Academic Enrichment & EPQ

Academic Enrichment 

A Level teachers carefully select academic enrichment and social trips to help students to gain the most from out of classroom opportunities. To ensure a balance of practical and cerebral development takes the place, amongst others, the following trips regularly feature on the ‘line up’:  

  • Team-building and leadership skills  

  • Question Time 

  • Safe Drive Stay Alive 

  • UCAS Exhibitions 

  • Research Skills, Southampton University 

  • Theatre trips 

  • University lectures 

  • International trips 

The Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) 

The EPQ is a research-based qualification on which students largely work independently with the support of an Experienced Project Supervisor who will offer guidance and advice throughout the process. 

At The RSF we have an outstanding record of EPQ successes. Students can choose a topic which interests them and have included in the past: 

  • World Oil Price changes and their impacts on economies of different countries

  • Evolution of prosthetics  

  • Nutrition on a student budget 

  • Espionage in WW2 

  • Producing a radio drama series 

Alongside showing an active interest in a subject, the EPQ offers the opportunity for each student to research and draft a specific title and detail their project’s aims. It is a self-motivated project that equates to half an A level and attracts UCAS points (A*=70). Leading Russell Group universities are unanimous in their support of the EPQ and encourage students to discuss their projects in personal statements where they can be used as part of the rationale for making offers. 

There is no restriction on the topic chosen or on the mode of final presentation. It can be a Dissertation, Investigation/Field Study, Performance or Artefact. It is completed in two terms. 

The EPQ process involves several skills lessons, where students learn different ways to carry out research, record findings, and how to move to the next stage of the project. 

The course aims for students to: 

  • Understand and use research skills 

  • Choose the topic for the project and design the structure 

  • Develop and improve as independent learners 

  • Develop and apply decision making and problem solving skills 

  • Extend planning, research, critical thinking, analysis, synthesis, evaluation and presentation skills 

  • Develop as confident e-learners and apply new technologies in their studies 

  • Develop and apply skills creatively demonstrating initiative and enterprise. 

  • Use their learning experiences to support their personal aspirations for further study and career development 

Whatever the delivery method, the project must include a written component and a completed Project Progression Record.  Other assessment evidence can also be included, e.g. evidence related to a diary or IT logging system, a presentation, an experiment.  As a guide, the dissertation should be approximately 5,000 words.  For all other outcomes the written component should be approximately 1,000 to 1,500 words. 

The topic of the project should be chosen by the learner and negotiated and agreed formally with the supervisor. It should reflect the learner’s interests and has no need to be connected in any way with the academic subjects chosen for A level.