For many young people, the traditional three-year degree is still seen as the ultimate destination in higher education.
But as the world of work changes, and particularly as the creative economy continues to expand, the value of a shorter, more focused qualification is becoming increasingly clear.
A higher certificate can offer something that is often overlooked: a practical first step into higher education, the workplace and a potential degree pathway.
At NQF Level 5, a higher certificate sits at an important point in South Africa’s higher education system. It is designed to provide foundational knowledge and practical skills, while giving students the opportunity to progress academically.
For students who may not yet be ready for a degree, or whose school-leaving results do not provide direct access to one, a higher certificate can therefore be more than an alternative qualification. It can be a bridge between potential and opportunity.
Learning by doing
This is particularly relevant in the creative industries, where qualifications need to be complemented by practical experience, collaboration and an understanding of how the industry actually operates.
Afda provides a useful example of how this model can work.
Afda's higher certificate programmes are designed as one-year, full-time NQF Level 5 qualifications. They have a dual purpose: they provide students with practical, entry-level skills for the creative economy while also creating a pathway into Afda's three-year degree programmes.
The higher certificate in film, television and entertainment production, for example, introduces students to the practical realities of production through areas such as camera, lighting, grips, sound, production coordination, art department, wardrobe, make-up and styling. Students engage with equipment, production documents and the processes that underpin a working film or television set.
This approach matters because creative education cannot exist entirely in the classroom.
A student aspiring to work in film needs to understand how a production functions.
Someone interested in live performance needs to understand the backstage environment.
A future content creator needs to understand not only how to make content, but how audiences, platforms, technology and production processes intersect.
The higher certificate can provide that first immersion into the world the student hopes to enter.
A qualification with two destinations
One of the most compelling aspects of the Afda model is that students don't necessarily have to choose between further study and entering the workplace.
Successful completion of an Afda higher certificate can provide access to first-year study in Afda's degree programmes, including the BA in motion picture medium, BA in live performance, bachelor of creative writing and BCom in business innovation and entrepreneurship, subject to the applicable requirements.
At the same time, the higher certificate is an exit-level qualification, meaning graduates can use the practical skills they have developed to pursue assistant-level opportunities in the entertainment industry.
That creates an important principle for modern higher education:
Education should not be a single ladder that students either climb or fall off. It should be a pathway with multiple points of entry, progression and opportunity.
Opening the door to students with different journeys. Not every student's educational journey looks the same.
Some students leave school knowing exactly what career they want. Others discover their direction only after experiencing a particular field. Some may have the ambition and talent for a creative career but not the school-leaving results required for direct degree entry.
Afda's higher certificate pathway recognises this reality. Students entering its Higher Certificate programmes generally require a national senior certificate with a diploma or higher certificate pass, while an alternative entrance route may be available through Afdas approved entrance examination.
This makes the Higher Certificate an important part of a more inclusive approach to higher education: recognising potential while providing students with the academic and practical foundation they need to succeed.
The creative economy needs skills at every level. There is also a broader industry argument.
The creative economy does not consist only of directors, producers, performers, writers, entrepreneurs and executives. Every production depends on the people who make the machinery of creativity work, from camera and lighting assistants to production coordinators, backstage teams, technical crews and emerging content professionals.
Developing these skills is therefore not simply about preparing individuals for employment. It is about strengthening the infrastructure of an entire industry.
Afda's higher certificate in film, television and entertainment production is structured around precisely this principle, with technical and production-focused streams designed to prepare students for assistant roles while giving them an understanding of the wider production environment.
The same philosophy extends across Afda's other higher certificate offerings, including performing arts and radio and podcasting.
Rethinking what "higher education" means
Perhaps the biggest opportunity presented by the Higher Certificate is that it challenges the idea that success in higher education is defined only by obtaining a degree.
A higher certificate can be a destination in its own right. It can be a stepping stone to a degree. It can provide practical skills for an entry-level role. Or it can give a young person the confidence and experience to discover where their talents can take them.
For institutions such as Afda, this means creating educational pathways that reflect the realities of the creative industries: practical, collaborative, industry-aware and flexible.
The future of higher education may not be about asking students, "Degree or no degree?"
It may be about asking a more important question:
"What is the right pathway to help this student turn their potential into a sustainable career?"
For aspiring creatives, the higher certificate can be an important answer and Afda demonstrates how that pathway can connect foundational learning, practical industry skills and future degree-level study.
Because sometimes the first step towards a degree, a career or a place in the creative economy isn't a three-year commitment.
Sometimes, it starts with one year, one opportunity and the chance to learn by doing.
Afda's current higher certificate offering includes film, TV and entertainment production, performing arts and radio and podcasting, with programme availability varying by campus.
www.afda.co.za
