Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Psychology

at University of Bolton United Kingdom

If you’re looking for a postgraduate course that exactly matches your strengths and ambitions then your search is over. The University of Bolton's MA/MSc Professional Practice (Specialism): Extended allows you to design your own master’s degree. We’ll help you personalise your postgraduate education by combining the disciplines that matter for your future. This bespoke course will support you to gain a combination of academic, analytical, and employment-focused skills that will prepare you for a career in your chosen professional area, as well as provide a sound basis for doctoral-level study.

Supporting your choices
Working with our expert tutors, you can choose two modules from across the whole spectrum of master’s level modules available at the University of Bolton. You’ll also be supported to devise a master’s-level dissertation or major project that develops your research and critical thinking skills and allows you to demonstrate your expertise. We’ll counsel you as you make these choices to ensure you create a coherent programme of study – one that is achievable and that will support you to develop the skills and knowledge you seek. We offer a wide range of subjects and you can choose modules from a single area or from two different disciplines, depending on your interests, prior qualifications and experience.

Capture essential employability, transferable and business skills
Alongside your subject-specific studies, you’ll have the opportunity to build the essential employability, transferable and business skills you need to compete with confidence for your dream job or build your own successful business from the ground up. You’ll focus on developing the skills that are most valuable to you as an individual, as shaped by your prior learning and future plans. We’ll guide you to explore areas such as influence and impact, self-management, creativity and innovation, and professional identity, bringing in business and psychological concepts to enhance your development as a professional.

Focusing on your future
We want to help you gain the skills and self-belief to showcase your worth in your chosen field. We’ll guide you to explore and understand the postgraduate labour market in the sector you wish to join, preparing you to apply your new knowledge, attributes and experiences so that you can satisfy and impress your stakeholders (such as employers, clients, commissioners and funding bodies). We’ll help you learn about the recruitment methods used by different types of organisations in your field, explore your personal brand and self-positioning, and prepare for recruitment and selection or self-employment. In addition, we’ll support you to develop skills in commercial ability and acumen, networking and professional relationship management, as well as strategies for career maintenance and growth.

Tried and tested research-informed coaching
Throughout the programme, we’ll use tried and tested, research-informed coaching and training methods to support your development. These will range from postgraduate-level skills in research, critique, problem-solving, professional presentation and synthesis to interpersonal and business-relevant skills such as innovative thinking, team working and project management, the effective use of technology, public speaking and professionalism. All this knowledge will be tailored to your chosen employment context to help you achieve your vision for your future.

An ideal course for graduates and professionals in a wide range of areas
This course should appeal to (but isn’t limited to) graduates and professionals in areas such as art and design, accountancy, science, engineering, business management, film FX, performing arts, community development and youth, computing, games, construction, law, crime and criminal justice, early years, education, English and creative writing, mathematics, nursing and the caring professions, media, psychology, the humanities and sport.

Would you prefer to complete your course over a different timeframe?
We also offer this course full-time over 12 months or part-time over 24 months. For details of the 12-month course, please visit our full-time MA/MSc Professional Practice (Specialism) course search web page. Alternatively, to find out more and apply for the 24-month course, please visit our part-time MA/MSc Professional Practice (Specialism) course search web page.

Highlights

• Dr Selva Pankaj, the author of ‘Thinking into Character – A Proven Methodology for the Creation of Success & Self-Fulfilment’, is a valued partner of the University whose work will support you in the development of business and career planning, confidence and knowledge.
• This course allows you to focus on one subject or to combine two areas of interest to follow an interdisciplinary route. When you successfully complete the master's, your degree title will be chosen to reflect the focus of your studies.
• Our highly qualified and professionally experienced staff have strong links with many economic sectors, offering opportunities for industry masterclasses and lectures, joint projects, and networking.
• The University of Bolton offers a host of world-class facilities across our campus and faculties. Depending on your choice of modules, you'll be able to make use of our specialist facilities to support your studies.
• This MA/MSc is part of the University of Bolton’s ‘Career Development Masters’ suite, which offers shared modules designed to give you a wider business perspective, including tax self-assessment, invoicing, intellectual property and risk assessments, as well as knowing how to start a business and to take advantage of opportunities for enterprise development.

