Social Work
Kingston University
UCAS Code: L501 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Kingston University
UCAS Code: L501 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Other A Level combinations possible to achieve a minimum of 120 points. Minimum of 2 A Levels, can be combined with other Level 3 qualifications eg. AS levels/Extended Project to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Access to HE Diploma
Achieve a minimum of 120 UCAS Points from a Access to HE course: this is normally achieved with 45 level 3 credits and 15 level 2 credits of which 30 of the level 3 credits should be at Distinction and 9 at Merit. Other combinations of distinctions and merits to the value in excess of 120 points can also be accepted. GCSE at grade 4 or above (or grade C or above for GCSEs taken before 2017) in English Language and Mathematics or equivalent qualification eg Functional/Key skills level 2 in numeracy and literacy
GCSE/National 4/National 5
Applicants need to have grade 4 English Language or Level 2 functional skills in English or equivalent
May be considered for entry into year 1 of the course. Due to the professional requirements of this course it is unlikely that you would be able to get advanced standing for entry into the second year of the course.
May be considered for entry into year 1 of the course. Due to the professional requirements of this course it is unlikely that you would be able to get advanced standing for entry into the second year of the course.
Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
H3,H3,H3,H3,H3-H2,H2,H2,H2,H3
A minimum of 120 UCAS points usually from 5 subjects
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma
Grade combinations below 120 points considered when combined with other Level 3 qualifications including AS and Extended Project to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Can be combined with other level 3 qualifications to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
Grade combinations below 120 points considered when combined with other Level 3 qualifications including AS and Extended Project to achieve a minimum of 120 points
Achieve a minimum of 120 tariff points achieved in either three Advanced Highers or from a combination of two Advanced Highers plus two Highers.
Scottish Higher
B,B,B,C,C-A,B,B,B,B
Achieve a minimum of 120 tariff points achieved from either five Highers or a combination of two Highers offered with two Advanced Highers. Where only Highers have been taken a minimum of (BBBCC) are required.
T Level
UCAS Tariff
We welcome a wide range of qualifications and qualification combinations. We assess each application individually, taking in to account any experience and skills you may have in your chosen field. Don't worry if you can't see your specific qualification listed, just contact our team of experts
You may also need to…
Attend an interview
About this course
**Reasons to choose Kingston**
- This course is accredited by Social Work England. Once you graduate, you can apply to register with Social Work England so you can start work as a qualified social worker.
- Kingston is ranked top in London for Social Work (Guardian University Guide 2025).
- Kingston is part of a sector-leading social work teaching partnership network with nine local authorities and three voluntary organisations.
- Our commitment to high quality teaching has been recognised with a Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) Gold rating. The University has received an overall rating of Gold, as well as securing a Gold award in the framework's two new student experience and student outcomes categories.
**About this course**
This course offers hands-on experience of social work theory, perspectives and models of intervention, and a foundation in ethics, diversity, social policy and law. You’ll study mental health, disability, ageing, adoption, fostering, substance misuse, youth justice, safeguarding, domestic violence and practice research. You’ll learn directly from people with lived experience and social workers in practice. You’ll develop your skills in our award-winning Practice Learning Suite through simulated interactions with people with lived experience.
We have a wide range of placement opportunities throughout South West London and Surrey, including child protection, youth justice, mental health, vulnerable adults settings, schools, drugs and substance misuse services.
**Future Skills**
Embedded within every course curriculum and throughout the whole Kingston experience, Future Skills will play a role in shaping you to become a future-proof graduate, providing you with the skills most valued by employers such as problem-solving, digital competency, and adaptability.
As you progress through your degree, you'll learn to navigate, explore and apply these graduate skills, learning to demonstrate and articulate to employers how future skills give you the edge.
At Kingston University, we're not just keeping up with change, we're creating it.
**Career opportunities**
This is an exciting time to enter social work and a very high percentage of graduates quickly obtain qualified social work posts. There are excellent employment and career opportunities in the statutory, voluntary and private sectors for qualified practitioners. Social workers increasingly work in integrated inter-professional teams in social care, health, education and criminal justice settings.
Modules
Examples of modules:
– Practice Skills and Methods
– Working with Ethics and Diversity in Social Work Practice
– Readiness for Direct Practice.
For a full list of modules please visit the Kingston university course webpage.
Assessment methods
Teaching and learning opportunities are varied and stimulating. They include field visits, classroom discussion of case studies and film clips as well as lectures and seminars led by experienced social workers, service users and academics.
Our Practice Learning Suite enables simulated interactions with service users (on doorsteps, in living rooms, in reception areas and interview spaces). Recording facilities enable you to observe and reflect on your practice. Teaching also comprises lectures, problem-solving approaches and small group sessions for learning support.
Tuition fees
Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:
The Uni
Kingston University
Department of Social Work and Social Care
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Social work
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Social work
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
We're short of social workers - so if you want a degree that is in demand, then this could be the one for you! There's a shortage of social workers all over the UK, and graduates can specialise in specific fields such as mental health or children's social work. If you decide social work is not for you, then social work graduates also often go into management, education, youth and community work and even nursing. Starting salaries for this degree can reflect the high proportion of graduates who choose a social work career - social work graduates get paid, on average, more than graduates overall, but not all options pay as well as social work. This is also an unusual subject in that London isn't one of the more common places to find jobs - so if you want to get a job near to your home or your university this might be worth thinking about.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Social work
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£31k
£32k
£36k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
Explore these similar courses...
Higher entry requirements
Lower entry requirements
Nearby UniversitySame UniversityThis is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.
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This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.
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This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
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Course location and department:
This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.
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Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):
We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.
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This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).
This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.
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This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.
You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.
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Post-six month graduation stats:
This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.
It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
Graduate field commentary:
The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.
While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
Have a question about this info? Learn more here
