The changing Level 3 qualifications market Rationale and Research questions

This research project covers at least three of the DTP's disciplines/pathways, including the Education, Economics, and Quantitative Social Science pathways. Below is a summary of the proposed research (sourced from the supervisors' initial proposal):

The government has recently introduced a new type of qualification known as the T Level. T Levels are technical courses which are equivalent to 3 A levels, but offer a mixture of classroom learning and 'on-the-job' experience. Their aim is to improve the quality of technical education available to young people to meet labour market needs and provide the skills and knowledge to improve young people's productivity, later wages and, hence, life chances.

However, to date, little is known about how effective these new qualifications are for improving the life chances of young people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. This quantitative research project aims to fill this research gap. The project will use administrative data on educational pathways taken by young people to identify the types of students taking T Levels, and track them through their educational careers, analysing their success rates, and their progression into further and higher education and beyond. We are particularly interested in how those from disadvantaged backgrounds are impacted by T levels.