ACertificate of Higher Education (CertHE) is ahigher educationqualification in the United Kingdom.[1]
The Certificate is awarded after one year of full-time study (or equivalent) at auniversity or other higher education institution, or two years of part-time study.[1][2] A CertHE is an independenttertiary award, an award in its own right, and students can study for a CertHE in various academic disciplines.
At Level 4 on thenational qualifications framework for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the CertHE was once viewed as the academic equivalent of theHigher National Certificate, which was perceived to be vocational.[1] However, universities have since integrated both qualifications into the first year of anundergraduate honours degree and they now can be considered equivalent academically. Prior to 2015, the CertHE was equivalent to anNVQ Level 4.[3] In Scotland, a CertHE is at Level 7 on theScottish Credit and Qualifications Framework.[4]
On completion, students are permitted to use thepostnominals CertHE, sometimes followed by the course name in brackets and the university from which they earned their qualification.
Sometimes, having a CertHE can exempt the holder from some of the requirements of abachelor's degree; for example, it might reduce the length of study by one or two years, or reduce the number of courses necessary to complete the qualification.[citation needed]
A Certificate of Higher Education (CertHE) is equivalent to the first year of a bachelor's degree which is any Level 4 qualification.
ADiploma of Higher Education (DipHE) is equivalent to the second year of a bachelor's degree or any Level 5 qualification.[citation needed]