Post-16 qualifications come in wildly different sizes. Counting entries without accounting for that produces a picture that is simply wrong.
A BTEC National Extended Diploma occupies a student’s whole timetable and counts as one entry. An Extended Project sits alongside three A-levels and also counts as one entry. On raw counts they are equal.
The DfE publishes an A-level equivalent size for every qualification, running from 0.17 to 5. Multiplying entries by that factor puts every qualification on a common footing.
| Qualification | Size factor |
|---|---|
| BTEC National Extended Diploma | 3.0 |
| BTEC National Diploma | 2.0 |
| BTEC National Foundation Diploma | 1.5 |
| GCE A level | 1.0 |
| BTEC National Extended Certificate | 1.0 |
| Core Maths | 0.5 |
| Extended Project Qualification | 0.3 |
| Free-standing Maths Qualification | 0.17 |
| International Baccalaureate (full) | 5.0 |
On raw entries, non-A-level study looks like 30.9% of post-16 activity in England. Weighted for size it is 34.3%. Raw counts understate applied and technical study and overstate the Extended Project, which alone accounts for 48,923 entries at 0.3 apiece.
Use raw entries when you need figures that tie directly to published DfE counts, or when you are looking within a single qualification family — comparing Economics with History at A-level, for instance, where both are size 1.
Use A-level equivalents whenever you compare across families, or describe how much of a curriculum something represents.
The Advanced Extension Award and the IB Combined Certificate carry a size factor of zero in the DfE data. They contribute entries but no equivalents. The Explorer preserves this rather than substituting a value.
Last checked 17 August 2026. Observed provision is based on recorded exam entries. An institution with no recorded entries in a subject may still have offered it — see what subject provision means.