If you have read anything else on this site you already know the first fact: OTHM and Qualifi Level 3 diplomas do not carry UCAS Tariff points. This guide is about the second question, which is what they do lead to, and it tries to be as specific as honesty allows.
The framework the diplomas sit on
Qualifications in England are placed on the Regulated Qualifications Framework, which runs from Entry Level to Level 8. GCSEs at grade 4 and above are Level 2. A levels, BTEC Nationals, T Levels and the diplomas on this site are Level 3. The first year of a bachelor's degree is Level 4, the second year Level 5, the final year Level 6. Master's degrees are Level 7 and doctorates Level 8.
OTHM and Qualifi issue diplomas at each level from 3 to 7. A Level 3 diploma is therefore the last pre-higher-education step, and a Level 4 diploma is the first higher education one.
Stage one: completing the Level 3
A Level 3 diploma is a stand-alone qualification with its own certificate. When you finish, you hold a regulated Level 3 qualification listed on the Ofqual register, and that is true regardless of anything that happens next. Employers can verify it; other providers can recognise it; you can stop there if you wish.
The diplomas range from 60 to 180 credits. The smaller ones are subject introductions or foundation years for a specific Level 4 direction; the larger ones, particularly the 120- and 180-credit programmes with academic English and study skills units, are built as complete pre-degree years.
Stage two: Level 4 at LSPM
Progression from a Level 3 diploma to a Level 4 diploma is the route these qualifications are designed for, and it is the one the London School of Planning and Management (LSPM) offers as the approved centre for these diplomas. You do not apply through UCAS; you apply to LSPM, and completion of the Level 3 satisfies the entry requirement.
Level 4 diplomas are offered by subject, so this is where you fix a direction if you have not already. Business and management, accounting and finance, law, health and social care, computing and cyber security, engineering, hospitality and others are typical. Level 4 is where the work starts to look like a degree: longer assignments, more analysis, some independent research.
Stage three: Level 5
A Level 5 diploma follows Level 4 and is equivalent in level to the second year of a bachelor's degree. In many subjects OTHM and Qualifi offer a combined Level 4 and 5 Extended Diploma of 240 credits, which covers both stages in one programme.
Stage four: the university decision
Here is where the map stops being ours to draw. Some universities accept holders of a Level 5 diploma in a related subject on to the final year of a bachelor's degree, a route usually called a top-up. Each university decides for itself, subject by subject, and the decision can change from year to year. Some have formal agreements with particular awarding bodies or centres; others assess applications individually.
Similarly, a few universities will consider a Level 3 or Level 4 diploma holder for first-year entry to a degree. That is their discretion, it is not something the diplomas are designed for, and it should not be the reason you enrol.
We do not name universities on this site, because we do not hold a written agreement with one that covers these programmes, and naming institutions on the basis of what they have accepted in the past is a promise we cannot keep. If and when LSPM holds such an agreement, it will be published on the programme page with its date.
What this route is good at
It starts when you are ready, not in September. It has no grade requirement at the door. It is assignment-assessed throughout. It can be studied online, blended or in the evenings, so it fits round work and caring. It moves one level at a time, so you are never more than a year from a certificate. And it is regulated at every stage.
What it is not good at
It does not produce UCAS Tariff points at any stage. It does not lead into regulated professions such as nursing, teaching, medicine or law practice, which have their own gateways. It does not guarantee a place at any university. It is not faster than a conventional degree if you go all the way to Level 6, though it can be cheaper stage by stage. And it asks a good deal of self-discipline, because there is no cohort of eighteen-year-olds around you to set the pace.
Deciding
If you have Tariff points, use them; you have a route that this one cannot improve on. If you do not, and you want to study while working towards degree-level qualifications one step at a time, this route is worth a conversation. We will tell you where you would start and, just as importantly, if you would be better served by an Access course or a UCAS application instead.