Engineering & Manufacturing: Design & Development T Level (Level 3)

You will have achieved 6 GCSEs at grade 4 or above, specifically achieving grade 4 or above in English, a grade 5 or above in Maths on the Higher Paper and your Sciences.

As well as developing your knowledge, skills and behaviours across a range of engineering and manufacturing occupations and industries, we also aim to develop your engineering mindset by developing wider skills such as problem solving, adaption, visualising, improving and systems thinking. This will help you apply your skills for different purposes and in different roles.

Year One: Common Core units include:

Maths and Science Principles for Engineering: Core Paper 1

• Essential Mathematics for Engineering and Manufacturing
• Essential Science for Engineering and Manufacturing
• Materials and their Properties
• Mechanical Principles
• Electrical and Electronic Principles

Engineering in Context: Core Paper 2

• Working within the Engineering and Manufacturing Sectors
• Engineering and Manufacturing Past, Present, and Future
• Engineering Representations
• Mechatronics
• Engineering and Manufacturing Control Systems
• Quality Management
• Health and Safety Principles and Coverage
• Business, Commercial and Financial Awareness
• Professional Responsibilities, Attitudes and Behaviours
• Stock and Asset Management
• Continuous Improvement
• Project and Programme Management

Year One: Employer Set Project (ESP)
The employer-set project provides the opportunity to develop and apply a range of core skills and knowledge which are important for employability. This is an externally set project from an employer where you will be asked to design a solution to a given engineering problem, or to re-engineer a product, component, or engineering system to improve it. This will require you to research the problem, design solutions create a final solution as a CAD model (Computer Aided Design), plan how to manufacture your solution and to present your project.

Year Two: Occupational Specialisms:
You will follow your chosen occupational specialism in Year Two. The specialisms we are offering from the Design & Development pathway* from which you will choose are:

• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Electronic Engineering

You will study both the theoretical and practical aspects of the specialism and carry out a range of engineering projects leading to a 34 hour design and manufacture project exam. Throughout Year Two you will design and make a broad range of products, using a wide range of engineering materials, and tools and equipment including CAD/CAM.

*Pathways are subject to numbers.
 

Lessons will take place in the relevant environment to which you are studying i.e. you could be in a normal classroom, Computer Aided Design (CAD) or Computer Aided Manufacture (CAM) suite, Advanced Manufacturing Centre or Mechanical Engineering Workshop. Using a range of teaching, learning and assessment techniques we will support you in developing the skills and knowledge for your core examinations, employer set project, and your occupational specialist exam.

Core Content components

• Core Paper 1 – external examination – Maths and Science Principles for Engineering (35%)
• Core Paper 2 – external examination – Engineering in Context (35%)
• Employer-set project (30%)

To achieve a grade for the Core Content component, you must have passed both core examinations and achieved the Employer-set project. The combined results from these will be aggregated to form the overall Core Content component grade (A* to E – pass grades).

Occupational Specialism: Year 2
This is an externally set synoptic design and manufacture task which follows the design process to solve an engineering problem. Students conclude the assessment by creating a design solution in 3D CAD software, manufacturing their prototype and evaluating it's success, graded as Pass, Merit or Distinction.

Industry Placement
Completion of 45 days (315 hours) industry placement.

This is a full-time course and it is not possible to study another course alongside.

This technical qualification will support students on to a range of progression routes including employment, higher education engineering degree programmes or advanced/higher/degree apprenticeships.

Due to the breadth of the T Level specification you could progress on to a range of engineering careers from Computer Aided Design Technician to Mechanical Engineer, and roles in electrical/electronic engineering, aerospace & aeronautical and advanced manufacturing engineering.