Cambridge Technicals are vocational qualifications, offered by

Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations Oxford, Cambridge and RSA Examinations (OCR) is an examination board which sets examinations and awards qualifications (including GCSEs and A-levels). It is one of England, Wales and Northern Ireland's five main examination boards. OCR is bas ...

(OCR) in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, and

Cambridge International Examinations Cambridge International Education (abbreviated CIE, informally known as Cambridge International or simply Cambridge and formerly known as CAIE, Cambridge Assessment International Education and CIE, Cambridge International Examinations) is a pro ...

(CIE) internationally; both are part of

Cambridge University Press & Assessment Cambridge University Press and Assessment is a non-school institution of the University of Cambridge. It was formed under Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth II's approval in August 2021 by the merge between Cambridge University Press and Cambridge As ...

. These qualifications are intended for

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

students age 16 to 18 who want to study a practical, work-related curriculum. In the UK's ''Qualifications and Credit Framework'' (

QCF The Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) was the national credit transfer system for education qualification in England, Northern Ireland and Wales between September 2011 and October 2015. The replacement was the Regulated Qualification Fr ...

) a Tech Level 2 qualification is equivalent to a

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

, and a Level 3 is equivalent to an

A Level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

. The qualifications are designed with the workplace in mind and provide a high quality alternative to A Levels, supporting progression to higher education.

Regulation

All Tech Level qualifications must meet criteria set by the UK's

Department for Education The Department for Education (DfE) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for child protection, child services, education in England, educati ...

(DfE) for all 'Applied General' qualifications, including the endorsement of five employers registered at

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the British Government that maintains the Company register, register of companies, employs the company registrars and is responsible for Incorporation (business), incorporating all forms of Company, co ...

. Tech Level qualifications must have: * at least 300 guided learning hours * mandatory content must make up at least 40% * 30% external assessment * one opportunity to resit (retake) * three grading points or more, such as Distinction/Merit/Pass

Change

In 2014 the UK government announced it would reform all vocational qualifications. By 2021 it was ready to set out its plan for vocational qualifications in England. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, OCR announced a series of adjustments it would make to support learners taking Cambridge Technicals.

Subjects

The following subjects are offered: *Applied Science *Art and Design *Business *Digital media *Engineering *Health and Social Care *Information Technology *Media *Performing Arts *Sport and Physical Activity

External references

OCR website

References

{{reflist Vocational education in the United Kingdom Cambridge International Examinations Cambridge Assessment Departments of the University of Cambridge