[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-621004-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-621004-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","the-second-cohort-characteristics-summary-of-student-entries-and-epq-student-profile","THE SECOND COHORT CHARACTERISTICS - Summary of student entries and EPQ student profile","","Second-cohort EPQ pilot entry analysis covers 337 project proposals submitted by 15 centres, showing a 50% increase over the first cohort. The student approval-to-certification attrition remains high: 166 students were awarded a grade, with nine not having submitted proposals in advance of certification. Most certificating students came from six sixth form colleges (85%), with the remainder from three secondary comprehensive schools. Student age distribution, prior achievement, programme types, and concurrent subject patterns are examined, alongside subject-area allocation and cross-tabulated project choices.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/","Research & 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Holloway","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-11-02","2026-10-20",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",7,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"How many project proposals were received for the second EPQ pilot cohort, and how does it compare with the first cohort?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"There were 337 project proposals from 15 centres, representing a 50% increase over the first cohort.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"What was the attrition between project approval and final certification for the second cohort?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Attrition was high: only 166 students were awarded a grade, and among them nine had not submitted project proposals in advance of certification.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What does the analysis say about the students’ age profile and prior GCSE achievement?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"All but seven of the awarded students would be 18 by the end of the academic year, and the mean GCSE result was higher in the second cohort (7.03) than in the first (4.74), indicating a shift toward stronger prior attainment.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},621004,1792517109,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,96,101,106,110,114,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & 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second cohort of the EPQ pilot which represented a 50% increase from the first cohort. Once again the attrition rate between project approval and final certification was high (Table 1) . Only 166 students were awarded a grade and, of these, nine students had not submitted project proposals in advance of certification.  \nTABLE 1 Summary of student entries  \n\n| Project Proposal |  |  |  |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Final Status | Project Proposal | & Entry | Entry |\n| Grade Awarded | 157 | 157 | 166 |\n| Not Entered or Withdrawn | 180 | 0 | 0 |\n|  | 337 | 157 | 166 |\n\nSix of the centres who initially submitted project proposals for the second cohort of the pilot failed to enter any students for certification. These centres represented a small proportion of the potential entry; all had planned to offer the EPQ for fewer than ten students. The vast majority of the certificating entry was from six sixth form colleges (85%) . The remainder attended one of three secondary comprehensive schools.  \nThe Students  \nAll but seven of the students awarded an EPQ in the second cohort of the pilot would be 18 years old by the end of the academic year. In this respect the profile of the entry differed markedly from that of  \nthe first cohort where more than half of the students were 17 years old. The difference between the two cohorts extended to their prior achievement. The mean GCSE result1 , where available, for the first cohort was 4.74 which is equivalent to an average of grade C and grade D awards for the contributing GCSEs. The same statistic for the second cohort was 7.03; just above a grade A for all GCSEs. It may be no coincidence that there is such a disparity in the entry. Indeed it may be a pattern that would persist into the finally accredited qualification. The year 13 students entered for the second cohort were exploiting the remainder of their year 12 teaching time available after AS examinations to start the EPQ. It is probable that they were chosen as a group of students who were capable of independent learning and could therefore continue their investigations throughout the summer holidays. The time available for their investigation was much shorter than that for the first cohort. The first cohort had a more conventional end point in the summer and so teaching and support could be given over the whole academic year.  \nThe project proposal form allows for the collection of information regarding each studentís current programme of study. Students were following a wide range of programmes including qualifications such as A Levels, AS, BTEC Nationals, BTEC Firsts, Key Skills, Citizenship and NVQs amongst others. For nearly two thirds of the certificating students (61 .9%), the highest stakes2 qualification in their programme was an A Level examination. Many students were entered for A Levels alone, taking up to five. There was only one centre which was offering BTEC qualifications alongside its EPQ and this was a secondary comprehensive school. Within the limitations of the small set of data derived from the second cohort, the retention rate did not vary greatly by programme of study. In the first cohort there was a suggestion that the retention rate was lower for BTEC students. Although the pattern has not continued through to the second cohort, these students might still be identified in the future as in need of extra support.  \nThe distribution of concurrent subjects of study for second cohort EPQ students appeared relatively similar to an A Level cohort (Figure 1) . There were slightly more student entries for the Mathematics, Languages and Science subject areas than in the A Level population and slightly fewer in the Humanities and Social Science subject area. This perhaps reflected the entry population who may well have comprised a high proportion aiming for entry to Russell Group universities. The distrib","cbCaiepSyfpM1nn6","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiepSyfpM1nn6","pdf",601919,12,"English","# Entry Details\n## Summary of student entries (Table 1)\n# The Students\n## Age profile and prior achievement\n## Programmes of study and highest stakes qualifications\n## Concurrent subjects and subject-area distribution\n## Project subject-area cross-tabulation (Table 2)","[{\"question\":\"How many project proposals were received for the second EPQ pilot cohort, and how does it compare with the first cohort?\",\"answer\":\"There were 337 project proposals from 15 centres, representing a 50% increase over the first cohort.\"},{\"question\":\"What was the attrition between project approval and final certification for the second cohort?\",\"answer\":\"Attrition was high: only 166 students were awarded a grade, and among them nine had not submitted project proposals in advance of certification.\"},{\"question\":\"What does the analysis say about the students’ age profile and prior GCSE achievement?\",\"answer\":\"All but seven of the awarded students would be 18 by the end of the academic year, and the mean GCSE result was higher in the second cohort (7.03) than in the first (4.74), indicating a shift toward stronger prior attainment.\"}]","THE SECOND COHORT CHARACTERISTICS - Summary of student entries and EPQ student profile | PDF",1792464853]