Comparison

Diploma plus top-up, or a master's outright?

A cost-and-time comparison that uses your figures, not ours. Enter the fees and durations you have been quoted; the tool adds the diploma's published qualification time and sets the two routes side by side.

What is fixed and what is not

The facts that can be stated, and the ones only you can supply

Only two inputs here are fixed without asking anyone: total qualification time comes from the awarding body's specification, and LSPM's usual completion window comes from the centre. Diploma fee, top-up fee, master's fee and how long a master's takes are all quotations you must obtain yourself. LSPM has not published Level 7 fees on this site yet, university fees vary too much to guess, and we do not quote either on your behalf. The calculator stays blank until you enter numbers you trust.

Known facts for the diploma route and a generic full master's
	Route A: Level 7 diploma, then top-up	Route B: master's degree direct
RQF level	Level 7	Level 7
Credits	120, then typically 60 at the university	Typically 180
Qualification time (stage one)	1,200 hours, of which 600 guided	Set by the university
Typical duration (stage one)	9 months (standard) or 6 months (fast track)	Set by the university, commonly one year full-time or two part-time
Fee	From £999 (9 months, standard) or £1,299 (6 months, fast track); top-up fee set by the university	Set by the university
Awards held at the end	Two: the diploma and the degree	One
Who decides admission to stage two	The university	Not applicable

Qualification time for the OTHM Level 7 Diploma in Strategic Management and Leadership (OTHM), Ofqual 603/2181/7, from the official specification. Duration and fee note as supplied by LSPM, the approved centre.

Interactive comparison

Enter the figures you have been quoted

Fees in pounds, durations in months. Leave any field blank and the tool will tell you what it still needs rather than assume a number.

Route A: diploma, then top-up

Diploma fee, as quoted

Diploma duration, months

Top-up fee, as quoted by the university

Top-up duration, months

Route B: master's degree direct

Master's fee, as quoted

Master's duration, months

Your week

Hours you can study per week The diploma's total qualification time is 1,200 hours. The tool uses it to check whether your diploma duration is realistic.

Route A

Diploma, then top-up

—

Elapsed time: —
Study hours at your pace: —
Awards on your record: 2

Route B

Master's direct

—

Elapsed time: —
Study hours at your pace: —
Awards on your record: 1

Enter both fees for Route A and the master's fee to compare cost.

Enter the three durations to compare elapsed time.

Enter a diploma duration and your hours a week to check the pace.

Only as good as the quotations you enter. LSPM has not yet published fees, and top-up and master's fees differ from one university to another; the figures are yours, not ours and not LSPM's. Use written quotations, not estimates. The calculator ignores inflation, instalment charges, exam or graduation fees, and earnings forgone.

The calculator needs a small script to run. Without it, add the two Route A fees and compare the total with the master's fee; add the two durations and compare with the master's duration; and divide 1,200 hours by your weekly hours to see how many weeks the diploma realistically needs.

Reading the result

What the numbers do and do not tell you

A lower total for Route A is common but not universal, and the tool will say plainly which route costs more on your figures. Elapsed time usually favours the single-stage master's, because two enrolments take longer than one; against that, Route A gives you a complete qualification at the halfway point, and the pace check will tell you whether the diploma duration you have in mind is achievable at the hours you can actually give. Neither route's figure includes the value of your time or what you might earn differently at the end, and no calculator can settle whether the degree title matters more to you than the staging. Those are the questions for an advice call with us, before you speak to LSPM.

Next step

Ask a direct question. Get a direct answer.

Tell us where you are in your career and what you want the qualification to do. We reply within two working days with a straight view on fit, timing and likely cost, and we pass you to LSPM only when you ask us to.

Make an enquiry Enquiring for a team?

EnquireTwo-minute form or a call. Programme preselected if you came from a programme page.
Advice callThirty minutes with an independent adviser, not a salesperson. Fit, prior learning, unit choice and funding.
ApplyFrom the programme page you chose: use Apply on the LSPM website there (LSPM's portal opens that course only). Browse programmes. Documents, English evidence where needed, and sponsor details.
EnrolLSPM registers you with the awarding body, runs induction and releases your first unit on the intake date.