Health and Human Sciences - Level 3 Access to Higher Education Diploma

The Access to Higher Education Diploma (Health and Human Sciences) is a Level 3 qualification which prepares people without traditional qualifications for study at university.

The qualification gives you the relevant academic subject knowledge needed for higher education study and the opportunity to develop study skills to help you to succeed. It is well-established and widely accepted by universities, qualifying for UCAS tariff points that are comparable to the tariff points for three A levels.

This particular course will provide you with the foundation knowledge of a range of healthcare professions. The course offers an equal balance of theory and practice when learning about careers in healthcare. You will learn important study skills relevant to science, including undertaking effective research, collecting and analysing scientific data and writing experiment reports and essays. Additional modules will help you develop your study and research skills and assist with your personal development for further study.

You will study modules including:

• The role of the health or social care professional
• Ethical dilemmas
• Social influence, conformity and obedience to authority
• Disability and inclusion
• Algebra
• Essay writing
• Preparation for HE
• Note-taking and note-making
• Examination skills

You will need to:

• Be aged 19 or older
• Have four GCSEs at grade 4 or above (A* - C), including GCSE English, GCSE Maths and GCSE Science (Double Award)
• Attend an interview to confirm that the course is suitable for you

This course is assessed through coursework assignments, tests and examinations throughout the course, which are set and marked by your teachers and externally moderated by OCN London.

Assessment is continuous over the whole year and is based on a number of set pieces of work such as essays, projects, presentations and tests.

Adults - Access to Higher Education

If you will be aged 19 to 23 prior to the start date of your course, and do not already have a full Level 3 qualification, you may be eligible for a Level 3 entitlement, in which case your study with us will be free. Otherwise, you will have to pay the fees yourself or apply for an Advanced Learner Loan.

Please see here for the documents you will need to show us.

Some courses will have other associated costs, such as for specialist materials and trips. Many of our students are eligible for financial support, see here for details.

Learners primarily progress to Higher Education study in areas related to Health and Human Sciences. These may include some of the following areas of Degree level study:

• Nursing
• Radiography
• Physiotherapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Dietetics and Nutrition
• Biomedical Sciences
• Midwifery
• Sports Science
• Speech and Language Therapy
• Psychology and Osteopathy

Imran has been teaching at the Centre for Applied Science at CANDI for over 10 years. He has taught Physics and Maths on a range of BTEC and Access courses in that time. 

Recently, he has taught Access to Medicine, Biomedical Sciences, Engineering and Health and Human Sciences courses. He has a BSc in Physics from Imperial College London and works as an external moderator for OCN London. Imran is passionate about his subjects and loves it when his learners begin to enjoy his subjects too.

Mark Ashby joined City and Islington College in 2006. Prior to this, he worked as a Molecular Biologist studying bacteria at Imperial College London, University of Auckland, Queen Mary University of London, University College London, and the University of the West Indies, with at least 14 refereed publications, including one in the world’s top-ranked microbiology journal.

During this time, he also became a secondary Science teacher in South East London for 4 years. At City and Islington College, he teaches Microbiology and research skills in Applied Science BTEC courses, making use of his research experience.

Ankita joined City and Islington College in September 2010, as a part-time teacher trainee. She began her teaching career after working in the industry in Biodegradable Plastics and Packaging for over 10 years. Most notably she helped develop Ariel Pods with P&G and Quantum Finnish Tablets with Reckitt Benckiser, an industry where she still works part-time.

Ankita specialises in Chemistry, leaning towards Adult and Access Learners. She teaches across BTEC and Access disciplines, as well as having personal tutor responsibilities. In addition to teaching, she is a School Governor at Tower Hamlets Primary School and volunteers for several charities to help with food poverty and homelessness.

The teachers listed may change, these shown are an example of the teachers who teach on these programmes.