Lifelong Learning

University of Cambridge Institute of Continuing Education offers tuition fee bursary for NEC A level students

Applications open now  Continuing the relationship that began in 2021, the Institute of Continuing Education (ICE) and NEC are once again collaborating to offer…

What Qualifications Do I Need to Be a Nurse?

Have you decided that this year is the year you finally take that leap towards a new career? Are you considering a career in…

Why is it important to study maths?

In today’s world where technology is so openly available, it’s easy to assume that maths skills aren’t as in high demand and worth continuing…

What is an AS level?

Have you come across AS level courses, but have no idea what they are? In this blog post, we’ll explore the ins and outs…

Embracing Distance Learning: A Path to Inclusive Education and Lifelong Learning

In the realm of education policy, recent discussions have circled around the merits of reshaping our approach to learning, making it more inclusive and…

NEC’s 60th Birthday Bursary Winner

2023 has been marked as an incredible year as NEC celebrated its 60th birthday. As part of the celebrations, NEC offered a bursary which…

National Extension College: Sixty years of second chance learning – FE Week

“There is no doubt that its (National Extension College) original remit – to offer second chances to learners in our educationally divided country –…

The key to reviving social mobility

In our blog post on 13th July 2023, Is education the answer to social mobility? The contribution of the National Extension College, Ros Morpeth,…

Is education the answer to social mobility? The contribution of the National Extension College.

All political parties talk loudly about their commitment to social mobility and levelling up, but progress over the last decades has been dire and…

Workplace returners and those seeking a change of career given the opportunity to apply for a bursary to study with NEC

APPLICATIONS FOR THIS BURSARY ARE NOW CLOSED. NEC’s 60th Birthday Bursary will support one learner to get back into the workplace or to plan…

Other articles...

A home-educator’s journey, part 1: selecting our course provider

This post was originally published on May 31st 2018 and updated on March 23rd 2020. Today’s post is both a guest blog and an…

NEC’s Art Techniques course

This post was originally published on Friday, 4 May 2018 and updated on Friday, 29 March 2019. This week’s blog is written by Jane…

Getting it right on exam day

You’ve spent months preparing for exam day and it’s almost here. We’ve put together some top tips on how to approach these final hours…

Writing the perfect essay

The word ‘essay’ is also a verb meaning ‘to attempt’. It still retains something of that meaning in it’s commoner sense of ‘a piece…

Who are the science and technology stars of tomorrow?

For years employers have warned that the UK faces a skills shortage in many STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) roles. For example, EngineeringUK…

Get ready for exam success

This post was originally published on Friday, 17 February 2017 and updated on Friday, 10 May 2019. It’s exam season! Maybe you have meticulously planned and…

‘Teachers shouldn’t confiscate pupils’ phones: they’re vital for learning.’

This week’s blogger is former NEC GCSE English student Naila Din. Now a freelance arts advisor and business coach, Naila turned to teaching as…

A lesson in innovation: Ángela Ruiz Robles

“Ángela Ruiz Robles with her Mechanical Encylopedia” by ITU Pictures / License: CC BY 2.0 As a distance learning provider, the NEC was founded on the…

What can we learn from Finland?

A Finnish Education No inspections, no tests, no uniforms and no fees. A valued teaching profession, shorter school days and starting school at seven….

Learning barriers facing prisoners

Today’s NEC Blog is written by Wendy Monaghan, who has considerable experience of working with distance learners in many different contexts and is currently at…