Recommendation 10

The Department introduced the T Level Foundation Year for those needing support before starting a T Level. However, few of those on these courses progressed to T Levels – in 2021/22 only 8% of those completing the Foundation year then did a T Level.19 The Department acknowledged this was lower than expected and said it was monitoring how it could tailor the foundation year so more would do T Levels.20 More widely, the Department has sought to address barriers by now recognising higher education as an aim for those completing T Levels. However, in November 2024, the Department published a list of only 166 higher education providers accepting T Levels for at least one course.21 We questioned the Department on its current ‘all or nothing’ approach to T Levels, where failing one part of a course leads to a fail overall, and the impact of this on university entry. It reassured us it allocates UCAS points for completing the core and occupational specialism components of the T Level. It also described giving students the flexibility to complete their industry placement up to two years after their course to still receive their qualification.22