The NCAA Foreign Student Records Committee has reached an important decision regarding how a major educational program in the United Kingdom will be interpreted for eligibility and satisfactory-progress purposes.

At its most recent meeting, the committee voted to regard the Business and Technology Education Council's (BTEC) National Diploma program as part of secondary education, rather than as postsecondary, effective with the 2002-03 academic year. The change, which reverses a 1997 decision made by the group, which was known as the NCAA Consultants on Foreign Student Records from its inception in 1973 until 2000, was based on objective evidence received from a variety of sources.

Because of the nature of the program, the BTEC National Diploma program was found to be at the same level as the General Certificate of Education (GCE) "A"- Level program, which also is considered as secondary education by the committee.

Student-athletes already enrolled in NCAA institutions who completed the BTEC National Diploma program have been held to the standard that BTEC is postsecondary. Those student-athletes triggered the start of their five-year/10-semester period of eligibility upon enrollment in the BTEC program. Since the BTEC program typically takes two years to complete, student-athletes will have used two years or four semesters of eligibility upon transferring to an NCAA institution.

Further, pursuant to percentage of degree requirements in Division I, many BTEC students have difficulty meeting the provisions of Bylaw 14.4.3.2 because the BTEC program is highly vocational, and few, if any, BTEC courses are transferable.

Institutions with student-athletes who may need relief from those regulations due to the change may apply for extensions of the five-year/10-semester rule per Bylaw 30.6.1. Difficulties with satisfactory-progress requirements may be dealt with through the satisfactory-progress waiver process.

Once the change takes effect, institutions should note that students who complete the BTEC program may have difficulty in meeting NCAA initial-eligibility requirements, due to the technical/vocational nature of the program.

The change does not affect the BTEC Higher National Diploma program, which will continue to be considered as postsecondary education.

The committee also continued to establish expected dates of secondary school graduation for many foreign countries at the meeting (see accompanying chart).

Such determinations are necessary because of legislation adopted by Division II on amateurism that took effect August 1, 2001. Prospective student-athletes will be charged with a season of competition during each calendar year of participation in outside competition after high-school graduation and before initial full-time collegiate enrollment.

The committee will attempt to complete its study of more than 150 countries and approximately 500 educational certificates at its next meeting. A chart of the countries and educational certificates already reviewed appeared in the April 23, 2001, issue of The NCAA News.

Should a Division II institution have a prospective student-athlete from a country that has not yet been reviewed, it should contact Lisa Roesler, the staff liaison to the committee, at the NCAA national office.