Key Features

• Teaching and supervision are delivered by dedicated staff chosen for their expertise and experience in fields relevant to your areas of study and professional development needs.
• We offer an engaging programme of visiting speakers and practitioners that gives you opportunities to network with and learn from industry professionals.
• We'll offer you opportunities for interdisciplinary work and collaboration.
• Your studies will culminate in your Professional Dissertation, an independent and substantial piece of research that will further your knowledge and practice. This will demonstrate your mastery of an aspect of your field, showcasing your expert knowledge to employers as well as forming an ideal preparation for doctoral-level studies should you to wish to pursue a PhD.
• Your final master’s degree title will reflect your specialist areas of study (please note that the final award title will be selected in agreement with the University within the parameters specified in programme documentation). If you have chosen two specialist subject areas with equal weighting, the title will reflect both specialist subject areas; for instance, MA Professional Practice Creative Writing and Computing. If one of your specialist subject areas has a greater weighting than the other, the word ‘with’ will be used instead of ‘and’ between the two subject areas; for example, MA Professional Practice Creative Writing with Computing.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion course is designed to introduce you to a range of aspects of the fashion industry. It provides the chance to enhance your employment prospects in a range of fashion careers, including fashion design, buying and retail, merchandising, forecasting, and styling.

During your studies, you’ll have the opportunity to enhance your knowledge and understanding of forecasted trends, fashion design history, commercial design and manufacturing processes, and material understanding.

Our experienced and dedicated staff will support you as you develop skills in pattern cutting, garment manufacture, fashion illustration and visualisation techniques, and the application of surface design and embellishment. We’ll encourage you to balance your individual creative expression with industry awareness for the production of innovative fashion outcomes, including womenswear, menswear, childrenswear and accessories.

You’ll also have the chance to use the latest reports from the Worth Global Style Network, and benefit from the University’s extensive industry links, for live project briefs. Support will also be offered to develop your appreciation of the design timeline, the trend prediction industry, and consumer research.

Highlights

• Our team of highly knowledgeable and enthusiastic fashion lecturers offer face-to-face sessions and one-to-one support, ensuring you can access help and advice when you need it.
• We’ll encourage you to enter national and international design competitions, such as Bradford Textile Society Awards and the Clothes Show, and visit major trade shows such as Premiere Vision Paris.
• You’ll be exposed to fashion and fabric companies in the contemporary design world through our links to design groups, manufacturers, and supporting agencies.
• You’ll have the chance to exhibit and showcase your work at national and international events, such as Graduate Fashion Week.
• We’ll offer you the opportunity to learn about the industry direct from its current leaders, with guest lectures from specialists in different fashion fields.

Key Features

• You’ll have access to the latest technologies for design and visualisation, including Adobe Creative Suite, our Mimaki TX fabric printer, laser cutting equipment, and digital embroidery.
• You’ll have the chance to develop transferable skills suitable for work in the wider fashion industry as well as related fields such as PR, events management, cultural policy, and the media.
• We offer opportunities to work on live briefs for established clients sourced from national and international trade events and professional bodies.
• We’ll support you to explore innovations in fabric and materials as you develop fundamental skills in fashion design, visualisation and garment manufacture.

Modern healthcare is interconnected on a global scale. Expert healthcare managers facilitate effective person-centred care at the local level, appreciate the broader national and international contexts of sustainable services, and recognise and respond to global trends in their local context. If you’re an existing healthcare professional who aspires to manage and lead, then the University of Bolton’s MBA Global Healthcare Management aims to develop your understanding of the nature, business and management of healthcare provision to meet these demands.

