.

Reply 4

Gentilhomme

Believe me it is a waist of time. At my college they forced us to attend the classes to complete the portofolio. And at the last day i turned up and said I have done nothing in all term my teacher was a bit pissed of because i had passed my exams.
But really it turned out that out of 200 in our year group only 13 finished their portfolio to an appropriate level.
So believe it is not worth it, no one think it is relevant, and my tutor say that if you got C in gcse it is just a waist of time

Reply 5

AT82

Key Skills is the most patronising complete waste of time ever, just a classic example of over governmening by this stupid government.

Reply 6

stratomaster

OP

Lol judging from the replies I take it it's just as pointless as general studies then :biggrin:

But am I missing out on these UCAS points if I don't do it, or do the GCSE's in maths, english etc make up for it?

Reply 7

Chris87

1

stratomaster

Lol judging from the replies I take it it's just as pointless as general studies then :biggrin:

But am I missing out on these UCAS points if I don't do it, or do the GCSE's in maths, english etc make up for it?

Most universities won't accept key skills anyway so there's no point in doing them. Best to just concentrate on your A-levels rather than trying to accumulate as many UCAS points as possible, some of which won't even count as part of an offer.

Reply 8

username5154

15

stratomaster

Lol judging from the replies I take it it's just as pointless as general studies then :biggrin:

But am I missing out on these UCAS points if I don't do it, or do the GCSE's in maths, english etc make up for it?

If you want to take it, take level 3, as it worths more points and they accept level 3 mostly. GCSE's don't make up for it unfortunately.

Check the universities you are applying to see if they accept level 3 key skills.

Reply 9

AT82

Chris87

Most universities won't accept key skills anyway so there's no point in doing them. Best to just concentrate on your A-levels rather than trying to accumulate as many UCAS points as possible, some of which won't even count as part of an offer.

Actually most do, but only to bump up your post count, so if a course requires 240 points, and you got 220 in A2 and 60 in Key Skills theywill let you in.

Reply 10

Gentilhomme

stratomaster

Lol judging from the replies I take it it's just as pointless as general studies then :biggrin:

But am I missing out on these UCAS points if I don't do it, or do the GCSE's in maths, english etc make up for it?

Universities dont judge you on your ucas points but rather what subjects you are doing and what grade you got in your AS level.
Example. Some university ask for 500 pts that is equivalent to a bit more than 4 As at Alevel which is 480pts. But if you do three level 3 keyskils and get 3 Bs and an A at Alevel which is exactly 500pts they will not accept you. That just shows how irrelevant these are.

Reply 11

ForeverDecember

4

My college is hell-bent on mkaing me do IT L2 (Because I didn't do GCSE) and Communication L3 (Despite the fact I do AS English) and I'm flat out refusing, damn waste of my time.

Reply 12

username5154

15

ForeverDecember

My college is hell-bent on mkaing me do IT L2 (Because I didn't do GCSE) and Communication L3 (Despite the fact I do AS English) and I'm flat out refusing, damn waste of my time.

Since you do AS English, you are exempted from the exam. All you need to do is to compile a portfolio.

I find it quite stupid that your school force you to do IT level 2 when you didn't do it at GCSE.

Reply 13

ForeverDecember

4

IT Level 2 is literally 'IT for Dummies'...I went to one lesson last year, the content of the entire 50 minute lesson was 'Creating a folder'...I left, never to return, passed the exam (with flying colours I presume) but won't waste my time on a portfolio

As for Communication, I did the exam last year, when I wasn't doing English anyway, but again, not wasting my valuable time on a portfolio. If I rang my universities up on results day and said "I've narrowly missed out on the offer, but I passed my Communication Level 3 Key Skills" they'd laugh at me and hang up.

Reply 14

username5154

15

ForeverDecember

IT Level 2 is literally 'IT for Dummies'...I went to one lesson last year, the content of the entire 50 minute lesson was 'Creating a folder'...I left, never to return, passed the exam (with flying colours I presume) but won't waste my time on a portfolio

As for Communication, I did the exam last year, when I wasn't doing English anyway, but again, not wasting my valuable time on a portfolio. If I rang my universities up on results day and said "I've narrowly missed out on the offer, but I passed my Communication Level 3 Key Skills" they'd laugh at me and hang up.

Glad you passed the IT exam. :smile:

I thought those kinds of IT stuff would be IT level 1 key skills, lol.

The level 3 communication exam is easy anyway. Lots of people in my school passed it.

Reply 15

KaosLisa

My college tried forcing me to do IT key skills when i already had a grade A at GCSE, they threatened to kick alot of us off the course for it, although it was all words and no actions, i kicked up a hell of a fuss about it, i have more important things to concentrate on than stupid key skills that count for hardly anything.