Online
Unit materials, tutorials and submission through LSPM's virtual learning environment. The mode most applicants outside London, or outside the UK, ask us about.
How LSPM teaches and assesses Level 5 diplomas
Every programme on this site is delivered by London School of Planning and Management (LSPM), the approved centre, not by us. This page sets out what the awarding bodies' specifications require of any centre and what LSPM has told applicants we have advised about its own practice. Where the two are distinguished below, the specification is the rule and LSPM's practice is something to confirm with LSPM before you enrol.
Study modes LSPM lists
Blended
Online materials with scheduled sessions at LSPM's Ludgate Hill premises. Suits learners within reach of central London who want some contact time.
Evening classes
Taught sessions at LSPM in the evening with the online environment as the reference library and submission route. Suits learners who work standard hours in or near London.
Modes are as LSPM has published them to us; not every programme runs in every mode at every intake, and LSPM confirms the mode for your programme when you apply.
What the hours mean week by week
The awarding bodies publish two figures. Total qualification time (TQT) is their estimate of all the hours a typical learner needs, including private study and assignment writing. Guided learning hours (GLH) are the portion delivered or supervised by a tutor. Neither is a timetable; both are useful for deciding whether you can fit the programme around work.
For the OTHM programmes on this site, a 120-credit Diploma is 1,200 TQT and a 240-credit Extended Diploma is 2,400. Divided across common study periods:
| Study period | 1,200 TQT (Diploma) | 2,400 TQT (Extended) |
|---|---|---|
| 12 months | ≈ 23 hrs/week | ≈ 46 hrs/week |
| 18 months | ≈ 15 hrs/week | ≈ 31 hrs/week |
| 24 months | ≈ 12 hrs/week | ≈ 23 hrs/week |
| 36 months | ≈ 8 hrs/week | ≈ 15 hrs/week |
Arithmetic only: TQT divided by weeks. LSPM's standard duration for each programme (9 months (standard) or 6 months (fast track)) is what LSPM confirms at application. For Qualifi programmes the TQT figure is in the specification document, not on the web page.
Assessment: assignments against unit criteria, no examinations
The brief
Each unit has published learning outcomes and assessment criteria. The specification requires the centre's assignment brief to cover all of them; in the OTHM and Qualifi programmes here that is normally a report, case analysis, plan or reflective account. LSPM sets the brief and the word count.
The standard
To pass a unit every criterion must be met, not an average across them. Work is judged pass or refer; there are no percentage marks or grade bands on the certificate. This is the awarding body's rule, applied by LSPM.
Referral and resubmission
A referred assignment comes back with feedback identifying the criteria not yet met, and is reworked and resubmitted within the window LSPM sets. The awarding body's regulations limit the number of attempts; ask LSPM how it applies them.
Who marks, who checks
LSPM's tutors mark against the awarding body's criteria. The centre conditions of both OTHM and Qualifi require internal verification: a second person at the centre samples marked work from each unit and each marker before results are submitted. OTHM or Qualifi then externally verify by sampling the marked work, the feedback and the internal verification records, and can uphold, adjust or return decisions. Certificates are issued by the awarding body only after that check. The same two-layer process applies to Diplomas and Extended Diplomas alike, and to every approved centre.
Malpractice, plagiarism and the use of generative tools in assessed work fall under the awarding body's regulations and LSPM's own academic integrity policy, which LSPM issues at enrolment. Disagreements with an assessment decision go through LSPM's appeals procedure, then the awarding body's; the complaints page explains the route.
Support while you study
What applicants we have introduced to LSPM describe. Confirm the current arrangements with LSPM's admissions team.
- InductionAn introduction to LSPM's virtual learning environment, academic writing at Level 5, referencing and how the unit sequence runs.
- Unit tutorA named LSPM tutor per unit, reachable through the learning environment.
- Progress reviewsFeedback after each submission, and a natural review point at the midpoint of an Extended Diploma where the Level 4 stage hands over to Level 5.
- AdjustmentsReasonable adjustments for disability or long-term conditions are agreed with LSPM at enrolment under the awarding body's access arrangements; raise them with LSPM before you start, and tell us at enquiry so we can flag them.
Not sure which credit value you need?
Tell us your highest qualification and we will say which of the 120-credit Diploma and the 240-credit Extended Diploma LSPM's entry criteria open to you, and how to start the application.