By combining study and training across the three areas of healthcare, management and research, we will guide you as you gain a deeper understanding of business administration in the healthcare context. We’ll support you to develop your knowledge of global health challenges and how they can be addressed, as well as how healthcare systems can respond effectively, and the place of business management within health practice. Additionally, we’ll focus on developing your strategic thinking and practice-focused research skills, as well as highlight tools and resources that can help you to develop practical solutions and transferrable skills.

The University of Bolton’s MBA Global Healthcare Management programme will support you to develop a critical understanding of global healthcare management perspectives and how these shape business management practices in a local setting. You’ll explore the global context of organisations and their workforce design, quality improvement, operations and financial management, as well as develop critical insight into innovation and change management. We’ll support you to gain a critical understanding of healthcare systems and decision-making, preparing you to improve business and management practice in your workplace.

Overall, as a graduate of this MBA, you’ll have the knowledge you need to be an effective manager with the skills and confidence to make excellent business, management and leadership decisions that advance your workplace and your career in the healthcare sector.

Highlights

• This practice-relevant postgraduate management course focuses on developing your ability to operate effectively in one of the biggest public and economic sectors – healthcare.
• You have the opportunity to join a well-established postgraduate community and study alongside fellow professionals engaged in careers within healthcare management.
• Teaching and supervision are delivered by an industry-relevant and academically-experienced faculty team.
• The MBA Global Healthcare Management champions high-quality person-centred health services in a systems context.
• The University’s excellent libraries, 24/7 IT facilities, WiFi and learning areas are freely available for your use.

Key Features

• We offer you knowledge of the principles informing accountability and ethics regarding your scope of business management practice, focusing on the design and delivery of sustainable person-centred services.
• Modules explore systems design and decision making, including leadership, innovation and change management in a quality improvement context.
• We’ll support you as you learn about leading and managing the workforce planning, procurement and development of high performing teams.
• We’ll cover healthcare markets and marketing within financial and business planning contexts.
• You’ll have the chance to extend your research and analysis skills and use them to prepare your master’s level dissertation.
• You’ll explore contemporary approaches to global, national and local developments in healthcare that influence and supports the development of evidenced-based business practice.

The LLM in International Business Law is available to graduates from both a legal and non-legal backgrounds, including law graduates, business graduates, legal professionals as well as people working in commercial fields both nationally and internationally.

The programme will provide essential detailed knowledge of international business from a legal perspective. Regardless whether your goal is to progress within your current career, to join a global corporation or to learn more about international business law in practice, this programme will provide you with the necessary tools to achieve these goals.

This postgraduate course teaches students analytical and reflective skills as well as expert knowledge in the area of international business law. The learning experience will enable students to develop their academic ability and enhance their performance in employment and further develop their career opportunities. It provides the successful candidate with a recognised postgraduate qualification in International Business Law.

Our challenging but supportive environment gives you the chance to acquire postgraduate legal skills from a team of tutors with specialist knowledge and close links to the legal profession.

You’ll have the opportunity to explore the law’s key themes and focus your studies on areas of personal and professional interest, ranging from corporate and finance law through to employment law, intellectual property law, European law, international law, and medical law.

By the end of the course, you will have had the opportunity to develop key transferable skills that are in demand in both legal and non-legal careers within international business.

Highlights

• This professionally-focused programme is designed to provide advanced knowledge and skills of international business law directly relevant to international and corporate law sectors.
• You’ll benefit from the opportunity to critically analyse and understand the complexities arising in the field of international business law.
• You’ll have the chance to develop originality in the application of your knowledge, along with a practical understanding of how established research and enquiry techniques can be used to best effect.
• Students are given the chance to develop strength in data collection, critical data analysis, creative thinking, formulating, and solving complex legal problems.
• Students are given the chance to develop strength in data collection, critical data analysis, creative thinking, formulating, and solving complex legal problems.

