Get degree ideas using our A level explorer tool

Social Work (including foundation year)

Entry requirements


at least one A level (or a minimum of 32 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification, eg BTEC Subsidiary/National/BTEC Extended Diploma)

GCSE/National 4/National 5

You will be required to have GCSE English Language at grade C/4 or above (or equivalent such as Functional Skills Level 2).

UCAS Tariff

32

About this course


Course option

4years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Social work

**Why study this course?**

Our Social Work (including foundation year) BSc (Hons) is an alternative route into social work studies if you don’t meet the necessary requirements to enter the standard undergraduate degree.

This four-year course has a built-in preparatory year, designed to equip you with confidence and vital study skills, such as essay writing, research and critical thinking. You’ll benefit from an extra year that will help you succeed at undergraduate level, but you’ll graduate with the same award and title as students on the standard three-year course.

**More about this course**

Our social work bachelor's degree with a foundation year will provide you with knowledge, skills and experience to enter or progress your career within the health and social care sector.

The foundation year will equip you with valuable transferable skills that will help you succeed in any workplace – you’ll learn how to manage your workload, critically analyse information and improve your academic writing skills. During the foundation year, you’ll also complete a taster module in social work, so that you can prepare for more in-depth study of the subject in the subsequent three years of your course.

Your foundation year will be shared with students from other specialisms studying a foundation year in the School of Social Professions. This will be the perfect opportunity to learn about other disciplines and exchange different perspectives on the topics you study.

During your foundation year you’ll also complete a module in social work. This module will help you develop the necessary knowledge and skills that will give you an introduction to studying social work at undergraduate level. This module will also prepare you for the application process for the Social Work BSc (Hons) course. Upon successful completion of assessed group and written tests you will be put forward to the individual interview stage. If you pass this stage, you’ll join students on our Social Work BSc (Hons) course and study the same content and modules as them. If you are unsuccessful but pass all your modules, you can choose another course at the University, subject to meeting entry requirements.

You are encouraged to attend an Open Day event if you have any queries and would like to speak to an academic member of staff.

Modules

Example Year 0 modules include:

Critical Thinking
Interventions for Change
Media, Crime and 'Race'
Reflecting on Self and Society
Researching Discrimination
Researching Inequality
Social Issues in Context: Text to Essay
Example Year 1 modules include:

Assessing, Planning and Professional Ethics
Communication, Skills and Values in Social Work
Human Growth and Development: A Life Course Perspective
Social Cotext for Social Work
Example Year 2 modules include:

Inter-Professional Practice
Law for Social Work Practice
Safeguarding Children and Adults
Social Work Practice Learning 1
Theoretical Perspectives in Social Work
Example Year 3 modules include:

Effective Social Work Practice with Children and Adults
Research Project
Social Work Practice Learning 2

Assessment methods

Your foundation year will be assessed via group work, coursework, presentations, class tests and portfolios.

Assessments in the subsequent three years of your studies will consist of essays, exams and assessed practice placements. The assessed practice element will require you to work supervised within at least two different practice settings over a minimum of 170 days.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£17,600
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£17,600
per year
International
£17,600
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£17,600
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Holloway

Department:

School of Social Sciences and Professions

Read full university profile

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.

88%
Social work

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

91%
Staff make the subject interesting
92%
Staff are good at explaining things
83%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
83%
Opportunities to apply what I've learned

Assessment and feedback

Feedback on work has been timely
Feedback on work has been helpful
Staff are contactable when needed
Good advice available when making study choices

Resources and organisation

75%
Library resources
73%
IT resources
70%
Course specific equipment and facilities
66%
Course is well organised and has run smoothly

Student voice

Staff value students' opinions
Feel part of a community on my course

Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

100%
UK students
0%
International students
14%
Male students
86%
Female students
72%
2:1 or above
20%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

D
D
C

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.

£20,800
med
Average annual salary
95%
med
Employed or in further education
76%
med
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

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.

£24k

£24k

£29k

£29k

£30k

£30k

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
University of Gloucestershire | Cheltenham
Social Work
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 104
Nearby University
University of Hertfordshire | Hatfield
Social Work
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 120-128
Same University
London Metropolitan University | Islington
Social Work
BSc (Hons) 3 Years Full-time 2024
UCAS Points: 120

Share this page

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

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