The Level 3 courses were designed in partnership with employers in the IT sector to ensure they provided the right skills to learners to secure jobs in digital professions.

NCFE Level 3 Certificate in Cyber Security Practices

This qualification was for learners who wanted to start or continue their career in Cyber Security by increasing their knowledge, skills and understanding of cyber security practices. 

What did the course cover?

The foundations of Cyber Security

• Understand Cyber Security Principles
• Threat Intelligence in cyber security

How to avoid attacks

• Cyber security testing, vulnerabilities and controls

How to respond to attacks

• Cyber security incident response

The legal and personal aspect

• Understand legislation and ethical conduct within cyber security
• Professional skills and behaviours for cyber security

Do I need to sit any exams to pass the course?

There were no exams. Assessment was by competency and knowledge-based questions throughout the course by submitting a portfolio of evidence for each unit. Including research, assignments and presentations. The assessments were based on real life situations that could be faced. All units had to be passed to complete the course.

How much did it cost?

The course was fully funded by West Midlands Combined Authority as long as the following requirements were met:

• Aged 19+ and are either:
• Unemployed
• Employed
• Lived in Birmingham, Black Country, Coventry or Solihull
• Must have met UK residency criteria

How long did it take to complete the course?

The total course time was 220 hours, or 30 days. Of this, 150 hours, or 20 days guided learning.

What equipment was needed?

• A desktop PC or laptop
• Web browser application
• Cyber security related software
• Internet connectivity
• Access to storage space on your PC/Laptop

NCFE Level 3 in Coding Practices

This qualification was for learners who wanted to start or continue a career as a Software Developer.

Increase knowledge, skills and understanding of coding and development of software solutions in a Cloud world.

What did the course cover?

Code Yourself! An introduction to Programming

• Understanding the purpose and use of coding standards, coding principles and practices and coding design processes

Learn to Program: The Fundamentals

• Writing and debugging interpreted and compiled code distinguishing the different coding solutions

Test your code

• Fixing bugs using appropriate techniques and reflecting on how bugs can be prevented
• Understand the stages of the software development lifecycle, software methodologies and how working as a team contributes to effective software delivery

Put your code into action

• Understanding the stages of the software development lifecycle, software methodologies and how working as a team contributes to effective software delivery

The world of Cloud Computing

Did I need to sit any exams to pass the course?

There were no exams. Assessment was by competency and knowledge-based questions throughout the course by submitting a portfolio of evidence for each unit. Including research, assignments and presentations. The assessments were based on real life situations that could be faced. All units had to be passed to complete the course.

How much did it cost?

The course was fully funded by West Midlands Combined Authority as long as you meet the following requirements:

• Aged 19+ and are either:
• Unemployed
• Employed
• Lived in Birmingham, Black Country, Coventry or Solihull
• Must have met UK residency criteria

How long did it take to complete the course?

The total course time was 220 hours of which, 150 hours guided learning.

What equipment was needed?

• A desktop PC or laptop
• Web browser software/applications
• Cyber security related software
• Internet connectivity
• Access to a storage medium by the company you work for or on your own PC/Laptop