The BTEC Extended Certificate in Applied Law is an Applied General Qualification in the legal sector, providing an excellent introduction to law, covering many similar areas of law to those that are covered in A-level Law. Unlike A-level it is assessed through both internally assigned coursework and externally marked examinations.
5 GCSEs Grade 4-9 (including English Language and Maths)
Specification:Pearson BTEC National
Length:2 Years
This subject is equivalent to 1 A-level
Four units across the two-year duration of the course, including:
There are trips to the magistrates court and crown court, as well as opportunities to attend talks from solicitors, barristers and magistrates. Students will have the opportunity to set up a law society, and also take part in mock trials against other colleges.
There is an internally assessed and controlled/externally assessed element in each year, 50% of the assessment occurs in the first year and the other 50% of the assessment is taken in the second year. As it is a modular qualification, there are opportunities to re-sit examined elements. In some units students use previously released materials to prepare for the assessments and are then asked to complete a controlled assessment.
It gains UCAS points which are of equal value to those given to a single A-level and is therefore very useful to students applying to university (for example a BA in Law (LLB) or a BA in Business and Law), advanced apprenticeships (for example Legal Services) or employment. A range of universities have expressed their support for Applied Law as a route for progression into Higher Education, including Manchester Metropolitan University, Edge Hill University, Leeds Beckett University, University College Birmingham, University of Huddersfield, University of South Wales and University of the West of England.