Vocational and technical qualification (VTQ) and T Level results for 2024 were out yesterday – here’s Schools 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, 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 12 months ago.
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”.
VTQ high achievements similar to last year
Of the total 249,950 VTQ results yesterday, 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 slightly 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. This is similar to 2019 but lower than in 2022.
T Level pass rate at 89%
Of the 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.
The pass rate was significantly higher among women, at 94.7 per cent compared with 83.9 per cent of men. However, the most common grade was a D, with one-third of the 7,380 students receiving this grade.
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.
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.
Design and development for engineering and manufacturing had the lowest pass rate (72.3 per cent among 555 students).
Building services engineering T Level students struggle with placements
The on-the-job training element 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 the August of their second year.
Building services engineering students had the lowest proportion of industry placement completions – just over one in 10 of the 318 students didn’t complete the placement for their construction T Level.
A further 11 per cent of 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) of the 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), with just 2 per cent (37) not completing 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 were heavily dominated by men. Building services engineering had just nine women enrolled this year – 3 per cent of the cohort – and onsite construction had five 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.
Thirty-seven per cent of VTQ students were awarded distinction or above compared to 16 per cent of T Level students.
Meanwhile, the 63 per cent of T Level students received a merit grade.
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 North West
Department for Education data shows the area with the most T Level results this year was the north west (1,458), followed by the south east (1,331). Meanwhile, the North East (480) and London (496) had the fewest.
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 area, accounting for 29 per cent of all enrolments.
The route has been popular in most regions 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.
