Childhood Studies
Entry requirements
Scottish HNC
Entry to Year 2 with a HNC in one of the following: Childhood Practice; Early Education & Childcare; Childcare & Education; Additional Support Needs; Social Care; Social Sciences; Social Services
Scottish HND
Entry to Year 3 with a HND in one of the following: Childhood Practice; Early Education & Childcare; Childcare & Education; Additional Support Needs; Social Care; Social Sciences
T Level
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About this course
**OVERVIEW**
The BA (Hons) Childhood Studies is a top-up degree designed for holders of HNCs (or equivalent) and enables you to build a career in childhood services.
Throughout this course you will gain an understanding of the issues related to early childhood and services for children and families. You will learn about the values underpinning children’s services, and the importance of working in partnership with professionals from a range of disciplines. You will consider issues relating to management and leadership of early learning and childcare services.
To develop your practical knowledge, you’ll have the chance to complete two three-week blocks of work-based experience each year. In Year 3 you will have the option to complete placement in an international setting (currently available in Italy, Spain and Germany).
**PRACTICAL FOCUS**
This course is very practially-focused. Throughout the course, you will have the chance to apply your knowledge in a professional setting with blocks of work-based experience each year. In Year 2, you will complete one three-week block placement in Term 2; in years 3 and 4, you will complete two three-week placements, one each in Terms 1 and 2. Recent student placements were located in local authority establishments and private providers.
In addition, throughout your studies, we incorporate guest lectures from multi-agency professionals. These increase your understanding of broader aspects relating to work within the early years sector and enhance your academic studies.
**CAREER PROSPECTS**
**Jobs**
BA (Hons) Childhood Studies graduates have gained employment in integrated childcare services with children under five years, out-of-school care, and in project work offering support for children and their families in roles such as family support workers, early years practitioners, and NHS community nursery nurses.
**Further Study**
Further study towards Graduate Diploma in Childhood Practice qualifications, depending on experience, is possible. This enables registration with Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) as Lead Practitioner/Manager.
Depending on additional qualifications that graduates from this course may have, you may also be eligible to apply for a range of postgraduate programmes, including Initial Teacher Education (Primary), Social Work and Psychology. Note that for Iniitial Teacher Training (PGDE) courses, and other courses, graduates at postgraduate level may need to demonstrate that they possess the equivalent of a pass in SQA Higher English snd Internmediate 2 Maths in addition to a degree in order to apply as this is a requirement from respective professional recognition bodies/institutes.
Modules
As this is a top-up degree, your studies start at Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework at Level 8, or what is second year of degree studies.
In Year 2, through your studies and work-based learning opportunities, you will learn about health and well-being, social justice and equality, holistic child development and develop your self-reflection skills. Leadership and teamwork skills are developed in a variety of early learning and childcare settings. You will also reflect on how to effectively support children’s communication and early literacy skills.
In Year 3, you will learn more about management and leadership skills in an early years setting. You will explore multi-agency working and the importance of providing effective integrated services. You will have opportunities to promote creativity across the curriculum. International policies and practices of early education and childcare are studied. You will be introduced to qualitative research methods and undertake a research project. There are opportunities to undertake an international placement.
In the the final, Honours year of study, you will develop specialist knowledge and practice in an area of your own interest. You will also deepen your knowledge of the core themes of theory, research and practice through undertaking a research study and dissertation. You will have opportunities to explore inter-professional working through asset based approaches to supporting families. You will explore a range of pedagogical approaches to facilitating children’s play, learning and development.
Assessment methods
The course will be delivered using a blend of learning and teaching strategies. These include use of the UWS virtual learning environment (Moodle), Interactive Whiteboards, online tutor/student led discussions. Lectures, tutorials, student-led seminars, group-work, role-play, presentations, workshops, problem-based learning and work-related learning will be used to develop student learning. In the final year of study, (SCQF Level 10), the course will be delivered partially online utilising a blended learning format of class sessions, tutorials and online activities. Throughout the programme learning and assessment will have a work based focus.
Tuition fees
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Extra funding
Visit www.uws.ac.uk/scholarships
The Uni
Dumfries Campus
Ayr Campus
Lanarkshire Campus
Education and Social Sciences
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?
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Childhood and youth studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
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Student voice
Who studies this subject and how do they get on?
Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)
After graduation
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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.
Top job areas of graduates
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.
£28k
£26k
£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.
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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).
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Post-six month graduation stats:
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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:
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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?
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