Level 3 students will have the opportunity to start the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) in Year 12.
The EPQ is a free-standing qualification worth half an A-level so can be used to earn extra UCAS points. It involves choosing a topic and carrying out some in-depth research into that particular area, then writing a dissertation of approximately 6000 words OR an artefact followed by report on the process of production of the artefact (approximately 1500 words). After that, you deliver a small presentation to a group of non-specialists about your topic, lasting from 10-15 minutes.
The topic can be on ANYTHING you want, within reason, but you must eventually boil it down to an individual research question or design brief. It would be wise to choose your topic based on something you are really interested in finding out about or what you intend on studying after school. The EPQ must not replicate something which is being assessed in any of your other Level 3 qualifications.
Sample project titles by previous students:
- To what extent is the behaviour of serial killers due to nature or nurture?
- How far has nursing and the role of a nurse developed over time and how will it continue to develop in the future?
- In the UK, would it benefit to have an opt-in or opt-out system for organ donation?
- Do hunting licences and profits from canned hunting benefit conservation efforts in African countries?
- Is the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms, still appropriate in modern day America?
- How influential was social media in the Arab Spring uprising?
- A portfolio of alternative film inspired posters
- Produce a site plan for a proposed housing development in Shaftesbury