Key Features

• Establish your knowledge and understanding of the doctrines and principles which underpin International Business Law.
• Learn about the sources of the law, how it is made and developed, the institutions that administer it, and the personnel who practice it.
• Enjoy the opportunity to explore a wide range of legal concepts, values, principles and rules of International Business Law and selected relevant areas of English law.
• Benefit from the chance to learn how to explain the relationship between legal concepts, values, principles and rules in several areas.
• Practice your skills in the university’s dedicated new court room, a cutting-edge learning environment – and an excellent venue for guest speakers.

Social work is a varied and rewarding profession centred on people. It offers careers working with children, young people and adults, supporting families, care leavers and older people, as well as those with mental health issues, learning difficulties or physical disabilities. As a social worker, you’ll work in multidisciplinary environments alongside professionals from other agencies, such as housing services, the police and health and social care teams, to empower individuals, families and communities within society.

Our HCPC-approved BA (Hons) Social Work focuses on helping you learn to use your professional judgement and build relationships, both with the individuals and communities you serve as well as with colleagues from other professions and services. Our passionate and knowledgeable staff will support you to develop the sound knowledge of social work theory, models, legislation, policy, ethics and interventions that will underpin your professional decision-making. We’ll cover areas such as the impact of injustice, demography, and social inequality, as well as safeguarding and the signs of harm, abuse, neglect and exploitation. We’ll guide you as you gain key skills, values and behaviours including professional curiosity, inter-personal and communication skills, initiative, leadership, research and critical reflection, partnership working, self-care and resilience, record keeping, and workload management.

Our focus is on preparing you to become a confident, highly competent, compassionate and professional social worker. On successful completion of this qualification, you’ll be able to use your professional expertise to work, assess, plan, implement, evaluate and intervene putting the needs of people first, and ensuring their voice is central to decision making. You’ll be ready to maintain professional and ethical standards while supporting positive change in people's lives in order to improve their wellbeing and independence.

Highlights

• The University of Bolton’s BA (Hons) Social Work is approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). On successful completion of this programme, you’ll be eligible to apply for registration with the HCPC as a Social Worker.
• You’ll gain first-hand work experience and have the opportunity to develop an invaluable network of professional contacts during your two work placements. You’ll undertake a second-year placement of 70 days and a final year placement of 100 days. Placements are available in a diverse range of social work areas, helping to prepare you for the changing environments you’ll encounter during your career.
• We offer 30 skills development days that focus on helping you learn specific skills, such as interviewing families, communicating with children, family group conferencing, solution-focused approaches, ‘clarifying, probing and challenging’, resilience for practitioners, case recording and giving evidence in court.
• We’ll help you develop an awareness and appreciation for differing cultural values and behaviours, the factors that influence our journeys from pre-birth through to death, and the effects of age, sexuality, gender identity and expression, capacity, learning ability and physical ability. You’ll also be encouraged to recognise how your own values and experience influence the judgements you make.
• Our professional expert academic tutors come from a wide range of professional and academic backgrounds, including social work and a number of allied health and social care professions. They weave essential knowledge of inter-professional and multi-agency working into their delivery of the theory elements of the course, helping prepare you to work effectively with colleagues from a variety of other professions and agencies.

Key Features

• Our programme offers 200 days of practice-based learning opportunities. We’ll arrange two work placements for you totalling 170 days, and you’ll benefit from an additional 30 skills development days that take place on campus.
• Throughout the course, specialists in the field of social work, other key allied health and social care practitioners, senior managers and policy makers will be invited to join us as guest speakers. You can also expect to meet service users and carers who have direct experience of services and who can offer their unique and valuable perspectives on the role of social workers in the community.
• Our dedicated team will guide you as you develop critical thinking and research evaluation skills and apply these during your honours-level project. This experience will support your on-going professional development in future and help you evaluate evidence to inform your practice and decision-making in the field.
• Social work can be very demanding and carries a lot of responsibility so we’ll support you to learn strategies and techniques that can help you to build your professional and emotional resilience and successfully manage the situations you face.
• On successful completion of this programme, you’ll be awarded a BA (Hons) in Social Work from the University of Bolton.

