Extended Project Qualification Summary

The Extended Project will develop and extend from one or more of the students study areas and/or from an area of personal interest or activity outside their main programme of study. It will be based on a topic chosen by the student and agreed as appropriate by the Sixth Form team. Delivery of the Extended Project Qualification in centres will involve some teaching of the necessary skills, supervision and assessment of the student’s progress. It will involve extended autonomous work by the student.

Students are required, with appropriate supervision to:

  • Chooses an area of interest.
  • Draft a title and aims of the project for formal approval by the centre.
  • Plan, research and carry out the project.
  • Deliver a presentation to a non-specialist audience.
  • Provide evidence of all stages of project development and production for assessment.

The EPQ can be taken by students in addition to their A-level qualifications and the course will last for one year only. The EPQ can also count towards UCAS points.

Specification

AQA

How You Will Study

A member of staff will be your supervisor throughout the course. Their role is to monitor your progress by reviewing initial ideas followed by regular review meetings and completion of your production log. The taught elements of the EPQ include research skills, referencing and presentation skills. There will be some independent learning expected also, some of which will be done online in collaboration with Russell Group universities, and there will be a day visit to a local university to learn about Further Education research and database usage. The purpose of the course is developing independence in managing your own project, ending with a short presentation in front of a small audience.