Key Information for Prospective, Continuing and Progressing Students for Full-Time Programmes

Learning Opportunities Target Group

MCAST is an inclusive College and welcomes candidates with diverse abilities. Depending on the candidate’s qualifications and abilities MCAST will offer the prospective candidate the right course level to further studies.

The target audience for MCAST full-time courses is 16 to 65+.

All candidates can access any one of the level of the MQF at MCAST depending on their qualifications and the respective course entry requirements.

To review the current general entry requirements please click HERE.

For specific course entry requirements please click HERE .

 

Campus

MCAST has four campuses as follows:
MCAST Main Campus
Triq Kordin, Paola, Malta

All courses except for the Institute for the Creative Arts, Centre of Agriculture, Aquatics and Animal Sciences are offered here.

Institute for the Creative Arts
Mosta Campus
Misraħ Għonoq Tarġa Gap,
Mosta

For courses offered here visit https://mcast.edu.mt/institute-for-the-creative-arts-2/

Gozo Campus
J.F. De Chambray Street
MCAST, Għajnsielem
Gozo

For courses offered here visit https://mcast.edu.mt/gozo-campus/

Institute of Applied Sciences,
Centre of Agriculture, Aquatics and Animal Sciences,
Luqa Road, Qormi

For courses offered here visit https://mcast.edu.mt/institute-of-applied-sciences-centre-of-agriculture-aquatics-and-animal-sciences/

 

Language of Instruction

The official language of instruction at MCAST is English. All notes and textbooks are in English (except for language courses which will be in the respective language being instructed). International candidates will be requested to meet English language certification requirements for access to the course. For further information please click HERE .

 

Intake Dates

• MCAST opens calls for application once a year between July and August of each year for prospective applicants residing in MALTA.
• Applications to full-time courses from international students not residing in MALTA are accepted between April and Mid-August.
• For exact dates re calls for applications please follow this link https://mcast.edu.mt/online-applications-2/  . 

Course Fees

MCAST course are free for Maltese and EU candidates. International candidates coming from outside the EU need to pay fees for the respective course. Course fees are set on a per-level and course duration basis. For access to course fee structure and payment methods please visit https://mcast.edu.mt/fee-payments-for-non-eu-candidates/ .

 

Method of Application

Applications to full-time courses are received online via the College Management Information System. Candidates can log in using Maltese Electronic ID (eID) or European eIDAS (electronic identification and trust services) to access the system directly and create an account as the identity is verified electronically via these secure services.

Non-EU candidates need to request account creation though an online form by providing proof of identification and basic data. Once the identity is verified and the account is created the candidate may proceed with the online application according to the same instructions applicable to all other candidates.

Non-EU candidates require a study visa in order to travel to Malta and joint the course applied for. For further information re study-visa please access https://www.identitymalta.com/unit/central-visa-unit/.

For access to instructions on how to apply online please visit https://mcast.edu.mt/online-applications-2/

 

Further Learning Opportunities

MCAST offers course at all levels of the Malta Qualifications Framework and hence offers progression pathways after successful completion of each course up to MQF level 8 (MCAST does not offer post-doctoral programmes). To access a graphical map of all full-time courses and progression pathways please click HERE .

Indicative career pathways are also provided on a per-course basis on the MCAST website (see respective course page) and the MCAST full-time prospectus. For access to the MCAST full-time prospectus please click HERE .

The Student Support Services are available for all prospective students who require any form of support related to information on courses, applications, and career guidance.

Contact : careerguidance@mcast.edu.mt or phone on 23987135/ 7136/ 7310 between 0800 till 1330.  Prospective students can also ask for a remote meeting.

The staff at the Registrar’s Office are available for all prospective students who require any form of support related to the application process.

Prospective students can also ask for a remote meeting.

 

MCAST Programme Regulations

In order to ensure the best possible student experience Prospective students are advised to read the respective programme regulations and Student Handbook available via the MCAST website in order to understand the student rights, responsibilities and obligations prior to applying to a Course at MCAST.

The Student Handbook provides general information and guidance to help the students make the most of the opportunities at MCAST. It also provides practical information on policies, procedures, and regulations.

MCAST Programme Regulations : https://mcast.edu.mt/college-documents/

MCAST Student Handbook : https://mcast.edu.mt/students-handbook-2021-2022/

Mode of Teaching, Learning and Assessment

All full-time courses at MCAST are delivered through Face-to-Face learning unless health restrictions due to COVID-19 so dictate.

The programmes offered are vocational in nature and entail both theoretical lectures delivered in classes as well as practical elements that are delivered in laboratories, workshops, salons, simulators as the module requirements dictate.

Each module or unit entails a number of in person and/or online contact learning hours that are delivered by the lecturer or tutor directly (See also section ‘Total Learning Hours).. As stated earlier MCAST provides such contact hours face-to-face and with a minimum attendance that is a mandatory requirement as per MCAST rules and regulations.

Access to all resources is provided to all registered students. These include study resources in paper or electronic format through the Library and Resource Centre as well as tools, software, equipment and machinery that are provided by the respective institutes depending on the requirements of the course or module.