Professional recognition

• This programme is approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
• On successful completion of the programme, you’ll be able to demonstrate that you meet the standards of proficiency required by the Health and Care Professions Council and professional capabilities for qualifying social workers. You’ll be eligible to apply for registration with the HCPC as a Social Worker.

Literature is an extraordinary resource for broadening your intellectual understanding. It’s one of the most powerful ways we can experience others’ lives, enjoy worlds we’ve never visited, and develop our appreciation for the sheer power of words in expressing ideas and emotions. Through in-depth study and analysis of a range of texts and formats – including prose, poetry and plays – you’ll have the chance to hone your critical skills and develop your prowess as a creative communicator.

We’ll guide and support you through a rich course of study that should help you extend your understanding of language and how it can inform, persuade, shock and delight. Join us on a journey into the world of literature, where we’ll help you develop a deeper understanding of the social, political, historical and cultural contexts, and the impact of literary texts.

Our experienced and highly qualified team offers you a supportive environment in which to explore the central role of language in the creation of meaning. Through research, discussion, argument and analysis, you’ll have opportunities to learn to use language, effectively and powerfully, to achieve your goals.

Highlights

• Our English and Creative Writing courses are ranked second in the UK by the Guardian University Guide 2020.
• The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020 also ranks our English subject area as top in the UK for student experience and second in the UK for teaching quality.
• You’ll get the opportunity to benefit from our strong links with external creative organisations, including the nationally acclaimed Octagon Theatre, Bolton, where you can gain behind-the-scenes access and workshop experience.
• To give you publishing experience, we encourage you to submit your work to our literary magazine The Bolton Review.
• Our dedicated and enthusiastic lecturers are professional writers and researchers whose work is published or produced on stage, screen or radio.
• We have excellent industry contacts and strong links to external creative organisations such as publishers, production companies, theatres, libraries, art galleries, schools, funding bodies and arts development agencies – so we can offer you work experience in a wide variety of settings.

Key Features

• We offer popular options in women’s writing, Gothic fiction, children’s literature, film adaptation and contemporary poetry, as well as a range of creative writing workshops in poetry, fiction and drama.
• You can benefit from the latest thinking and discoveries, as our course tutors are active researchers in poetry, prose and drama, and feed their knowledge back into the curriculum.
• We’ll help you develop a range of skills highly valued by employers, such as written and verbal communication, presenting information and ideas, argument and persuasion, working to tight deadlines, and research and critical analysis.
• You can attend guest lectures from literary scholars, and hear contemporary writers’ work at the University’s regular literature events.

Of all the great computing degree options available at Bolton, this is the most flexible. It draws on key elements from other study pathways to give you a wide-ranging and industry-informed programme. As you progress, you’ll have the opportunity to ‘zoom in’ on aspects of the subject you have personal interest and strengths in, or that support your career or further study goals.

The department’s strong links with business mean you’ll have the chance to work on ‘live briefs’ in your coursework assignments, so you’ll have the opportunity to enjoy real-world context and application for the skills and knowledge we’ll help you develop.

With intentionally small class sizes, we can offer you more meaningful and personalised interaction with our dedicated and enthusiastic lecturers – many of whom are active researchers and come with extensive industry insights and experience. Meanwhile, guest speakers and lecturers give you access to highly relevant and up-to-date input from industry settings.

All of this is backed by our well-equipped IT suites, where you’ll get to apply and develop your learning individually and in groups, with expert guidance and support.

