Millfield one of the first to offer baccalaureate style GCSE equivalent

Millfield School is one of the first to offer a new ‘Baccalaureate style’ GCSE equivalent designed to prepare students for the demands of the future. 

The Project Qualification (PQ) Baccalaureate will provide students with an opportunity to engage in student-led research on topics of interest beyond the confines of the usual prescribed curriculum. The projects culminate in the creation of an essay, presentation or artefact.  

 Students and the workforces of today need to be equipped to understand how to research well when faced with the abundance of sources now accessible online. They need to determine the value of information from different sources, to discern what is real and what is fake and to understand the benefits and limitations of AI.  

The qualification is structured in a similar manner to the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) at Sixth Form allowing greater breadth and variety. The qualification will introduce independent learning skills at an earlier age to better prepare students for future academic endeavours. 

Millfield students in Year 10, from September 2024 will have the chance to explore diverse areas of interest through this pilot project in partnership with Pearson Qualifications. A selection of students will be able to choose the qualification as one of their options, in place of one GCSE. More able students will study 8 GCSEs alongside this qualification and will be awarded two external Higher Project Qualification certificates and an overall baccalaureate-style qualification from Pearson, in recognition of the variety of skills developed over the two years. 

Millfield Deputy Head (Academic) David Brooke said, “Millfield has a history of disrupting educational norms and we are delighted to be pioneering a new course, as an alternative to a GCSE. This is an exciting opportunity for student-led inquiry with the explicit teaching of research skills that will prepare students for A level, EPQ and beyond. With the development of AI, it has never been more important for students to develop critical thinking skills and engage with real-world content with rigor and integrity. There is no better Keystage 4 qualification that prepares students for the demands of the future, and we are delighted to partner with Pearson on this pilot.” 

The qualification will give high-achieving academic students a significant edge when applying to competitive university programmes as they will be able to discuss their unique projects during the admissions process and it will assist those choosing to do an EPQ at Sixth Form. 

This qualification is still in the final stages of development in collaboration with Pearson, as such the exact details and title of the qualification are still subject to potential changes.