Student Stories

Homeschooler Andrew’s experience of studying IGCSE Chemistry

Last year, we shared Andrew’s experience of how homeschooling was helping him to balance education and family commitments. We caught up with Andrew to…

Mia’s NEC experience and her pursuit of knowledge

There are a number of reasons why students decide that distance learning is a suitable form of education for them and their needs. In…

Andrew’s experience: How homeschooling helps balance education and family commitments

Arguably, one of the biggest benefits to online and distance learning is the freedom it allows students to study at a time and place…

How homeschooling is helping Amelia work towards a medical career

You may have seen us share a recent story about the benefits of distance learning as a mature student. In this post we explore…

Distance learning as a mature student working abroad: Chun’s Experience

As distance learning has grown in popularity as an effective alternative to traditional learning, the benefits of this type of study for mature students…

Sharon’s positive experience of distance learning leads to an A grade in her English Language A level

There’s no denying that distance learning is rapidly gaining popularity as a successful educational platform outside of traditional schools and colleges. With this in…

Martin’s story: From no qualifications and working in a factory to a long academic journey and a professional career

With NEC celebrating our 60th birthday in 2023, we have been asking students for their stories of studying with NEC. Throughout our 60 years,…

Jeremy’s stepping stone to studying Natural Sciences at university

NEC has been working with our partners to provide a series of free webinars on our YouTube channel for anyone interested in studying a…

Meet the recipients of the Russell Kane Scholarship

In July 2022 NEC launched the first annual Russell Kane Scholarship Programme.  Russell Kane, now a multi-award winning comedian, TV and radio presenter, actor,…

What happens when there aren’t enough students to fill a classroom?

Every summer there are dismaying articles about the decline in modern foreign languages in schools. Not to mention the drop in language learning during…

Other articles...

GCSE success for home educated student with partially impaired vision

Mohammed studied 7 GCSEs with NEC and achieved high grades in all of them, overcoming the challenge of having partially impaired vision. He has…

Lessons from lockdown – do we need to create an open school for the UK?

Peter Lavender OBE discusses lessons from lockdown, the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown on attitudes towards distance learning, and the need to create an…

Top grade in IGCSE Spanish for keen traveller

Katie studied IGCSE Spanish with NEC and achieved a top grade of 9. Katie is a mature student and pursued her studies for the…

High-achiever in four A levels with NEC moves on to the University of Edinburgh

Timofei studied four A levels with NEC in maths, further maths, physics and economics and achieved great results, obtaining an A*, two A and a B grade…

Top grades in GCSEs for mature student with NEC lead to Open University degree

Belinda studied GCSEs in astronomy and maths with NEC as a mature student, and achieved top grades of 9 in both. She is now…

The National Extension College release A level and GCSE results

“It was impossible to fulfil my dreams without my parent’s and NEC’s patience, support, motivation and 24/7 accessibility to my learning materials [sic] during…

A* in A level Chemistry with NEC leads to degree at the University of Cambridge

Laura studied A level Chemistry with NEC and achieved an A* grade. Laura is now going to study Natural Sciences at Hughes Hall, University…

The National Extension College response to the 2020 exams fiasco

The National Extension College understands how important A levels and other qualifications are to our students. Over our 57 years as an education provider…

From A level success with NEC to social work at university

Hannah achieved A level success with NEC in Spanish and sociology, obtaining an A* and a B grade respectively.  Hannah moved to Madrid from…

Women in art history and the resurgence of Artemisia

This blog post was written by NEC A level History of Art student Fleur. Due to themes and images that may be disturbing to…