Highlights

• Your teaching and tutorial team brings an impressive range of professional experience and technical prowess to the course, so you’ll have the chance to explore and evaluate a range of perspectives relating to your studies.
• We continually monitor and update the course to reflect current and ever-changing issues in computing, and to keep your learning in line with technological advances and innovations.
• A big part of our commitment to your progress is helping you develop your employability and industry networks. So we’ll encourage you to attend guest lectures that give your learning context, offer industry contact, and contribute to your underlying professional development.
• By structuring our module content, assignments and projects to mimic industry processes and standards, we aim to provide an industry-relevant education that leads you towards a successful career.

Key Features

• The department – and the wider University – provides a warm and friendly environment for your studies, with relatively small class sizes, purpose-built teaching facilities, and excellent student support and library services.
• We’ll focus on your individual needs, and provide personalised support to help find the learning strategies that best support your learning and ultimate success.
• Our dedicated laboratories, servers and end-hosts feature high-specification hardware and the latest software, so you’ll have industry-equivalent hands-on experience.
• You’ll also get to experience the latest technologies, such as OpenStack – developed by Rackspace and NASA.
• As you’d expect, many of our computing facilities are accessible online, so you can work on your assignments wherever you are, and whenever inspiration kicks in.
• We’ll help you build a portfolio of work that demonstrates your skills in developing content for a range of different target devices. This can put you in an advantageous position when you come to approach potential employers.

At the University of Bolton’s School of the Arts we offer creative, student-focused courses that are valued by employers, and underpinned by the knowledge and industry experience of our high quality staff. We frequently update our programmes to ensure they keep up with new and emerging trends and provide you with the tools and techniques you will need to progress into your chosen area of employment.

Our Animation and Illustration degree offers commercial understanding, and gives you the opportunity to develop high level technical skills and knowledge. You’ll be encouraged to develop professional standards in the creative use of a wide range of illustration, animation, and digital software programmes. Building on an introduction to the basics of animation and illustration, the second half of the course offers you increasing levels of choice to specialise in either area, exploring digital and experimental means of image making.

You’ll be taught by a diverse team of highly experienced, professionally and academically qualified, staff. They have extensive experience in the animation and illustration industry and have worked for several broadcasting companies including the BBC and Granada Television.

Highlights

• Our Art courses are placed in the top ten in the UK for student-to-staff ratio by the Guardian University League Tables 2020, so you have access to individual tutor support and small group teaching.
• If you want to specialise in pursuit of a specific career destination, such as digital animation or children’s book illustration, you can do so.
• You’ll be encouraged to enter national and international competitions, including the Penguin Random House Design Award, Channel 4 E Stings and the Macmillan Prize for Illustration.
• We’ll invite you to participate in study visits to animation festivals, galleries, museums, exhibitions and conferences. In the past, these have included The Bradford Animation Festival, Thought Bubble, Alice in Wonderland at the Portico Library, Manchester Art Gallery and Tate Liverpool, and the Manchester Animation Festival.
• Students have also benefited from trips abroad and have visited, in previous years, Barcelona, Berlin, New York, Paris and Tokyo. There is also an opportunity for a limited number of exceptional graduates to exhibit at Design and Art Direction in London.

Key Features

• You’ll have access to industry-standard equipment in our five dedicated studio spaces equipped with Apple Mac computers and scanners. Much of the coursework involves the creative use of animation, illustration and graphics software.
• The course is broad-based and you’ll explore character design, story boarding and narrative techniques with traditional and digital animation and illustration for screen and print.
• There is a visiting speaker programme so you can benefit from discussions with industry professionals in the sector. We’ll also support you to develop transferrable skills for the work place such as problem solving, team working and interpersonal skills.
• You’ll be encouraged to create a portfolio of work and have the opportunity to present your work to the public as part of the Bolton School of the Arts final-year Creative Show.
• In addition to the taught modules, which are mostly simulated live briefs, there are opportunities to work on live projects for clients from inside and outside the University.

