Education BA

The Education BA at Brunel offers you the opportunity to combine the study of education with professional practice to give you a pathway into a range of education professions and postgraduate professional study including teacher education.

Whether you are looking to explore education related fields – such as counselling, educational psychology, social services, local authority work, social work, administration and education management – or you already know you want to teach, Brunel’s Education BA will give you a strong foundation from which to build.

The course will equip you with a broad and balanced view of educational theory, policy and practice within a range of educational contexts. You will also have numerous opportunities to develop a range of transferable skills such as critical reflection, systematic analysis, communication, collaboration, presentation and writing skills.

When it comes to professional practice, the Education BA includes three integrated work placements to give you the opportunity to explore different educational settings. To help you manage your time, you can do your placement experience weekly or in a block over the holidays.

If it’s teaching experience you’re seeking, Brunel’s network of partner schools is diverse and well-established which means you can gain highly valued teaching experience in vibrant multi-cultural schools where you will be fully supported by a work placement mentor as well as a Brunel tutor.

The Brunel Education BA aims to equip you with a broad and balanced view of educational theory, policy and practice within a range of educational contexts.

In each year of the course you will study a set of compulsory modules and undertake an integral placement to help you put what you learn into practice in a variety of educational settings.

The course is structured around three broad learning strands that run through each year:

• Education, culture and society
• Educational theory and development
• Professional skills and practice

Please see programme specification for the specific modules that are available.

Our Education BA offers you a pathway into employment in a range of educational-related fields either on graduation or via further professional study such as Schools Direct, Post Graduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) and Post Graduate Diploma Youth and Community (PGDipYCW).

As an Education BA graduate career options include education administration, after-school programme co-ordination, early years education, and informal education, education welfare, continuing professional development co-ordination, business training, and primary school teaching. 

Brunel Education BA graduates are top UK earners. On average, Brunel Education alumni earn £35,400 five years after graduating compared to a £24,700 average for Education graduates across the university sector (Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE)).

• GCE A-level CCC.
• BTEC Level 3 Extended Diploma DDM in a related subject. Other subjects may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
• BTEC Level 3 Diploma DD in a related subject, with an A-Level at grade C.
• BTEC Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma D in any subject, with A-Levels at grade CC is preferred however 3 BTEC Subsidiary Diplomas can be assessed on an individual basis.
• International Baccalaureate Diploma 27 points.
• Obtain a minimum of 96 UCAS tariff points in the  Access to HE Diploma with 45 credits at Level 3.                   

A minimum of five GCSEs are required, including GCSE English Language grade C or grade 4. GCSE Mathematics grade C or grade 4 is also normally required.

Please check our Admissions pages for more information on other factors we use to assess applicants as well as our full GCSE requirements and accepted equivalencies in place of GCSEs.

• IELTS: 6.5 (min 5.5 in all areas)
• Pearson: 58 (51 in all subscores)
• BrunELT: 65% (min 55% in all areas)
• TOEFL: 92 (min R18, L17, S20, W17) 

Brunel has one of the longest established education departments in the country and is a leading research centre for work in supportive education that receives high ratings from the UK’s leading benchmarkers such as Ofsted.

You will be taught by a team of enthusiastic and supportive academic staff, many of which are active researchers on a variety of education topics.

Your learning will take place in groups of different sizes and compositions to provide a variety of experiences as you get to know and interact with a group of likeminded students as you develop on the course.

You will be taught using a variety of teaching and learning techniques that include: lectures, seminars (to promote discussions and group work), tutorials, student presentations, practical sessions, and for the placement modules, workplace mentors and tutor support.

Work-based experience is designed to provide you with opportunities to apply and enhance your learning and research skills in professional settings where you will do range of directed tasks and research activities at each level of study.

A great deal of your learning will take place in your own independent learning and research where you will develop a range of study skills, research-related skills and critical thinking during directed reading, reflective exercises and preparation for assessments and work-based experiences.

Should you need any non-academic support during your time at Brunel, the Student Support and Welfare Team are here to help.

Assessments vary between modules and typically include critical assignments, reflective reports, portfolios, student presentations and posters (group and individual) and placement portfolios. Most modules incorporate both a written and presentation element.

At the end of your course, you will complete a dissertation in an education topic of your choice under the guidance of a dissertation supervisor.