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University of Suffolk

UCAS Code: X300 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)

Entry requirements

A level

B,B,C

GCSE/National 4/National 5

GCSE English and Maths at Grade 4/C or above.

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

DMM

T Level

M

UCAS Tariff

112

About this course

Course option

3years

Full-time | 2025

Subject

Childhood studies

The BA (Hons) Childhood programme explores the multi-disciplinary nature of the study of childhood. It embraces academic disciplines such as sociology, education, psychology, history, philosophy, social policy and health, allowing for the diverse, multi-faceted experiences of children to be explored and interrogated.

Within the programme, a variety of discreet pathways are available, related to: ‘education’, ‘disability, special needs, health and wellbeing’, and ‘society and welfare’. These pathways allow students to acquire knowledge and understanding in specialised aspects of childhood and their associated career opportunities and are specifically named in the final degree award.

The first year of the program provides students with an introductory knowledge of child development, health, education and social policy. From the second year onwards, students can choose to focus on one of the three distinct pathways. These pathways will support individual students’ interests and employability outcomes. Students seeking a wider perspective on childhood, can choose modules from across the different pathways.

Pathway 1: Disability, Health and Wellbeing: offers a grounding in human development from an ecological perspective; health, well-being; and disability, from both a bio-psycho-social perspective and the disability-studies, rights-based approach.

Pathway 2: Education: examines early and primary education and the underpinning values of professional practice. Practice modules are available within this pathway. You can work towards an optional Early Childhood Graduate Competencies certification, developed by the Early Childhood Degree Network (ECSDN) and supported by the Department for Education (DfE).

Pathway 3: Children, Rights and Social Justice: is underpinned by empowerment, rights, and agency in childhood(s) and families across differing contexts and will enhance students’ ability to elevate voices of children and families. You will gain practical experience of working with children and families, such as placements with charities and the public sector, as part of preparation for employment with children.

Work experience and development of employability skills are embedded throughout the programme and practice modules are available within specific pathways. Within the Education pathway, students can work towards Early Childhood Graduate Competencies, developed by the Early Childhood Degree Network (ECSDN) and supported by the Department for Education (DfE). This will be offered as an additional certificate promoting the understanding, knowledge and skills required for work in the contemporary and dynamic early years sector. Students who opt to pursue and complete these competencies will receive a certificate of Early Childhood Studies Graduate Practitioner Competencies, alongside their degree.

The Childhood programme and its pathways provides the opportunity to develop a critical understanding of childhood for students who aspire to work directly with children, their families and/or with the services that support them. Employability has always been central to the Childhood programme here at the University of Suffolk. We encourage all students to undertake work/practice experience in whatever form is most accessible and appropriate for the individual student. This programme enables students to go into a range of careers working with children and their families as well as further graduate education such as Initial Teacher Training, Postgraduate Certification, and further studies at Masters’ and/or Doctorate level. Graduate destinations have previously been situated within the areas of education, early years provision, family support work, social care, therapeutic settings and charitable organisations.

Modules

Please see our website for module information.

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
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni

Course location:

University of Suffolk

Department:

School of Social Sciences and Humanities

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.

74%
Childhood studies

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.

Childhood and youth studies

Teaching and learning

93%
Staff make the subject interesting
97%
Staff are good at explaining things
96%
Ideas and concepts are explored in-depth
93%
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

85%
Library resources
93%
IT resources
84%
Course specific equipment and facilities
75%
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?

96%
UK students
4%
International students
1%
Male students
99%
Female students
81%
2:1 or above
4%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

B
A
B

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.

Childhood and youth studies

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.

£26,000
med
Average annual salary
94%
low
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

55%
Welfare professionals
16%
Welfare and housing associate professionals
16%
Childcare and related personal services

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Childhood and youth studies

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

£27k

£27k

£27k

£27k

£33k

£33k

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.

This 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.

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