The BA (Hons) Learning, Teaching and Assessment in Professional Practice (Top-up) provides a valuable way to use your existing qualifications and knowledge to obtain a degree at the University of Bolton. You’ll have the chance to study a balanced combination of current educational policy and issues, and draw in relevant aspects of sociology, philosophy and psychology. It’s a great opportunity to explore in-depth some of the key current issues affecting education in the UK and abroad.

By thinking about how we learn, we’ll guide you in an exploration of how formal learning, alongside acquired knowledge, shapes our lives, interests and value structures. We’ll also encourage you to research and analyse a range of educational practices, reflecting on your own and others’ experiences of education. This will help you think critically about teaching, learning and assessing and how education is perceived and received.

Highlights

• This course offers you the opportunity to use your existing qualifications and knowledge to obtain a University degree by completing only one year’s extra study.
• Small class sizes mean more keenly focused attention on your learning needs and strategies for success.
• Our experienced professional and approachable tutors will guide and support you throughout your course, delivering online sessions and offering attentive one-to-one support.
• You’ll be studying at a University known for its supportive atmosphere, and get to study alongside students from a variety of backgrounds, each with an individual and unique perspective on education.

Key Features

• You’ll have the chance to take on a systematic and reflective study of education that’s illustrated and informed by the diversity of teaching and learning approaches in different sub-sectors of education.
• You’ll reflect on your current roles and responsibilities to build on the experience you’ve gained in educational settings and learn from the learning and teaching you’ve observed.
• Our teaching draws on your own experiences of learning as a starting point for understanding the formal educational process. You’ll be expected to contribute to research and discussion through critical reflection on your own education and by listening to the experiences of others.
• On successful completion of this course, you’ll be awarded the BA (Hons) Learning, Teaching and Assessment in Professional Practice from the University of Bolton.

At the University of Bolton, we believe that making the link between your course content and real life situations is crucial to your understanding of early childhood studies. Our BA (Hons) Early Years and Childhood Studies degree is a great qualification if you are looking for a career working with pre-primary school children and need to develop the necessary work experience, or if you are already working in the early years’ sector and would like the chance to obtain a formal qualification to support your career development.

Using their wealth of experience from a wide range of settings, our highly-qualified professional tutors will guide you through the theories and research that underpin early years practice and legislation. The work-based element of the course will then help bring your learning to life and give you experience using your new knowledge and skills in the workplace.

In some modules, you may be taught alongside professionals who work in related services and professions. Such connections help promote the multi-agency team approach that is such an important part of the early years childhood agenda. Overall, our supportive team will guide and encourage you, helping you to develop into a confident, capable early years professional.

Highlights

• This is a time of expansion for the early years’ sector with more funding available and further settings needed. Patrick Hayes, Director of the British Educational Suppliers Association (BESA), said in 2016: ‘It is therefore realistic to expect, that at least 500 new nurseries will open in England, to cope with the need for extra places’.
• Our staff members have a range of specialist areas, such as the teaching of English as an additional language in primary education and the improvement of children’s experience of schooling, particularly for those from migrant backgrounds.
• The course covers leadership and management in the early years, aimed at preparing you for additional responsibilities such as team leading or management roles in the sector.
• Our close links and regular engagement with early years’ providers, employers and practitioners ensures our course delivery and content are up-to-date and in line with government policy and guidance.

Key Features

• Combining theory with practical skills, the course is designed to prepare you for a career in early years, or give you a formal qualification with a possible option of progression into primary school education.
• Strong partnership links with local employers in the sector mean there are opportunities for you to undertake work placements, providing meaningful experience to put on your CV.
• Guest lectures from practitioners in the sector provide additional knowledge and alternative viewpoints. Specialist tutors in Health and Community Studies also provide another dimension to your learning. This ensures the course offers a true multi-agency approach.
• In the final year, you’ll have the chance to undertake a small-scale research project focusing on an area of early years and childhood that is particularly interesting to you.
• You’ll have opportunities to learn through role play, which is a great way to develop and practice your skills and understanding.