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Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year)
University of Essex
Entry requirements
Here's what you will need to get a place on the Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) course at University of Essex.
We're still busy gathering entry requirements for Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) at University of Essex. Look out for more info soon.
Most popular A-levels studied
See who's studying at University of Essex. These students are taking Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) or another course from the same subject area.
| Subject | Grade |
|---|---|
| Psychology | C |
| Biology | C |
| Drama and Theatre Studies | A* |
| English Literature | A |
| Geography | C |
Course summary
What this course is about
UCAS code: L522
Here's what University of Essex says about its Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) course.
Are you fascinated by children’s behaviour? What drives their development, what informs their behaviour and shapes their identity? Do you want to help children with emotional, social, behavioural and education difficulties? Why do some children falter through life’s ups and downs, whilst others seem to thrive in adversity and are more resilient? Do you want to make a difference to children’s lives? If so, this course is for you.
Children today face a wide range of new and challenging experiences, including unprecedented access to media, wider cultural diversity, online bullying and larger school numbers. Their early experiences of childhood affect them for the rest of their lives. You can make a positive contribution to these formative years.
Childhood studies is a vibrant and exciting field which has expanded in recent years to include knowledge from psychology, sociology and psychoanalysis. This course lays the foundations for a career working with infants and children, whether in education, health care or children’s services. You gain a solid understanding of child development, the ecology of childhood (the place of children in different societies) and consider the way our concepts of childhood shape and condition children’s lives. You will also learn about the direct work with children through undertaking a placement in each year of study where you can begin to make links between theory and practice. Assessment is mainly by course work.
Topics include:
-
Psychosocial approaches
-
Child development
-
Attachment theory
-
ADHD, developmental trauma and Autism
-
Criminological approaches
-
Play and infant observation
-
The social history of childhood
-
Children in literature
-
Therapeutic work in groups
-
Wellbeing and resilience
-
Psychodynamics of teaching, learning
-
Therapeutic work groups
Source: University of Essex
Course details
Qualification
Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Department
Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies
Location
Colchester Campus | Colchester
Duration
4 Years
Study mode
Sandwich
Subjects
• Child care
Start date
October 2026
Application deadline
14 January 2026
The modules you will study
Many of our courses offer a choice of optional modules to tailor your learning experience. More information about these can be found on the University of Essex website.
University of Essex student reviews
Showing 45 reviews
2nd year student
3 years ago
The SU tries their best with the budget they have. They are probably one of the only departments who try their hardest at Essex. Societies and sports clubs are great with lots of socials and a great way and the best way to make new friends at Essex. The 2 bars and nightclub on campus are ok although...
2nd year student
3 years ago
I live near Colchester so I haven’t moved far to go to Essex University so I knew what the area would be like. It isn’t the most busiest area and you can pretty much find every and do everything tourist-wise in a couple of days. Nightlife is ok with the club on campus and a couple in the town, all o...
2nd year student
3 years ago
With the cost of living so high in the UK, the University has only raised their rent slightly and when you take into account that bills are included, the cheaper accommodation options are quite good deals. I notice that financial support is offered to those in more difficult circumstances due to the...
2nd year student
3 years ago
There is more that could be done in this area and I imagine those who are new to this sort of environment (living on your own, needing to self motivate to study etc) would struggle as there is a lack of communication from all aspects of the University. A simple email explaining how a specific examin...
2nd year student
3 years ago
The facilities on campus for education (library, labs etc) I cannot fault and they all work effectively. However, the accommodation is quite poor. In my 1st year in halls, I moved into a dirty room which smelt like a toilet. Clearly it hadn’t been cleaned since the last tenant which meant I had to c...
2nd year student
3 years ago
The course content is good however the delivery is lacking. It seems pointless going to lectures face to face as a lot of lecturers just read off the slides and add nothing on top. Sometimes the lecturers themselves seem puzzled at some of the content on the slides and they often just quickly move o...
National Student Survey (NSS) scores at University of Essex
The NSS is an annual survey where final-year students are asked to rate different aspects of their course and university experience.
Here you can see ratings from University of Essex students who took the Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) course - or another course in the same subject area.
Select an option to see a detailed breakdown
Teaching on my course
88%
med
Teaching on my course
88%
med
How often does your course challenge you to achieve your best work?
89%
low
How good are teaching staff at explaining things?
94%
med
How often do teaching staff make the subject engaging?
79%
low
How often is the course intellectually stimulating?
90%
med
Learning opportunities
88%
med
Learning opportunities
88%
med
To what extent have you had the chance to bring together information and ideas from different topics?
84%
low
How well does your course introduce subjects and skills in a way that builds on what you have already learned?
94%
med
How well has your course developed your knowledge and skills that you think you will need for your future?
94%
med
To what extent have you had the chance to explore ideas and concepts in depth?
90%
med
To what extent does your course have the right balance of directed and independent study?
79%
low
Assessment and feedback
80%
low
Assessment and feedback
80%
low
How well have assessments allowed you to demonstrate what you have learned?
90%
med
How fair has the marking and assessment been on your course?
74%
low
How often does feedback help you to improve your work?
69%
low
How often have you received assessment feedback on time?
100%
high
How clear were the marking criteria used to assess your work?
68%
low
Academic support
87%
low
Academic support
87%
low
How easy was it to contact teaching staff when you needed to?
89%
med
How well have teaching staff supported your learning?
84%
low
Organisation and management
79%
low
Organisation and management
79%
low
How well were any changes to teaching on your course communicated?
76%
low
How well organised is your course?
79%
low
Learning resources
91%
med
Learning resources
91%
med
How well have the IT resources and facilities supported your learning?
83%
low
How well have the library resources (e.g., books, online services and learning spaces) supported your learning?
94%
med
How easy is it to access subject specific resources (e.g., equipment, facilities, software) when you need them?
93%
med
Student voice
79%
low
Student voice
79%
low
How clear is it that students' feedback on the course is acted on?
63%
low
To what extent do you get the right opportunities to give feedback on your course?
94%
med
To what extent are students' opinions about the course valued by staff?
77%
low
How well does the students' union (association or guild) represent students' academic interests?
93%
high
Other NSS questions
Other NSS questions
During your studies, how free did you feel to express your ideas, opinions, and beliefs?
89%
low
How well communicated was information about your university/college's mental wellbeing support services?
76%
low
Student information
See who's studying at University of Essex. These students are taking Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) or another course from the same subject area.
Graduate prospects
What graduates do next
Facts and figures about University of Essex graduates who took Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) - or another course in the same subject area.
Graduate statistics
75%
In a job where degree was essential or beneficial
90%
Say it fits with future plans
95%
Are utilising studies
Top job areas
50%
Welfare Professionals
10%
Caring personal services
5%
Managers, directors and senior officials
5%
Teaching and Childcare Associate Professionals
Graduate statistics percentages are determined 15 months after a student graduates
Earnings after graduation
Earnings from University of Essex graduates who took Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year) - or another course in the same subject area.
Earnings
£30.7k
First year after graduation
£27k
Third year after graduation
£23k
Fifth year after graduation
Shown here are the median earnings of graduates at one, three and five years after they completed a course related to Childhood Studies (Including Placement Year).
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
Discussions
Discussions
Students are talking about University of Essex on The Student Room.
University of Essex open days
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Universities will list upcoming open days on their websites. Most will also have virtual open days; these are a great alternative if you really can't get there in person. For tips on preparing for open days, check the advice section here on The Uni Guide.
