It’s taken a long time (longer than expected due to Covid) but I finally got my RHS level 2 certificates – yay!!!
What’s baffling though, is that there are 5 in total!
There is a certificate for the practical part, and then one each for the two theory parts. Then, there is an additional certificate to show that both of the theory parts have been obtained, and finally a diploma certificate to show all 3 parts have been done. Phew.
Of course, getting the paperwork hasn’t meant much in the way of finding formal horticultural work. I just keep being told that I’m “not suitable”. Actually, during the practical course, one of my classmates asked the tutor whether he thought that we (the students) were just little ladies who like flowers and he just sniggered and agreed!
I think that I probably made the process of getting the diploma a bit more difficult for myself by self-studying the theory sections, but overall, it has been fairly tricky to get the qualification – finding a place to sit the exams was a bit of a trial in itself! The material in the exams wasn’t really the issue. The practical section was another problem, what with finding a college with any kind of availability and having to travel there. Covid threw in another curve-ball, with the classes suspended just as the growing season was beginning and not resuming until September. Even then, we just had a couple of lessons and missed out months of learning. Apparently, we had covered most of the syllabus (very lightly) anyway and they didn’t want us students from the previous year getting in the way of the people about to start the new academic year. I must admit that I feel a bit short-changed in terms of the practical part of the diploma, and still don’t have the confidence I would have liked to have developed at the end of the course.
So, I guess the big question is, do I think that it was worth doing?
I’m not sure.
Gardening studies 
Congratulations on your achievements in the face of adversity, and thank you for your honest review of your experience. I hope that the right opportunity does come along but it does deflate me that the tutor reacted the way he did… is his response typical of the industry and if so, how can we change that.
Congrats again and I hope you bask in your success!
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Thanks! Maybe his response tells me to stop trying to do this on anyone else’s terms, and to do it on my own 😉
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This page has been so helpful for me and I can’t thank you enough for this information! I’m currently trying to pass my level 2 theory as well. I’m wondering if you managed to get horticultural work in the end? Sometimes I ask myself exactly what I can get with a level 2 when I’m already self employed, seems the way to go really
Thanks again!
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Thanks Matt! It’s nice to hear that the blog is useful 🙂 I haven’t been able to find horticultural work using level 2, which is a bit disappointing. One of my classmates in the level 2 Practical put “RHS trained” in his adverts for self-employed gardener work and it brought in quite a bit of extra business for him. He also put his prices up on the strength of it, so it does have a use for self-employment. Of course, he said “trained” and not “qualified” because we hadn’t finished the course then, but actually, none of his customers questioned it!
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