Students may however be required to provide consumable material for use during practical sessions and projects unless these are explicitly provided by the College.

All Units of study are assessed throughout the academic year through continuous assessment using a variety of assessment tools. Coursework tasks are exclusively based on the Learning Outcomes and Grading Criteria as prescribed in the course specification. The Learning Outcomes and Grading Criteria are communicated to the Student via the coursework documentation.

The method of assessment shall reflect the Level, credit points (ECTS/ECVET) and the schedule of time-tabled/non-timetabled hours of learning of each study unit. A variety of assessment instruments, not solely TCA, are used to gather and interpret evidence of Student competence toward pre-established grading criteria that are aligned to the learning outcomes of each unit of the programme of study.

Grading criteria are assessed through a number of tasks, each task being assigned a number of marks. The number of grading criteria is included in the respective Programme Specification.

The distribution of marks and assessment mode depends on the nature and objectives of the unit in question.

Coursework shall normally be completed during the semester in which the Unit is delivered.

Time-constrained assignments may be held between 8 am and 8 pm during the delivery period of a Unit, or at the end of the semester in which the Unit is completed.  The dates are notified and published on the Institute notice boards or through other means of communication.

Certain circumstances (such as but not limited to the Covid 19 pandemic) may lead Institutes and Centres to hold Time-constrained assignments remotely (online). In such cases the regulations listed in the document referenced below apply.

Programme specifications are provided in the respective course page in the MCAST website through the Course Outline link at the bottom of each course page. For access to full-time course pages please click HERE .

For access to MCAST general course regulations and guidelines and the MCAST Online Policy please click HERE .

Total Learning Hours

The Course Outlines provide the course structure and credit allocation to each unit forming part of the respective programme.

Contact hours are allocated to the respective unit through the course timetable that is published by the institute on the College Management Information System (also referred to on MCAST website as ‘Classter’). All registered students are provided with an MCAST email address that provides access to the MIS, VLE, learning and research material and study units required through the student life at MCAST. The student’s timetable will be personalised depending on the units you are enrolled to in the respective semester.

The total learning hours required for each unit or module are determined as follows:

Credits (ECTS / ECVETs)	Indicative contact hours	Total Student workload (hrs)	Self-Learning and Assessment   Hours
1	5 – 10 hrs	25 hrs	20-15 hrs*
2	10 – 20 hrs	50 hrs	40-30 hrs*
3	15 – 30 hrs	75 hrs	60-45 hrs*
4	20 – 40 hrs	100 hrs	80-60 hrs*
6	30 – 60 hrs	150 Hrs	120-90 hrs*
9	45 – 90 hrs	225 hrs	180-135 hrs*
12	60 – 120 hrs	300 hrs	120-180 hrs*

*The Self-Learning and Assessment Hours amount to the difference between contact hours and total student workload.

The Malta Qualifications Framework defines one credit as being equivalent to a workload of 25 hours of total learning whereby 1 credit = 25 hours of learning (contact hours, practical sessions, mentoring, self-study such as reading, research, seminars, conferences, tutorials, assignments and assessments and related organised activities such as informal and non-formal learning).

Hence, while for example, for a six-credit unit you will have 60 contact hrs in class, workshop or laboratory etc., you will be required to invest a further 90 hrs of studying and working on assignments and other task required through the coursework in your own time.

MCAST expresses credits for courses at MQF level 1 to 4 in terms of ECVET (European Credits in Vocational Education and Training) and levels 5 to 8 in terms of ECTS (European Credit Transfer System).

Both ECVET and ECTS have the same total hours of learning (25 total hours to the credit with a minimum of 5hrs being taught hours (contact hrs). MCAST generally offers 10 contact hours to the credit but this may increase in lower levels (MQF 1-2) and decrease at higher levels (MQF 5-8) while always meeting the minimum requirement of 5 hrs to the credit.

For credits allocated to your respective units please refer to your preferred Course Outline on the MCAST website.

Pass Grade and Grading System

All MCAST programmes adopt a learner centred approach through the focus on Learning Outcomes. The assessment of MCAST programmes is criterion-referenced and thus assessors are required to assess learners’ evidence against a pre-determined set of Learning Outcomes and assessment criteria.

For a student to be deemed to have successfully passed a unit, a minimum of 50% (grade D) must be achieved. A compensatory pass is also considered to be a pass grade in the respective single unit where it is awarded but ONLY one CP can be awarded per programme as described above.

All units are individually graded as follows:

A* (90-100)
An (80-89)
B   (70-79)
C   (60-69)
D   (50-59)
CP¹ (40-49)

Unsatisfactory work is graded as ‘U’.

Work-based learning units are graded on a Pass/Fail basis only.

¹ A Compensatory pass can only be awarded for one unit within the programme provided that the candidate has passed all other units required by the programme specification. Other conditions are specified in the respective Prorgamme Regulatison via the MCAST website link https://mcast.edu.mt/college-documents/