Your foundation degree, what next?: Further study

Most foundation degree students progress onto further study, usually a one-year honours degree...

The majority top up immediately after graduating, although a significant minority will return to top up at a later point in their career (HEFCE, 2010).

Do I need to do further study?

Some careers do not require a specific degree or qualification and so you may be able to enter them without gaining other skills or completing additional courses. Others will have definite requirements, however, and you may need to carry out further study in order to be considered for potential job roles.

The key questions you need to ask yourself before taking on further study are:

• What is my career plan?
• How will further study enhance my career?
• What are my sources of funding?
• Are my reasons for study realistic and achievable?

Most graduate training schemes require candidates to have a full honours degree and some professional bodies also specify that certain qualifications are needed in order to get membership. Research what would apply to you in your specific situation before deciding on further study. 

You can look up the destination data for previous graduates from your course to research what others have gone on to do after graduation. All institutions and courses have to collect and publish such information. For details of individual, subject-specific destinations, refer to options with your subject.

What are my options for further study?

The main study options available after you have completed your foundation degree are:

• degrees;
• postgraduate courses;
• professional courses.

 

If you wish to study for a degree there are several options:

• Joining at year three - providing you meet the credit requirements. This is an option if your foundation degree is closely related to the subject you wish to study at degree level.
• Joining at year two - this may apply if you want to study for an honours degree that is a different subject than your foundation degree.
• Joining at year one - this option is mainly where no transfer is possible because the subject is completely different, possibly due to a career change or because of professional requirements.

You can also complete your honours degree at a variety of places:

• At your current institution - if an institution offers a foundation degree, it must also provide a suitable progression route so that the student may continue with their studies.
• At the institution where your degree was validated - if you have studied at an institution that cannot award degrees, such as a further education college, it could be an easy transition to move to the institution that validated your degree.
• At a different university - this will involve you investigating what the entry requirements are at the different institution.
• Through a distance learning route - check to see if your preferred university offers a distance learning route or see what the Open University (OU) has to offer.
• Overseas - you may be able to study at an institution overseas but this will involve a lot of research. For information and advice on vocational, academic and professional qualifications from over 180 countries worldwide, see UK NARIC (National Recognition Information Centre for the United Kingdom) .

Credit systems are in place to provide greater flexibility and easier transfer between courses at different institutions. It means that students awarded credit by one institution may then have that credit recognised by another. Qualification credit points and systems can vary across institutions and courses, so it is important to check with each institution individually. For further information, see QAA - Academic Credit in Higher Education .

Other forms of further study include:

• Postgraduate courses, for example Masters and postgraduate diplomas or certificates, which usually require candidates to have an honours degree (this will sometimes be a necessity if the course provides professional accreditation). However, some postgraduate courses are more flexible and may count relevant industrial experience as equivalent to degree-level study. 
• Doctoral degrees, e.g. PhDs, which normally require a very high level of achievement at honours level and often a Masters and relevant industrial experience.
• Professional courses, which allow you to enter and practise a specific profession. Professional bodies usually regulate their own qualifications and entry routes and provide a list of courses that are acceptable for their varying levels of membership.

It may be possible to carry out your further study through a flexible route, such as through part-time, distance or online learning. It is important to reflect on your own learning style and motivation levels before embarking on flexible learning programmes.

Find out more about postgraduate study in the UK.

Will I get funding for further study?

If you are considering further study, it is important that you establish what financial support you will get, if any, particularly with the increase in tuition fees in September 2012.

To find out if you can get financial support, contact one of the following organisations:

• GOV.UK  - for students in England.
• Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS)  
• Student Finance Northern Ireland  
• Student Finance Wales  

If you are going directly onto an honours programme, either within the same institution or another one, you may be able to continue your current financial arrangements, although you should not automatically assume this; always check.

Funding for postgraduate courses is usually difficult and many students end up financing their own studies, often by working at the same time or through a professional and career development loan.

If you are in employment, find out if seeking funding from your employer is an option. You can also try looking at individual university websites for scholarships and awards.

For more information and help on securing funding, take a look at funding my further study.

If you wish to study abroad, visit UKCISA - UK Students Studying Abroad  for potential sources of funding. 

AGCAS

Written by Emma Bumpus and AGCAS editors

Date: 

May 2011

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