Rethinking project qualifications

At UAL Awarding Body, we've been thinking about project qualifications - what they're for, who they're for, and whether there is more that we can do with them.

What are project qualifications?

Project qualifications are standalone, regulated qualifications in which learners design and complete a substantial piece of independent work, such as an essay, report, or dissertation, or create an artefact or performance, on a topic of their choosing

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) at Level 3 is the most widely known, carrying up to 28 UCAS points and recognised by universities and employers alike. But it doesn't stop there. Alongside it sit the Foundation Project Qualification (FPQ) at Level 1 and the Higher Project Qualification (HPQ) at Level 2, each equivalent to half a GCSE, with the EPQ equivalent to half an A Level.

Together they create a genuine progression pathway, designed so that learners can develop as independent thinkers across their time in education.

Who are they for?

Project qualifications are available at Levels 1, 2 and 3, and are designed for learners of all abilities. However, they’re often seen as something for high-achieving students heading to university or positioned at the edges of the curriculum.

In reality, the skills and behaviours they develop - planning, curiosity, independence, decision making, problem solving - are valuable for every learner, whatever their destination. And they offer real flexibility in how they can be used.

A student on a creative programme might use their project to explore a question their core qualification doesn't have space for - going further into a concept, a context, or a creative practice that genuinely interests them. Another student, who finds traditional assessment formats challenging, might find that choosing their own topic and outcome, and working through a process rather than sitting an exam, opens up new ways to demonstrate their skills and knowledge.

This matters even more as the qualification landscape narrows.

As the reformed system takes shape, options are being streamlined. At Level 3, provision is being organised around three main pathways – A Levels, V Levels at 360 GLH, and T Levels – and at Level 2, around Foundation Certificates and Occupational Certificates. The space for learners to explore beyond their core programme shrinks considerably.

The government's own consultation response acknowledged concern about a gap between the smaller V Level and the large T Level, with limited options in between.

At the same time, as content becomes more nationally prescribed across the reformed pathways, the space for the kind of internally set, portfolio-based assessment that project qualifications offer becomes increasingly rare in the broader landscape.

Project qualifications are fast becoming one of the few remaining ways for any learner, on any pathway, to pursue something that genuinely interests them beyond their main qualification(s) - in a manner that is self-directed, process-driven, and entirely their own.

What are we doing about it?

At UAL Awarding Body, we currently offer the EPQ and are committed to making it accessible and useful for the full range of learners our centres serve - not just the most academic, or those heading to university.

We're also investing in the future of the project qualification family, by looking to extend our offer so that access to this type of qualification is available at every level.

Over the coming months we'll be sharing more about how the EPQ works in practice, how centres are using it across different programmes and learner groups, and what the expanded suite will look like.

If you'd like to find out more in the meantime or explore how the EPQ might work more widely across your provision, get in touch with us at qualdev.awarding@arts.ac.uk.