First JESS BTEC Graduates Set The Benchmark

First JESS BTEC graduates set the benchmark

#EXCELLENCE #COMMITMENT

24/06/2019

In 2017, a group of JESS students embarked on the first ever Level 3 BTEC Extended Diploma programme offered by JESS Dubai as an alternative sixth form pathway.

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Two years on and what an achievement for the BTEC Class of 2019. All nine graduating students have received offers for under-graduate courses from institutions such as the University of Bath (Ranked 6th in the UK) and Central St Martins (world-renowned Arts & Design College) in London.

100% of the students passed the two-year programme, with four students achieving the highest possible grade of D*D*D*. Two of our students have also been recognised worldwide as Students of the Year in the upcoming Global Pearson BTEC Awards.

JESS Dubai offers the Level 3 Extended Diploma which is the highest BTEC school qualification available and is equivalent to 3 A-levels. The three Diplomas on offer are in the specialist pathways of Sports, Business and Art and Design. Many of the JESS BTEC+ students also study additional qualifications to complement their Diplomas. For example, the Art and Design students complete an additional A level in Art History and the Business students can complete the Introduction to Securities and Investment certificate accredited by the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment.

Coordinating and teaching the BTEC Extended Diploma for JESS is Mr. Joe Corcoran. Joe is passionate about BTECs as a work-related qualification and an alternative pathway to the IB programme or A levels. Joe is chairperson of the UAE BTEC in Schools Association that promotes and supports BTECs across the region. He was also recently awarded a global teaching Award in the upcoming Pearson BTEC Awards for the quality and content of the JESS BTEC programme.

"Joe explained the school’s approach to the BTEC, “many of our students have undertaken a number of additional qualifications alongside work placement opportunities across the UAE. As a result, these students leave JESS equipped with a variety of transferrable skills needed for the rigours of employment and higher education. Some of our students have been recognised externally for their significant achievements over the past two years and it is very rewarding to see our graduating class of 2019 setting the benchmark for success in BTEC qualifications across the region.”

"JESS works with several leading companies across the UAE such as Grant Thornton, Kibsons International, Art Dubai and Emirates Leisure Retail to set real life projects, arrange site visits to explain theories and to offer work experience to students. As Joe explained, “Having strong commercial links with companies is vital to the success of our BTEC programme and I am very grateful to those companies that invest in our students and share their knowledge. For our students, a site visit to see a process in action can embed and enhance learning and a work experience can help a student decide on careers when they see actual roles first-hand.”

"This approach was commended in the recent independent BTEC Verifier Reports which said, “JESS Dubai has taken every opportunity of the facilities at their disposal to offer a flexible delivery approach which appears to allow a greater independence in learning and assessment and is aligned carefully to the BTEC ethos.”