Vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) and T Level results for 2024 are out today – here’s FE Week’s round-up of the key trends.
400,000 VTQ results delivered
There were no signs of any delays to BTEC and other VTQ grades this year, after the fiasco two years ago, whereby Ofqual launched an action plan to mandate awarding organisations and education institutions to comply with strict data checks and deadlines.
More than 400,000 results have been issued this summer across over 500 vocational and technical qualifications.
Ofqual today released the results for the 15 awarding organisations which handed out 249,950 VTQ grades across 245 performance table qualifications, a near 3 per cent decline from the year prior.
The largest cohort of VTQs was in business, administration and law – 60,300 certificates were awarded this year, a drop from the 61,200 handed out in 2023.
Last year, Ofqual data showed under 180 results were “routinely withheld” awaiting internal processing. But this year, Cath Jadhav, vice president of Pearson which offers BTECs, said that the inclusion of term time checkpoints for school and colleges meant that “every student who is eligible for a result will receive one today”.
Margaret Farragher, the Joint Council for Qualification’s chief executive, said: “While the pandemic is now behind us, we must acknowledge that this group of students faced disruption during their education and pay tribute to their resilience. I would also like to recognise and thank exams officers and teachers for supporting students with their assessments. They have once again helped to deliver a smooth and successful exam series, evident from today’s results.”
VTQ high achievements similar to last year
Of the total 249,950 VTQ results today, 217,600 were for applied generals, like BTECs, and 32,400 were for tech levels.
Ofqual’s data shows nearly 9 per cent – 22,100 – achieved top grades of either A* or distinction* depending on the grading scale their qualification uses. This is a nudge lower than the 2023 results where 23,500 got top grades.
Analysis from Ofqual found the probability of an average student attaining the top grade in level 3 applied generals was 2.9 per cent and 4.6 per cent in tech levels respectively in 2023, similar to 2019 but lower than in 2022.
Sir Ian Bauckham, Ofqual Chief Regulator, said: “Congratulations to all students receiving their results today. This is the culmination of a lot of hard work for them and everyone who supported them on the way.
“Qualifications help people achieve their full potential and these vocational and technical qualifications will be used for onward progression to HE, further study and employment.”
T Level pass rate at 89%
Across the total 7,380 students studying T Levels this year, 88.7 per cent achieved a pass or above. But figures show nearly 3,000 students – over one quarter – have dropped out since they were recruited in 2022.
The take-up of T Levels has shot up as more subjects come on stream. Last year, 3,448 received results and 90.5 per cent passed.
Divided by gender, the pass rate was significantly higher among women, at 94.7 per cent compared with 83.9 per cent of men.
Education and early years had the highest pass rate of 96.2 per cent among its 1,533 students. Meanwhile, design and development for engineering and manufacturing had the lowest (69.9 per cent across 555 students).
The finance T Level saw 51.4 per cent of the cohort achieving a distinction or above, but only 37 students took the qualification. This was the first set of students to achieve the qualification after it was introduced in 2022.
In the core component of the qualification – usually a written exam and employer-set project – 98 per cent of all students received a grade of E or above. However, the most common grade was a D, with one-third of the 7,380 students receiving this grade.
Education and early years, which has been running since 2020, received the highest proportion of high grades, with 37 per cent awarded a B or above.
The occupational specialism component of a T Level is assessed through a practical project or assignments, typically taken in the second year of the T Level. 93 per cent of students passed this component of their T Level, the majority (49.2 per cent) receiving a merit.
Design and development for engineering and manufacturing had the lowest pass rate (72.3 per cent amongst 555 students).
Building services engineering T Level students struggle with industry placements
The on-the-job training part of a T Level is achieved through an industry placement of at least 315 hours – approximately 45 days. Students needed to complete their placement by August of their second year.
Building services engineering students had the lowest proportion of industry placement completions – just over one in 10 (13 per cent) of the 318 students didn’t complete the placement for their construction T Level.
A further one in ten (11 per cent) students on the maintenance installation and repair for engineering and manufacturing T Level also did not complete the placement.
Meanwhile, almost all (98.5 per cent) 65 healthcare science learners completed their industry placement.
But education and early years remains the success story. It had the highest number of enrolments of all available T Levels (1,533) and just 2 per cent (37) students did not complete the industry placement.
Further gender split across T Level disciplines
The gender divide in certain disciplines remains the same as previous years.
T Levels in construction was heavily dominated by men. Building services engineering had just 9 women enrolled this year – 3 per cent of the cohort – and onsite construction had 5 women, making up 4 per cent of the total students.
Meanwhile, the education and early years T level was made up predominantly of women; 94 per cent of the 1,533 enrolled students. The same goes for health – 91 per cent of the 1,044 students were women.
Overall, the total gender split was 44 per cent women and 56 per cent men achieving T Levels this year.
VTQ distinctions higher than T Levels
A higher proportion of students studying VTQs equivalent to three A-levels received top grades than T Level students. T Levels are described as being equivalent to three A Levels.
Over one-third (37 per cent) of VTQ students were awarded distinction or above compared to 16 per cent of T Level students.
Meanwhile, the majority of T Level students received a merit grade (63 per cent).
Ofqual stated T Levels continue to be generously graded given they are new qualifications.
Speaking on Radio 4’s Today Programme this morning, education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “T Levels are here to stay, but we need to make them work and we need to make them work better than has been the case. But alongside that, we need to make sure there are other routes for our young people. T Levels won’t be the answer, won’t be the solution for every young person that is considering a technical or vocational route.”
T Levels most popular in the North West
Today’s data from the Department for Education includes a regional breakdown of where T Levels are being taught.
The area with the most number of T Level results this year is the North West (1,458), followed by the South East (1,331). Meanwhile, the region with the lowest number of T Level results overall is the North East (480), followed by London (496).
The North East did however see the biggest regional growth, with 161 per cent more students on T Levels than the 184 enrolled last year.
The education and early years route made up the majority of students in the North East region – 29 per cent of all enrolments.
The route has been popular for most regions of England, apart from London, where only 62 of its 496 students in the area signed up for education and early years. The region saw a 141 per cent growth in student numbers from last year, with most students opting for the health and science route of the health T Level.
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