Foundation Degrees
Who are foundation degrees for?
If you are:
- employed and want to progress in your line of work,
- employed but want to change career,
- a school or college leaver looking for a work-related qualification to launch your career,
- not currently in employment and seeking a way into work with prospects, then a foundation degree may be the right choice for you.
What is a foundation degree?
Foundation degrees are employment-related higher education qualifications which have been designed with employers to meet their requirements for skilled individuals able to apply specialist knowledge in the workplace.
These are not just vocational qualifications. They combine study with work-based learning and practical work experience and are equivalent to the first two years of an honours degree or a Higher National Diploma (HND). They are the first new kind of degree for over 100 years.
Thousands of people have studied for foundation degrees since they were established in 2001. In 2005-06 there were nearly 47,000 foundation degree students, half studying part-time.
Nationally, there are foundation degrees for all areas of employment. From animal studies to events management, from paramedic science to performing arts – there is a fantastic range of options, and the variety keeps growing.
Increasingly, employers see foundation degrees as good for business because they:
- enable them to recruit ready-prepared employees
- increase their employees' skills
- improve management
- make their organisations more innovative and responsive to change
- give their businesses a competitive edge
Customised university programmes are used for:
- In-house professional development, for example, by the London Borough of Lambeth to train their teaching assistants.
- Delivering an initial workforce training programme. The London Ambulance Service, for example, chose to work with the University of Greenwich to set up a foundation degree for paramedics. The students combine studies and working with ambulance teams, and on passing the first year of study, become employed by the service
Is a foundation degree the same thing as a Foundation Course or Foundation Year?
No. A "Foundation Course", or International Foundation Programme as is offered at the University of Greenwich, is for international students who do not immediately meet the university entrance requirements, to prepare them for university study in the UK, and includes English language where needed.
For more information on this, and on studying at Greenwich as an international student, go to: www.gre.ac.uk/international. You are welcome to contact the International Office at any time on international@gre.ac.uk or +44 20 8331 8136.
Foundation Courses in Art and Design also exist, and are part of the traditional route into art and design degrees.
A Foundation Year is the first year of a four-year extended degree programme. The University offers foundation years as part of extended degrees in Science www.gre.ac.uk/courses/ug/sci/cfg0, Engineering www.gre.ac.uk/courses/ug/geneng and Business Administration www.gre.ac.uk/courses/ug/bus/n103.
Some of these foundation years are offered in partner colleges.
Foundation for Success
The Foundation for Success Project, which raised awareness about and provided support to people going on to foundation degrees, was undertaken in 2006 to March 2007. The project developed online support materials designed especially for foundation degree students.These are now available on an open access basis for all.
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