Digital Production, Design and Software Development T Level

Course overview

T Levels are courses for 16 to 18 year olds that are studied at the same level as A Levels. They are for young people who prefer a more technical education when they come to College, rather than following a purely academic pathway, or a work-based apprenticeship.

T Levels are two-year, Level 3 study programmes that will follow the study of GCSEs and Technical Awards at Key Stage 4 and offer an attractive alternative to A Levels and apprenticeships.

T Levels will combine classroom theory, practical learning and a minimum of 45 days industry placement with an employer to make sure you have real experience of the workplace.

You will also need to achieve a minimum standard of English and Maths; GCSE grade 4 or above. The Technical Qualification (TQ) is the main classroom-based element of the T Level and will see you learning from a qualification that has been shaped by industry experts.

During the two-year programme, you will learn the core knowledge that underpins each industry and will also develop occupationally specific skills that will allow you to enter skilled employment within a specific occupation.

The T Level programmes have been developed in collaboration with employers and businesses so the content will meet the needs of industry and prepare students for work. They provide the knowledge and experience needed to open the door to highly skilled employment, an apprenticeship or higher-level study, including university.

Course content

Our T Level in Digital Production, Design and Development offers you an attractive alternative to A Levels and apprenticeships. Designed with employers to give you the industry skills you need in order to start your career within the digital industry, you will cover digital-related topics such as:

• Business Contexts – from infrastructure design to managing change.
• Digital Culture – covering ethical/moral issues.
• Data Analysis – with data capture, collection, visualisation and modelling.
• Digital Analysis – understanding algorithms, abstraction, pattern recognition and decomposition.
• Digital Environments – covering system fundamentals for physical, virtual and cloud computing.
• Diversity and Inclusion – understanding and valuing differences, sensitivities and equality.
• Digital Learning – covering emerging technologies, internet of things (IoT), artifical intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR), computer graphics (3D).
• Digital Legislation and Security – from data protection and intellectual property to security and data sharing.
• Planning and Programming/Software Development – building project plans, integrating software development lifecycle (SDLC), critical paths, application and solution development.
• Testing and Tools – covering testing methods/types, industry-based digital tools and usability/user experience (UX) user interface(UI) testing.

This specialist course will also allow you to enhance your broader skills in literacy and numeracy, develop transferable skills in communication (working with real colleagues, customers and clients) and undertake research and live project development work.

Whilst engaging with specialist tutors, support staff and work placements co-ordinators, you will also be required to complete an industry placement of at least 45 days – providing the much needed real-world experience needed for this industry.