Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Foundation Diploma/Extended Diploma in Music –

Applications Open – 3PM Thursday 26th November 2026

Applications Close – August 2027

Entry Requirements – For Level 3 courses, students must have 5 or more Grade 4s at GCSE. No minimum entry for Level1/2 courses

How to Apply – Please apply via KentChoices

The specification supports a curriculum where learners are encouraged to continually revisit their approaches to making and understanding music, refining their skills, adding complexity and exploring new contexts. At the same time, assessment requirements are clearly delineated; this ensures that all learners are being consistently measured to national standards, facilitating progression to university and to employment in the modern music industry.

These are the key features of this specification model:

• two pathways available for learners to focus on either music or music production

• all content in each pathway is mandatory

• content is defined in large blocks – called learning and teaching modules

• all assessment is of substantial size and linked to clear assessment objectives

Assessment units

The assessment units allows learners to establish grades of Pass, Merit and Distinction, which in turn provide for overall qualification grading on the established scale for BTEC Nationals.

Internal assessment focuses on defining a clear hierarchy of achievement against specific assessment requirements.

Each assessment unit has simple, clear evidence and assessment rules, and all terms are used consistently and defined explicitly across the assessment units.

5 GCSEs at 4 or above, including a related subject (Music, Drama, Dance)

If learners complete this qualification in a year, they may progress to further learning at Level 3, for example a second Foundation Diploma in a complementary sector or the Pearson BTEC National

Extended Diploma in Music.

This qualification offers learners the opportunity to develop their musical and technical skills

through a process of self-evaluation, practice and review which supports them as they start to build

their personal audio portfolio in preparation for entry to higher education. In addition to the music

sector-specific content outlined above, the requirements of the qualification will mean that learners

develop the transferable and higher-order skills that are highly regarded by higher education and

employers, for example communication skills, team working, personal practice and reflection.

The qualification carries UCAS points and is recognised by higher education providers as

contributing to admission requirements for many relevant music courses. When combined with

other qualifications in a two-year study programme, such as A Levels or another BTEC National

Foundation Diploma, learners can progress to higher education degree programmes, such as:

• BA (Hons) in Performing Arts, if taken alongside, for example, a Pearson BTEC Level 3

National Foundation Diploma in Performing Arts

• BA (Hons) in Music Industry Management, if taken alongside, for example, a Pearson BTEC

Level 3 National Foundation Diploma in Business

• BA (Hons) in Music Business, if taken alongside, for example, a Pearson BTEC Level 3

National Foundation Diploma in Business or A Levels in mathematics and business.

Learners should always check the entry requirements for degree programmes with specific higher

education providers.