Computing for England (Application, Development & Testing) (Top-Up) HTQ

UCAS code: YTCP

Here's what Yeovil College University Centre says about its Computing for England (Application, Development & Testing) (Top-Up) HTQ course.

Higher National Diploma in Computing for England (Application Development and Testing pathway), awarded by Pearson, and regulated by the Office for Students.

The Higher National Diploma in Computing for England covers theoretical concepts and vocational skills that are required in the IT industry and has been developed to equip learners with the specialist knowledge and skills to make them competitive and employable in the job market. The course is a recognised Higher Technical Qualification (HTQ) which means it has been reviewed and approved for ensuring learners gain the skills that employers want, and employers can be confident that learners have the knowledge, skills, and behaviours for a particular specialist role. This is a Level 5 qualification, which is broadly equivalent to the first two years of a ‘traditional’ university degree.

This course is available on a full-time basis and is taught in-person at our Yeovil College campus.

The full-time top up course is studied over one academic year, and students are typically timetabled for two days per week.

This course is designed to allow those who already hold a relevant Level 4 qualification, such as a HNC or CertHE in Computing, to 'top-up' to HND level. If you're looking at starting your university-level journey in Computing, you would need to look at studying another qualification first. At Yeovil College University Centre, we offer the HNC (one year) or HND Computing for England (two year) courses; successfully completing this would allow you to then apply to ‘top-up’ to a full BSc (Hons) qualification.

Learners pursuing the HND top up qualification will complete seven modules at Level 5. Modules currently offered include:

Level 5 Modules • Computing Research Project • Business Process Support • Application Development • Prototyping • Application Programming Interfaces • Risk Analysis & Systems Testing • Cloud Computing All modules are worth 15 credits, with the exemption of the ‘Computing Research Project’ at Level 5 which is a double unit, worth 30 credits.

Alongside developing a range of subject-specific skills, this course also gives you the opportunity to develop important transferable skills such as critical analysis, academic writing, time management, and communication.

Please be aware that modules studied may change periodically to reflect developments in the discipline, in response to student or stakeholder feedback, or as a result of regulatory body requirements. However, no significant changes to modules would be implemented without student consultation and feedback. Enrolled students can always find the most up-to-date information about their modules and who is teaching them in their course handbook.

An assessment schedule, outlining all assessments and deadlines, will be issued to you at the start of each academic year. The programme uses different types of formative assessments to test and prepare learners for the summative (graded) assessments. You will be assessed using a range of methods which will reflect the requirements of the subject, including written reports, presentations, practical implementation of IT systems. Feedback will be provided to you in writing, along with information reflecting your performance and recommendations for improvement. Each module is graded as either Refer, Pass, Merit or Distinction.