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AQA Extended Project Qualification

The Extended Project Qualification provides an opportunity for students to exercise their abilities beyond the A Level syllabus and prepare for university or their future career.  They can also use it to earn up to 70 extra UCAS points.

The EPQ allows each student to embark on a largely self-directed project.  They start by taking responsibility for the choice and design of an individual project.  This is an exciting opportunity for students to develop their own academic or cultural interests.  The area of study is almost limitless, so it is possible to produce anything from an academic essay to an animated cartoon.

However, all students are able to benefit from undertaking the EPQ as it will help them to:

• mature into critical, reflective and independent learners
• develop and apply decision-making and problem-solving skills
• increase planning, research, analysis, synthesis, evaluation and presentation skills
• apply new technologies confidently
• demonstrate creativity, initiative and enterprise

How is the EPQ assessed?

Each student chooses whether to make a research report the sole product of the Project or to create a product in another format, such as a piece of music or a short story.

If it is the sole product, the research report could take the form of an academic essay, research report of an investigation, exploration of a hypothesis, or academic report.  If the product takes another format, the student will still need to supply a shorter supplementary written report to support and explain their project.

The minimum length of the EPQ is as follows:

• Research report – 5000 words
• Supplementary written report – 1000 5000 words

Reports should be long enough to explore the relevant issues and use appropriate terminology, style and form of writing. Each one is likely to contain:

• references to a range of information sources
• historical literature or some other background research
• details of the design, knowledge, understanding and skills used
• a conclusion, including an evaluation of the outcomes of the Project

Each student will be allocated a project supervisor, normally a member of the teaching staff, who will support the student, but the EPQ is student led, so it is up to the student to develop and research the project for themselves.  The project will be completed early in the Michaelmas Term, when the students will present their work to parents and staff.  The projects are then marked and graded from A*-E.  The EPQ is equivalent to an AS Level, but it is not recommended that students complete the EPQ as an alternative to the normal four AS Levels taken in Year 12.

We expect pupils to make a start on the project after the June modules of the 6.1 year, research over the summer holiday, and complete it early in the Michaelmas Term of 6.2.