Staying in education is not just for those with GCSEs. There are courses for everyone. There are no courses just for girls or just for boys.

	Ali's Story I had never had any definite ideas about jobs, I had always thought I would do A levels and think about careers later. But when I got into Y11 I started to find my GCSE work really hard going and I wasn't sure whether I wanted to do any subjects for another two years. Then I found out that my estimated grades were mainly Ds, which meant I might not be accepted for A levels anyway and I started to panic. I had a chat with my Personal Adviser at school and she suggested that I might be better off on a different kind of course and we started looking at GNVQs. I liked the look of the GNVQ Intermediate in Business, I was interested in how businesses work and my Personal Adviser told me that it would prepare me for a number of careers. I got a place at my local college. The course was great - hard work but interesting and I did well enough to move on to the AVCE Business at the end. I also re-sat my GCSE in English and got a grade C. I've got a year to go before I finish my AVCE and I'm now thinking about my next move: either looking for a job or applying to university.

To help you decide whether Further Education (FE) is the right option for you, ask yourself:

• Which qualifications will I need for the career I want and where might they lead?
• Where can I study to gain these qualifications?
• What money might be available to help me study?

If you stay in education you could:

• Get the qualifications you need for the career you want and go on to higher education or into work.
  See Steps to Success for details of where qualifications can lead.
  These charts shows you the types of qualifications available.
• Develop your Key Skills.
  These are some of the skills employers look for and they apply to every type of work.
  more details.
• Retake exams or take new subjects.
  If you get mainly grade D’s at GCSE, then resits may be a good idea but it needs a bit of thought - some young people perform better on a different type of course eg NVQ or GNVQ. If your grades are mainly F’s and G’s you probably also need to think about different courses.
• Study at a different school or college.
  Look at the school and college prospectuses and if possible, contact or visit them to find out more about what is on offer. Courses are sometimes run in conjunction with colleges and other local schools. Check with your Careers Teacher about links between schools and colleges in your area.

Applying for Courses
Contact schools and/or colleges, or look at their prospectuses to check the entry requirements for different courses you are interested in and to find out how to apply. Most colleges and sixth forms have open days or evenings. Some very popular courses have early closing dates.

You may have to attend an interview. Be prepared and find out all you need to know about the course. Take your Record of Achievement (Progress File) along, it can help you in the interview.

Remember
Its important to have a back up plan, as you might not get your first choice, so make sure you consider all the courses that suit you and apply for more than one if you can.

Wherever and whatever you study, your attitude will be important. Show that you can work hard and take your course seriously, take responsibility for it and show commitment.