About the course
Make a real difference to the lives of children and young people, families and communities, on a course that equips you to have an impact locally, nationally and globally.
This course combines practical experience and research-informed theory to provide you with a thorough, current understanding of the needs of children and young people. You explore child development and child welfare as well as social policies and legislative frameworks. This includes the right to equal access to services and life opportunities regardless of social difference.
In your second and third years, you can choose from a range of optional units in areas such as mental health, disability and youth violence. In your final year, you also undertake an independent research project, supported by our Social Sciences team, all of whom are actively involved in research themselves.
Why choose this course?
- It has a student satisfaction rate of 95% for our teaching (NSS 2022). Our Childhood and Youth courses also ranked 7th for overall student satisfaction and 2nd for Graduate Outcomes (Prospects and On-Track), out of 49 HE institutes offering the subject (Complete University Guide 2023)
- Gain the practical skills and knowledge you need for a career working with children, young people and families
- Learn from staff with professional practice experience in youth work, counselling, teaching and working with looked-after children
- Study with academics who have research expertise in areas such as child protection, alternative education and school exclusion, mentoring and coaching, safeguarding, and sexual exploitation
- Benefit from opportunities offered by the University of Bedfordshire’s new Health & Social Care Academy, run in partnership with local councils and NHS Trusts, to recruit, train and develop health and social care workers
- Be able to recognise and challenge discrimination, oppression and inequality across a range of services
- There’s the option to take the course over four years and include a year’s placement in industry (see below), allowing you to gain practical skills, build your CV and make contacts
- If you need to step up into higher education, start with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees entry to the undergraduate degree
- The course can lead into careers in education, social work and welfare, youth and community work or postgraduate study
Why Study in the School of Applied Social Sciences?
- Courses developed in partnership with practice agencies
- Our research involving robots, shows that they can improve mental health and loneliness in the elderly
- Part of the SASS change makers initiative
Units
- Career Planning For Social Scientists (ASS102-1) Compulsory
- Developing Academic Skills (ASS086-1) Compulsory
- Human Growth And Development Across The Lifespan (ASS087-1) Compulsory
- Introduction To Research And Social Enquiry (ASS100-1) Compulsory
- Narratives Of Childhood And Youth (ASS105-1) Compulsory
- Working With People (ASS088-1) Compulsory
- Digital Childhoods (ASS118-2) Compulsory
- Perceptions And Discourses Of Childhood (ASS119-2) Compulsory
- Research 1: Collecting Data (ASS110-2) Compulsory
- Research 2: Exploring Data (ASS113-2) Compulsory
- The Social Sciences At Work (ASS099-2) Compulsory
- Working Together: Multi-Agency Approaches To Risk And Assessment In Child Welfare (ASS115-2) Compulsory
- Addictions And Society (ASS106-2) Optional
- Disability In Society (ASS062-2) Optional
- Gangs And Serious Youth Violence (ASS067-2) Optional
- Identity Inequality And Difference (ASS059-2) Optional
- Mental Health And Society (ASS091-2) Optional
- Child Protection And Safeguarding: The Contexts Of Vulnerability (ASS009-3) Compulsory
- Sass Change Maker Project Dissertation (ASS139-3) Compulsory
- Sass Change Maker Research Dissertation (ASS142-3) Compulsory
- Childhoods In Global Context (ASS023-3) Optional
- Special Educational Needs And Challenging Behaviour In Schooling (ASS133-3) Optional
- The Lived Experiences Of Children And Young People In Diverse Family And Social Circumstances (ASS135-3) Optional
- Violence In Modern Society (ASS148-3) Optional
- Youth Justice: Models And Approaches (ASS137-3) Optional
How will this course improve my career prospects?
Our focus on employability throughout the degree course means that we support you in developing a portfolio of practical skills that will enhance your career prospects. Our graduates are equipped to understand and apply their knowledge of key theories, debates and the latest research to inform practice.
The course equips you for roles and career progression in education; social work and social welfare; family and youth services; and community work. Graduates from this course can move on to professional accreditation courses to become a teacher, social worker or a JNC-accredited youth worker. You may also like to undertake further academic study at Master’s level, with related degrees such as our MA Childhood, Youth and Family Studies.
*international students are eligible of receiving the VS'S scholarship of 1000GBP
My name is Kavisha Prince Anthony, and I always had a dream of studying abroad. Thankfully, that dream came to life since I applied to the Study Advisor. I was able to receive my visa within four days. I also had some visa refusals in the past; I had about six UK visa refusals in the past, but thankfully, it was not an issue since the Study Advisor was able to make things work this time. I highly recommend Study Advisor for your dreams of going abroad, whether it be the UK or any other European country there is.