Level 3 Digital T-Level (2 year)
Software Developer
[Get a free laptop upon enrolment]

Learn to code in 3 different languages
Develop knowledge and skills to become a full stack developer
Experience digital industry

About the Course
The Software Developer route is intended for students who want to progress to a career in the Digital sector, with a focus on software design and development..
The purpose of the T-Level in Digital: Digital Production, Design and Development (Pearson Specification) is to ensure students have the knowledge and skills needed to progress into highly skilled employment, university or a degree apprenticeship within the specialist areas including software development, cybersecurity, web-development and full stack engineer.
At the end of the course, students will be able to demonstrate threshold competence, which means that they have gained the core knowledge and skills related to software design and development against Level 3 Apprenticeship standards in this occupational specialism.
Overview
Course Type: Level 3 Technical Level | Full Time
Route: Digital
Qualification: Digital Production, Design and Development
Duration: 2 Years
Lessons: 16hr taught + 9hr online learning per week
Other: 45-60 day industry placement
Start Date: 01/09/2022
What will you study?
Software Engineering
Students will study at least three programming languages used in industry. These include Python 3, Java and Javascript. Student will also become competent in HTML5 and CSS for web development and utilise SQL and PHP for other backend capabilities. A good grounding in a range of these skills will give students the foundation to go into a range of front-end, back-end or full stack development opportunities after completing the course. Other potential paths include web development and project management. Students will work on projects as individuals and collaboratively like developers in industry including Agile and scrum methodologies.

Product Development
Our students will apply their knowledge in a range of ways in the development of software and hardware based projects. This includes developing websites and stand alone applications and managing their deployment and ongoing maintenance. Students will also study emerging technology and use their engineering skills to create robots capable of not only movement, but with sensing and machine learning capabilities. With class sets of VR headsets students will use and develop new applications in augmented and virtual reality. We also house our own servers for games development projects and have a 3D printer system.
Business Practice and Applications
Like all T-Levels, Digital T-Levels look at how the sector works in practice. Business Practice and Applications looks at how business has been impacted by digital technology. The legislation and guidelines surrounding its use in wider industry and specifically within the digital sector. We look at how IT supports HR, R&D swell as logistics, marketing and finance.
We look at how digital sector businesses conduct user needs analyses and manage their stakeholders. Students will study how data systems are managed for small and large businesses as well as how the networks that link them function. Cyber security and risk management underpins much of what is studied in terms of onsite or online vulnerabilities in how businesses operate.
Overall this module will give an excellent foundation for how digital technologies and the sector weave through aspects of business and wider society.

Occupational Skills
Occupational skills is an explicitly taught module that links together all taught components. Students will cover a range of study and professional project management skills to tackle a range of small and large software & research based projects. We deliver classes on work-readiness, communication and will continue to develop numeracy skills that will need to be used in the digital sector. Basic IT such as spreadsheet and common office app skills are also covered so students are ready for University or Degree Apprenticeships. We will even coach our students to prepare for technical interviews which are regularly used in the tech industry.

New Digital Education Building for 2022
Designed for the Digital Age
Part of our Phase 2 Developments, the new building extends our facilities beyond anything else offered locally, to enable training of software developers and network engineers with up to date industry standard hardware and software. A professional environment to nurture a new generation of digital professionals.
Pioneer Seminar Suite
For up to 80 students with digital device support for laptops provided to our Digital T Level students, access to kitchen facilities for students and a new computing office.

Ingenuity Software Development Lab
With top spec computers, our own servers and support for all major operating systems including Mac OS, Windows and Linux

