The Access to Higher Education Programme is a second chance for students without A-Levels or other Level 3 qualifications to gain entry into higher education and the professions. The programme emphasises the development of skills necessary to work at degree level successfully and the opportunity to taste a choice of specialist subjects which are usually a one year, full time course.

Foundation Degrees are the nationally recognised, higher education qualifications which have in many cases replaced HNDs. They take two or three years to complete and are a dynamic mix of academic and work based learning. You can study full or part-time and the hours can be flexible to suit your needs.

A Foundation Degree is an attractive qualification to have when seeking employment in today's competitive job market. Employers are working with us to develop and deliver the courses and new graduates can apply their skills immediately.

The qualification is flexible and you can 'top up' a Foundation Degree to a Bachelors Degree (BSc / BA) at University later on, or you can stop studying once you have successfully gained your Foundation Degree as it is a recognised qualification in its own right.

All our Foundation Degrees are validated by Universities within the region, primarily Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU), the University of Chester and Liverpool John Moores University. This means that if you want to continue on to the final year of an honours degree on completion of your Fd, then you can do so locally.

VRQs offer practical learning programmes that relate directly to a specific job role or industry. Completing a VRQ means that you study and gain stills in a particular area. These qualifications follow a course structure and have an emphasis on developing practical skills and knowledge. They tend to be classroom-based, with assessment by written and practical examinations.

VRQs are offered by a large number of awarding bodies and range from broad-based VRQs such as management to specialist qualifications designed for a particular industry, such as food industry management. They can serve a range of purposes in different sectors and at different levels, and so vary greatly in terms of size, level and assessment method.

VRQs are a popular type of qualification because they are nationally recognised, flexible and offer great routes for progression.

At South Cheshire College we will be offering a number of VRQs from 2010, including Management at Levels 4 and 5.

A number of other professional qualifications are offered by the College, for those working in specific service sector industries, or who would like to.

For those wanting to pursue a professional career in Counselling, South Cheshire College provides two professional qualifications - the University Certificate in Counselling, which is a one year part-time qualification, and leads onto the two year part-time Graduate Higher Diploma in Counselling.

The College also offers the Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PCET) for those involved in education or training for the post-14 sector, which leads to either a Certificate in Education (CertEd) or a Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE), depending upon the entry level of the student. This is usually studied over two years, part-time.