Editing Foundation degree (section)

{{short description|Academic and vocational qualification in the  United Kingdom}}
{{Distinguish|foundation course| foundation year|University Foundation Programme}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}{{Use British English|date=March 2023}}
A '''foundation degree''' is a combined academic and [[vocational]] qualification in [[higher education]] in the [[United Kingdom]], equivalent to two-thirds of an [[honours degree|honours]] [[bachelor's degree]]. Foundation degrees were introduced by the [[Department for Education and Employment]] in 2000.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 2020 |title=Characteristics Statement: Foundation Degree |url=https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/quality-code/foundation-degree-characteristics-statement-2020.pdf |website=The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education |format=PDF}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|doi = 10.11120/plan.2011.00240002|title = Student experiences of foundation degrees in further and higher education|year = 2011|last1 = Simm|first1 = David|last2 = Marvell|first2 = Alan|last3 = Winlow|first3 = Heather|last4 = Schaaf|first4 = Rebecca|journal = Planet|volume = 24|pages = 2–9|s2cid = 72517123|doi-access = free}}</ref> They are available in [[England]], [[Wales]] and [[Northern Ireland]], and offered by universities, colleges with their own foundation degree awarding powers, and colleges and employers running courses validated by universities.

Foundation degrees must include a pathway for graduates to progress to an honours degree.<ref name="auto3">{{cite web|url=https://www.unionlearn.org.uk/foundation-degrees-faq|at=9. Proceeding to honours degree study|title=Foundation Degrees FAQ|website=unionlearn|publisher=[[Trades Union Congress]]|access-date=25 January 2017}}</ref> This may be via joining the final year of a standard three-year course or through a dedicated 'top-up' course. Students can also transfer to other institutions to take a top-up course or the final year of an honours course. It may also be possible for students to join the second year of an honours course in a different but related subject.<ref name="auto4">{{cite web|url=https://targetjobs.co.uk/careers-advice/career-planning/434326-your-foundation-degree-what-next#furtherstudy|title=Your foundation degree... what next?|at=Further study options with a foundation degree|website=TARGETjobs|author=Caroline Green|date=2015}}</ref>