English Speaking Board (International) Ltd.’s Advanced Grade Qualifications in Speech (Grades 6 – 8) are accepted by the UK Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) and will carry the following UCAS Tariff points for university and HE entry from 2017:
Grade 6
Pass 8
Merit 10
Distinction 12
Grade 8
Pass 24
Merit 27
Distinction 30
These Tariff points will be used for applications submitted for the 2017 admissions cycle onwards (i.e. for students making applications from September 2016 for full-time courses starting from September 2017).
ESB’s Level 3 qualifications are Certificate in Graded Examination in Speech: ESB Level 3 Certificate in Speech (Grade 6), Certificate in Graded Examination in Speech: Language Arts (Grade 8) and ESB Level 3 Certificate in Speech (Grade 8).
For more information please refer to the UCAS website.
Damian Waters, Director of CBI in the North West said that his ESB qualification “most definitely” gave him employability skills. He said:
My ESB examination was my first experience of public speaking, but I think one of my key strengths now is public engagement and presentations.
Damian says that ESB played a key role in his personal and professional development:
ESB started me off on the right track and gave me that initial confidence to find my voice.
He added:
An ESB qualification is great to have and be able to show employers that you can engage with colleagues, clients and customers.
He recalled his experience of taking his ESB exam over 30 years ago:
I remember that I had to make a speech to a panel of assessors and other pupils from my school and recite a poem that was committed to memory. I can still remember the poem today!
I can clearly remember the feedback I received from the assessors; they spoke about the importance of being myself, engaging with the audience and presenting in a professional manner. I make dozens of speeches each year and I still try to stick to those words of advice.
Damian passed on some words of guidance to youngsters preparing for presentations:
Prepare properly, but don’t learn a script as it can come across as a bit fake. Always remember that the audience wants to enjoy the experience – they are willing you on!
Inspiring confidence and employability at Belfast Met!
English Speaking Board (ESB) launched an Entry Level 1 qualification in employability last academic year.
Inspiring Confidence in Employability is aimed at learners with learning or physical difficulties and designed to give them skills for entry into employment.
Craig Bennett, Deputy Head Teacher at Calthorpe Academy, who developed and piloted the qualification for ESB said:
The development of [ICE] is groundbreaking and helps fill the niche that currently exists for people working on this level.
Belfast Metropolitan College have just added ICE to their taught portfolio. Ian Patterson, tutor at their Centre for Supported Learning said:
We are delighted that Inspiring Confidence in Employability is now being delivered to adults at our centre. The student cohort have completed other accredited courses and the progression route to ESB is a positive next step.
Although ICE is currently offered at Entry 1 and students may have completed programmes at Entry 3, the skill set is very different with the inclusion of spoken criteria in the mandatory unit, Interview Skills. Staff view this as a very useful component in equipping learners for the world of work.
Clearly defined criteria and concise worksheets greatly augment the students’ work based practice and meaningfully enrich the learner experience. The staff teaching on the programme value the materials and report using them as a framework on which to base lessons.
Not only are the teachers impressed, the learners love it too. Ian added:
The students on the course are very proud of their portfolio of evidence to date and look forward to displaying their speaking and listening skills to the ESB examiners.
ESB delivered a training session at MPP Global last week as part of their two-part Corporate Presentation Skills Workshop.
The market leading firm work with various national media outlets including the Daily Mail and The Times and were looking to develop their employee’s communication skills.
Following the training, MPP Global’s Chief Executive Officer, Paul Johnson said:
ESB’s Corporate Presentation Skills Workshop exceeded my expectations; my staff really enjoyed the course and the results were outstanding. In just two sessions I saw a noticeable improvement in presentation style and witnessed staff effectively employing the techniques they had learnt. I would highly recommend the workshop to other companies who want to advance their workforce’s public speaking abilities and gain confidence in a fun environment.
The workshop not only impressed management, the staff thoroughly enjoyed the day with 100% saying they would recommend the workshop to other companies.
James Vallance, Marketing Executive at MPP Global said,
ESB delivered a very patient, approachable set of workshops. We received both compliments and constructive feedback which made for very engaging training.
If you would like your employees to benefit from one of ESB’s tailor made programmes then please contact Alison Coates who will be happy to provide you with more information.
English Speaking Board (International) Ltd.’s Advanced Grade Qualifications in Speech (Grades 6 – 8) are accepted by the UK Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) and will carry the following UCAS Tariff points for university and HE entry from 2017:
