Social Work BA - Part-time employment route

About the Course

This is a broad-based course which benefits from a wide range of staff specialisms. It is validated by the General Social Care Council (GSCC).

We work to help students build on the knowledge and experience they have gained in the workplace. Employees must have the support of their employer.

Our degree in Social Work is organised by a partnership group that includes Brunel and 10 London agencies, including a number of local authorities and voluntary and private agencies. The BA is awarded via either the full-time route or the employment-based route.

The professional and academic elements of the course are closely integrated throughout. Seminars, tutorials and formal classes are integrated with professional practice, and theory is applied through the analysis of social issues and problems.

A high percentage of our intake are mature students, and these applicants are considered on an individual basis. Candidates must demonstrate the capacity to undertake the academic demands of the course and have substantial, full-time, supervised experience in social work or equivalent. If you are not sure whether you have the requisite academic background, speak to your agency representative or the course leader.

Hear about Social Work at Brunel

About Health Sciences and Social Care at Brunel

Health and social care has become one of the most hotly discussed and debated issues of our time and is a subject that can be studied from a biological, psychological, sociological, philosophical, political, environmental or cultural perspective. It affects us individually as well as through our families, communities and society as a whole.

Health and social care issues have always attracted legal and ethical debates ranging from questions about the beginning and end of life to the difficulties of managing professional health staff. These issues have become more complex as consumers of care services become more demanding and more knowledgeable of their rights.

The courses offered at Brunel aim to meet the needs of a wide range of professions as well as of individuals who want to explore and think critically about current health and social care issues.

We have a long history of providing courses for health and social care professionals. Most of our courses are supported by various consortia of health trusts or social work agencies.

We aim to combine a thorough professional education with academic excellence and have a substantial record of research, innovation and publication which is reflected in the quality and relevance of our teaching. 

Aims

The course aims to provide a rigorous and intellectually broadening educational experience. It will develop your understanding of theories, concepts, analytical techniques and research methods from the social sciences, and apply them to social welfare policy and practice to give you a critical understanding of social welfare.

How to Apply

To appply, please download and complete the application and reference forms.

Enquiries

An information pack including an application form can be obtained by contacting:

Dr Sue Hanna
BA Admissions Tutor (PT and FT)

School of Health Sciences and Social Care
Brunel University
Middlesex
UB8 3PH

Tel +44 (0)1895 268 824
Email socialwork@brunel.ac.uk
Web Social Work subject pages

Related Courses

• Social Work BA

Special Features

• The course is validated by the General Social Care Council (GSCC).
  
  
• Students enjoy first-rate facilities in the brand-new, multi-million pound Health Studies Centre.
  
  
• The University is a very friendly environment with a community feel.
  
  
• We are the only London programme to subscribe to the Open Learning Foundation, whose workbooks are available to students for private study.
  
  
• We are one of the leading providers of university-based social work research in London and have attracted funding from, amongst other sources, the ESRC, the AHRC, the Rowntree Trust, the Department for Education and Skills and the NHS.
  
  
• Students benefit from close links with social service and voluntary organisations.
  
  
• Recent groundbreaking research into comparative social work, community care, child development, and race and social work feed into our taught programmes, making them highly relevant and up-to-date. We have four active research centres, as well as an international reputation for our work in the field of social policy. Lecturers include authors of best selling books on citizenship, community care and child protection.
  
  
• We have a long-standing commitment to providing training opportunities for mature applicants and for students from ethnic minorities. Anti-discriminatory practice has been at the core of our training philosophy for some years and this emphasis is evident in the teaching of this course.
  

Facts and Figures

We have over 30 years’ experience helping employees to gain their social work qualification.

