HC Deb 18 May 1962 vol 659 cc154-5W
Mr. Albu

asked the Minister of Education how many National Certificates in Commerce, ordinary and higher, respectively, were awarded in each of the years 1958 to 1961.

Mr. K. Thompson

The numbers of Ordinary and Higher National Certificates in Commerce awarded in each of the years 1958 to 1961 are as follows:

Date Ordinary National Certificate Higher National Certificate
1958 380 7
1959 549 8
1960 628 22
1961 887 52

Note. The Ordinary National Certificate in Commerce will no longer be awarded after the end of the current session, and the Higher National Certificate in Commerce after the end of the session 1962–63. They are being replaced by the Ordinary National Certificate and Higher National Certificate in Business Studies.

Mr. Albu

asked the Minister of Education how many schemes have been approved for ordinary and higher national certificates in business studies, and ordinary national diplomas in business studies and how many students are following courses for each of these qualifications at present.

Course Schemes Approved Schemes under consideration Total applications for approval Number of students in November, 1961
Ordinary National Certificate 258 73 331 8,699
Ordinary National Diploma 95 38 133 1,011
Higher National Certificate 94 41 135 1,450
Notes:
1. The number of established courses does not necessarily correspond to the number of schemes approved. Some of those under consideration are already in operation.
2. Some students at present following a Higher National Certificate course in Commerce may choose to transfer to the final year of a Higher National Certificate course in Business Studies in the session 1962–63. The number of such students is not yet known.
3. The Ordinary National Certificate Schemes in Commerce will cease to exist at the end of the current session, and the Higher National Certificate Schemes in Commerce and the Intermediate Certificate Schemes in Management Studies will cease to exist at the end of the session 1962–63. They are being replaced by Schemes for the Ordinary National Certificate and Higher National Certificate in Business Studies.
4. Twenty-five schemes relating to the Higher National Diploma in Business Studies are under consideration. None has yet been approved.
5. The figures given in the Answer for students enrolled in these courses have only recently become available. They confirm what was already evident from information about the number of schemes submitted, namely that the new courses have proved highly successful and mark a major advance.
6. Comparison with the figures given in the Answer to the previous Question gives some indication of the progress achieved. In 1960 and 1961, the last two years of the old Ordinary National Certificate course, somewhat over 1,500 Certificates were awarded; the numbers on the course were between 5,000 and 6,000 over the two years: but only about half of these entered for the Ordinary National Certificate examinations.
7. The Ordinary National Diploma is an entirely new award, and the figures show a gratifying amount of support for it.
8. The figures for the new Higher National Certificate courses are particularly striking, when compared with those shown in the Answer to the previous Question, for the years 1960 and 1961.

Forward to