Students from six Wanganui secondary schools have signed up to U-Skills through UCOL.
A total of 41 U-Skills students come from Wanganui High School, Wanganui Collegiate School, Wanganui City College, Cullinane College, St Dominic's College and Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu - The Correspondence School.
Fourteen of those students are in the U-Skills Hospitality programme at the Whanganui UCOL campus.
Twenty-five students from Wanganui commute daily to Palmerston North and attend classes with students from secondary schools around the wider UCOL region on a range of programmes; construction, health, hair, electrical, beauty and fashion, automotive, applied engineering, Mechanical engineering, and graphics and design.
U-Skills Central Schools Academy Manager Jacqui Phillips said more school students than ever before were taking up the opportunity to gain extra credits towards NCEA and tertiary qualifications through the U-Skills Central Schools Academy at UCOL, which runs in partnership with local secondary schools.
The U-Skills 'fees free' programmes are available in a range of career areas to assist young people to explore career options, gain connections with employers and transition into further training or employment.
The academy has grown from 100 Ministry of Education funded places in 2012 to 260 this year.
Mrs Phillips added that over 300 Year-12 and 13 students in the Central Schools district vied for places on the programme and were interviewed for the 2014 programmes.
Students' applications needed to be supported by their school and the students will attend U-Skills one day a week in the programme of their choice.
The success of the programme resulted in 92 per cent of the credits being obtained last year by the ministry-funded students who completed the full year.
The programmes provides students with between 40-60 credits at Level 2 or 3, a good chunk of the achievement needed to gain NCEA.
"The students put in some hard yards, carrying on with school work and activities while at the same time studying at a tertiary level and sometimes finishing later in the day.
"What they come away with at the end of the year is valuable experience in skill shortage areas, and more options than before. They can choose to stay at school, go on to further study at UCOL, or go straight into employment or an apprenticeship."
All U-Skills students undertake a programme of careers and personal development in addition to their vocational study.
In order to attend U-Skills Central Schools Academy, students must have an endorsement from that school and be returning for their Year-12 or 13 year. They must be undertaking NCEA study, and attend an interview to gain acceptance into the Academy.
UCOL also offers Youth Guarantee scholarships for 16-to-19-year-olds who have left school and are keen to learn but don't feel confident about tertiary study, and STAR programmes for students to get a taste of an area that interests them, and learn new skills.