T Levels and BTEC
The technical route through sixth form in England — practice for the written parts of a T Level core component and of a BTEC National.
Two qualifications, not one
Students on this route are usually sitting one of two things, and they are not the same qualification.
A T Level is a two-year course taken from 16, broadly the size of three A Levels, and it has three parts. The core component is examined by written papers and by an employer-set project, and it covers the knowledge everyone in that industry needs. One or more occupational specialisms follow, assessed by practical tasks against a set of performance outcomes. And there is an industry placement with an employer, a minimum of 315 hours — roughly 45 days — for most T Levels, and it is compulsory: part of it may be done remotely or, in some cases, in a simulated work environment, but it cannot be replaced by ordinary lessons.
The grading reflects that structure. The certificate carries an overall grade of pass, merit, distinction or distinction*, and underneath it the core component is graded A* to E while each occupational specialism is graded pass, merit or distinction. Students who have not yet achieved grade 4 in GCSE English or maths continue to work towards them alongside.
A BTEC National is a Level 3 qualification from Pearson, and it comes in several sizes — in the long-running suite from a Certificate up to an Extended Diploma, while the redeveloped BTEC Nationals introduced in England from 2025 come as a Certificate or an Extended Certificate — so that it can sit alongside A Levels or, in the larger sizes, replace them. Units are graded pass, merit, distinction and the qualification overall can reach distinction*. Assessment is a mixture: many units are internally assessed coursework marked by your centre and quality-checked by Pearson, but a substantial share are externally assessed, either by a written examination or by a set task completed under controlled conditions. It is the externally assessed units that behave most like an exam, and they are what practice of this kind is for.
What this track can and cannot do
Only part of either qualification is examinable on paper. A T Level occupational specialism is assessed by doing the work; a BTEC assignment is assessed on the portfolio you build. Nothing here substitutes for either. What these materials rehearse is the written knowledge that the core papers and the externally assessed units test — the vocabulary of the sector, the legislation that governs it, the calculations, and the judgement questions that ask you to apply a principle to a described workplace situation.
Find out which specification you are on
T Level technical qualifications are awarded by different organisations — NCFE, Pearson and City and Guilds among them — under licence, and each publishes its own specification and its own assessment materials. BTEC specifications are Pearson's. Which one you are on determines what is examined and how, and your tutor will know the code.
Nothing in this track is reproduced from any specification, sample assessment material or mark scheme; those documents belong to the awarding organisations. What is practised here is the common technical content that every version of a given course has to cover.
Zestly is an independent study tool. It is not affiliated with any awarding organisation, and it is not an exam centre.
T Levels are Department for Education qualifications in England, awarded by licensed awarding organisations; T-LEVELS is a registered trade mark of the Department for Education. BTEC® is a registered trade mark of Pearson Education Ltd. Zestly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Department for Education or Pearson. These materials are our own.