Course Content

Typical Modules

Level 1

• Supported Learning for Key Skills
• Introduction to Social Work
• Social Policy
• Human Development
• Practice Learning 1 (30-day placement)

Level 2

• Theoretical Perspectives in Social Work
• Social Work, Law and the English Legal System
• Values and Contemporary Issues
• Reflective Social Work Practice
• Practice Learning 2 (70-day placement)

Level 3

• Social Research Methods
• Either Children and Families or Community Care
• Social work Electives (Family work, Care Management and Networking, Specialist Therapeutic Settings, Psycho-Social Interventions)
• Practice Learning 3 (100-day placement)

Client Groups

You will work in the following fields:

• Children and families
• Mental health work
• Older people
• Illness and disability

Social Work methods

You will learn to employ the following methods:

• Therapeutic work with individuals
• Family work
• Care management
• Group work

Teaching and Learning

Attendance

The course takes place over four calendar, as opposed to academic, years. Over university vacations, you will still be involved in both academic and practice learning.

Attendance at university is one day a week apart from the autumn term in Year 2, where attendance is 1.5 days a week. In addition, students must commit to a minimum of eight hours a week of private study.

Employees have their own designated route to the BA (Hons) Social Work. Some modules are taught with the full-time students to allow for the widest possible experience. However, we recognise that students undertaking a BA (Hons) Social Work while in employment face particular challenges. They also bring considerable experience to the course. We therefore offer regular employee tutorial groups, and some modules are taught separately to allow employment-based students the opportunity to share expertise and seek support from each other.

Over the four years, students undertake 200 days practice learning organised by their agency. At least 115 days of this is outside of their workplace.

How will I be taught?

Teaching methods combine seminars and tutorials with more formal classes. These emphasise the integration of social science subjects with professional practice and the application of theory to the analysis of social issues and problems.

Undergraduate teaching benefits from an increasing number of postgraduate research students who often contribute their specialist expertise to taught modules.

Tutorial and practice teacher support

All students have an academic tutor during the course, and an experienced practice assessor for each work placement. Individual and group tutorials are a core timetabled part of the curriculum. Your academic tutor willsupport you in making effective links between your university-based and placement-based learning.

Assessment

Assessment in practice placements is continuous and culminates in the placement report, to which both student and practice assessor contribute.

Academic work is assessed through a range of assignments, with published submission dates. These assignments include tests, presentations, essays and revealed examinations.

As there is no ‘compensation’ between practice assessments and university assessment, both elements must be passed.

Employability

Brunel has always placed great emphasis on developing graduates who can innovate and implement, and who can add value to society through their industry. Brunel students become the kind of graduates who employers want to recruit, and as a result they currently enjoy the 13th highest starting salaries in the UK. This success is down to a several factors.

• Combining academic study with work experience
• Creative and forward-looking subjects
• An award-winning careers service
• Working while they study
• The entrepreneurial spirit
  

For more information, go to our Employability page.

Careers

The aim of this course is to produce competent social work practitioners, who are able to work critically and professionally in combating racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination.

Many students who complete the BA in Social Work go on to attend one of our post-qualifying courses.

Fees for 2013/14 entry

UK/EU students: £9,000 full-time; £6,750 part-time

International students: £15,000 full-time

We are introducing over 700 scholarships for 2013, meaning that one in five applicants who join Brunel next year will receive financial support from the University. See our fees and funding page for full details

Fees quoted are per annum and are subject to an annual increase.

Entry Requirements for 2013 Entry

• GCE A-level BBC including a Grade C in a Social Science Subject (General Studies not accepted, Critical thinking accepted as a 4^th subject only).
• Irish Leaving Certificate BBBBB.
• Scottish Advanced Highers BBC.
• Advanced Diploma Progression Diploma Grade B in Society, Health and Development, plus an A-level at Grade C for Additional and Specialist Learning.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma DDM in a related subject.
• IBDP 30 points.
• Access Pass in related subject including at least 60% of units with Merit or Distinction.

For all of the above, 5 GCSEs or equivalent at Grade C or above are also required, to include English and Maths (please note that these must have been gained by the time you submit your UCAS application).

English Language Requirements

Brunel also offers our own BrunELT English Test and accept a range of other language courses. We also have a range of Pre-sessional English language courses, for students who do not meet these requirements, or who wish to improve their English.