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Psychology and Childhood Studies

Entry requirements


UCAS Tariff

112

About this course


Course option

3years

Full-time | 2024

Subjects

Psychology

Social work

Psychology and Childhood Studies will enable students to apply psychological knowledge and understanding to work with children and young people. The programme will teach students how to reach valid conclusions based on scientific underpinnings. The course will inform students about the practicalities of working with children and young people in research and social contexts, emphasis will be placed on current social and educational policies within child care and safeguarding. Psychology and Childhood Studies will explore how society views childhood, how children develop, the challenges facing children and young people today in addition to reviewing the impact of relevant legislation.

Why study this course?
This degree is accredited by the British Psychological Society (BPS).
Childhood focused modules are included in each year of study.
Optional modules in the third year to tailor own learning experience.
You will be taught by a highly qualified and experienced team of academic lecturers who are at the cutting-edge of their disciplines, allowing you to discover and explore the latest developments in the field.

What does the course cover?
During the first year of study students will learn about Psychology as an academic and applied discipline. Students will explore what is meant by ‘science’ and in particular, what is meant by evidence, and learn about the principles of research design. In addition, students will be introduced to some of the key thinkers and the big ideas that have shaped the way children, young people and families have been characterised. The key to the first year of study (level 4) study in this programme is the development of sound academic skills, research literacy, and a broad knowledge and understanding of the core domains in psychology, including how they may offer competing perspectives, and to the underlying principles and theoretical approaches of childhood studies.

In the second year of study (level 5), students will gain a deeper understanding of research methods and develop the skills and knowledge to prepare them to engage ethically and effectively in their own research or work-based projects. Another central feature of the second year is the development of in-depth knowledge and understanding of the core domains within psychology. These form the focus of four of the modules undertaken by students at this level, covering: cognition, biological, social, individual differences, development and research methods. In addition, students will critically analyse different theories and approaches to participation that practitioners exercise when making decisions that affect children, young people and families. Students also undertake their work placement during this academic year.

In the final year (level 6) of study students undertake an empirical dissertation in Psychology and Childhood Studies in addition to exploring the historical and contemporary concerns that have served to shape policy and practice around children. An important feature of the third year is the availability of optional modules focusing on areas of applied psychology and modules relating to childhood studies. Optional modules offered provide students with the opportunity to explore practical challenges of working with families where there are concerns around violence, harm and/or abuse in addition to developing anti-oppressive practice.

Modules

Please refer to the Birmingham Newman University website for details.

Assessment methods

Please refer to the Birmingham Newman University website for details.

Tuition fees

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

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Republic of Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

Birmingham Newman University

Department:

Psychology

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%
Psychology
68%
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.

Psychology (non-specific)

Teaching and learning

86%
Staff make the subject interesting
88%
Staff are good at explaining things
79%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
78%
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

84%
Library resources
95%
IT resources
84%
Course specific equipment and facilities
64%
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?

99%
UK students
1%
International students
20%
Male students
80%
Female students
55%
2:1 or above
24%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
C

Social work

Teaching and learning

75%
Staff make the subject interesting
82%
Staff are good at explaining things
89%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
80%
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

80%
Library resources
91%
IT resources
74%
Course specific equipment and facilities
67%
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
7%
Male students
93%
Female students
37%
2:1 or above
28%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
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.

Psychology (non-specific)

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.

79%
low
Employed or in further education
26%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

26%
Sales assistants and retail cashiers
18%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
14%
Caring personal services

20 years ago, this was a specialist degree for would-be psychologists but now it is the model of a modern, flexible degree subject. One of the UK's fastest-growing subject at degree level, and the second most popular subject overall (it recently overtook business studies), one in 23 of all graduates last year had psychology degrees. As you'd expect with figures like that, jobs in psychology itself are incredibly competitive, so to stand a chance of securing one, you need to get a postgraduate qualification (probably a doctorate in most fields, especially clinical psychology) and some relevant work experience. But even though there are so many psychology graduates — far more than there are jobs in psychology, and over 13,800 in total last year — this degree has a lower unemployment rate than average because its grads are so flexible and well-regarded by business and other industries across the economy. Everywhere there are good jobs in the UK economy, you'll find psychology graduates - and it's hardly surprising as the course helps you gain a mix of good people skills and excellent number and data handling skills. A psychology degree ticks most employers' boxes — but we'd suggest you don't drop your maths modules.

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.

£16,300
low
Average annual salary
96%
med
Employed or in further education
36%
low
Employed in a role where degree was essential or beneficial

Top job areas of graduates

37%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
24%
Childcare and related personal services
14%
Caring personal services

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.

Psychology (non-specific)

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£17k

£17k

£19k

£19k

£22k

£22k

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.

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.

£16k

£16k

£21k

£21k

£20k

£20k

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.

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Course location and department:

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Teaching Excellence Framework (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.

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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

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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