Think A-levels are the only route to higher education? Think again
IN February this year the Welsh awarding body, Agored Cymru, held its annual Access to Higher Education learner of the year event at the Senedd. Kirsty Williams, Minister for Education, presented awards to four exceptional women who have all overcome major challenges in order to gain qualifications and fulfil their aspirations of going into higher education.
A previous winner of Agored Cymru’s award for outstanding commitment to study, Sudhuf Rehman Khan, delivered an inspiring talk to attendees during the awards ceremony.
She spoke about how she was taken out of education shortly before she turned 11.
“There were several reasons why I was taken out of academic education,” said Sudhuf.
“The main reason being I was a young girl”.
Despite this, she had the courage at the age of 18 to pursue adult learning at Cardiff and Vale College and complete an adult foundation course.
“Every class that I attended, every essay I handed in, I found a little piece of myself again.”
After progressing and completing an Agored Cymru Access to Higher Education Diploma in Humanities and Social Sciences, Sudhuf gained entry to Cardiff University where she completed a degree in Sociology and Education.
In her final year dissertation, she took the opportunity to examine something very close to her heart: the social and cultural boundaries in schooling and education policy.
Sudhuf is now preparing to pursue her aspiration to work in adult education.
When addressing attendees at the same event, Kay Martin, principal of Cardiff and Vale College, announced that the college will offer Sudhuf a bursary to support her while she completes her training.
Like many who complete the Agored Cymru Access to Higher Education Diploma, Sudhuf has followed a line of progress from an adult returner to education to degree student to graduate and onto fulfilling her professional potential.
“Since completing the access course I have been able to plan a stable future for myself. The Access Diploma has allowed me to break the glass ceiling, apply for university, graduate and become a role model for change.
“The Access course and overall college experience has given me a type of independence that I could never even imagine. I have recently purchased my first property and again, all of the independence and security that I have today has been fuelled by the Access course.”
The Access to Higher Education Diploma is an alternative to A-levels and recognised by all higher education providers in England and Wales. It is designed specifically for adults who want to study at an advanced level within higher education and achieve a degree or equivalent, but who do not have sufficient qualifications. Agored Cymru has developed 13 Access to Higher Education Diplomas that are offered across all of the further education colleges in Wales.
Diplomas are available in a range of subject areas that address the aspirations of adults wanting to return to education and the needs of key priority sectors in Wales. This includes social care, business, IT, science, engineering, social science and art and design.
Diplomas are developed in consultation with higher education providers and create opportunities for learners to acquire the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to be successful at university.
Many universities value the way in which Access to Higher Education courses equips leaners with the skills that enable them to manage their life circumstances around the demands of challenging degree programmes.
Victor Morgan, Agored Cymru’s Access to Higher Education Manager, said: “Access to Higher Education makes a significant impact on people’s lives and effectively improves life chances”.
“I have been involved in Access to HE for 25 years, as an Access student myself, as a tutor and manager in a further education college. Now, in my role at Agored Cymru, I work with all the colleges in Wales and support the excellent work that they carry out in providing opportunities for around 1500 adults every year.
“Access to Higher Education accommodates people from a wide range of backgrounds, despite the outcomes of their early education and often with challenging life circumstances.
“Although completing an Access to Higher Education Diploma is far from easy and requires enormous commitment and determination, time and time again, we see the way it can turn someone’s life around and provide them with opportunities that they once believed were unreachable.”
This year, Agored Cymru has issued 1,372 certificates to learners across Wales and the vast majority of them will progress to Welsh Universities. Importantly, these people will graduate and go on to become teachers, nurses, social workers, engineers, doctors as well as professionals in many other fields and will serve the Welsh communities in which they live.
Although A-levels are seen as the main route to university for thousands of young people each year, the Access to Higher Education Diploma is a vital route for many adults. It is invaluable to them as individuals, but also to their families and their communities.