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Why choose the School of Education


Ofsted – we are a ‘Good’ provider with Outstanding in Quality of leadership and management across our partnerships.

95% of our Education and Teaching graduates are in employment or further studies 15 months after graduating (HESA Graduate Outcomes, 2023)

Over 90% of students across all courses are employed within the first six months of graduation

100% of our undergraduate Primary Education graduates have secured jobs by the end of their course

Our Early Childhood Education course ranks 8th in its subject table for graduate prospects on track (Complete University Guide, 2024)

All teaching-training staff have QTS and were previously employed as teachers and/or head teachers; we also have teaching staff who are school governors or active members of their national subject associations

About the course

This exciting multidisciplinary degree brings together two important research fields to gain multiple perspectives on how today’s children and adolescents develop and learn. It allows you to apply your specialist knowledge to real-life practice and is the first step in a rewarding career within the education or psychology fields.

Education with Psychology BA (Hons) is designed to introduce you to the fields of psychology sociology and the philosophy of education building your understanding of their role in modern society. You also learn about the current debates and issues in education and psychology both in the UK and internationally in areas such as mental health special educational needs and the growth in digital technologies.

You begin by exploring core topics including early child psychology; the psychology of adolescence; child and adolescent development; and key concepts in education. In your second and third years you can choose from a range of optional units that allow you to specialise in an area of personal interest or one with a particular career in mind. Units may include special needs and disability; developing teaching practice; families and communities; coaching psychology; and alternative approaches to education.

Why choose this course?

  • Our Education courses have a high student satisfaction rating for our teaching (91%) and academic support (90%) (NSS 2022)
  • Take the option of two work-based learning units enabling you to gain relevant work experience and explore possible career paths
  • Follow your own areas of interest through optional units in the second and third year
  • Study with an expert academic team from teaching education and psychology backgrounds who draw on their current research in fields such as developmental psychology motivation and professional practice
  • Take the course over four years and include a fee-free year in industry (see below) gaining work experience building your CV and making contacts for the future
  • If you need a step up into higher education start with a Foundation Year (see below) which guarantees you a place on the degree course

with Professional Practice Year

This course has the option to be taken over four years which includes a year placement in industry. Undertaking a year in industry has many benefits. You gain practical experience and build your CV, as well as being a great opportunity to sample a profession and network with potential future employers.

There is no tuition fee for the placement year enabling you to gain an extra year of experience for free.

*Only available to UK/EU students.

with Foundation Year

A Degree with a Foundation Year gives you guaranteed entry to an Undergraduate course.

Whether you’re returning to learning and require additional help and support to up-skill, or if you didn’t quite meet the grades to pursue an Undergraduate course, our Degrees with Foundation Year provide a fantastic entry route for you to work towards a degree level qualification.

With our guidance and support you’ll get up to speed within one year, and will be ready to seamlessly progress on to undergraduate study at Bedfordshire.

The Foundation Year provides an opportunity to build up your academic writing skills and numeracy, and will also cover a range of subject specific content to fully prepare you for entry to an Undergraduate degree.

This is an integrated four-year degree, with the foundation year as a key part of the course. You will need to successfully complete the Foundation Year to progress on to the first year of your bachelor’s degree.

Why study a degree with a Foundation Year?

  • Broad-based yet enough depth to give you credible vocational skills
  • Coverage of a variety of areas typically delivered by an expert in this area
  • Gain an understanding of a subject before choosing which route you wish to specialise in
  • Great introduction to further study, and guaranteed progression on to one of our Undergraduate degrees

The degrees offering a Foundation Year provide excellent preparation for your future studies.

During your Foundation Year you will get the opportunity to talk to tutors about your degree study and future career aspirations, and receive guidance on the most appropriate Undergraduate course to help you achieve this; providing you meet the entry requirements and pass the Foundation Year.

 

Course Leader - Dr Kathryn Nethercott

My research interests are in the areas of children, young people and families, as well as, professional working in the areas of inter-professional working and communication. Specifically in the areas of how professionals working with children, young people and their families engage with social care processes. I am also interested in undergraduate student motivation.

Course Leader - Dr Kathryn Nethercott

My research interests are in the areas of children, young people and families, as well as, professional working in the areas of inter-professional working and communication. Specifically in the areas of how professionals working with children, young people and their families engage with social care processes. I am also interested in undergraduate student motivation.

What will you study?


Studying our Education with Psychology BA (Hons) course will equip you with the in-depth skills and knowledge around child development, education and psychology. In core areas of study, you will explore contemporary ideas around the Psychology of Education, including theories of learning, educational contexts, engagement and motivation. You will consider this in more depth in our Positive Psychology in Education unit by exploring the purpose and impact of positive psychology in educational settings. If you are passionate about working with children, young people and families, our unit in the Narratives of Childhood will be useful in developing your understanding of theories on childhood, youth and education. In areas of teaching, our unit in the Lifelong Curriculum will not only teach you to design curriculum, but how to implement it based on established educational policy. You will keep this knowledge in mind during our Developing Teaching Practice unit, where you will learn to deliver effective classroom sessions based on current research in the field. Similarly, our Deschooling unit will allow you to critically analyse accepted norms in education and pedagogy.

In more recent areas of study, you will learn about the increasing presence of technology in children and young people’s lives in our Working with Children and Young People in the Digital Age unit. In areas of the mind, you will be introduced to Early Child Psychology where you will examine changes in development during early childhood and how to utilise this within educational settings. Moving up an age group, you will consider the same aspects in our Psychology of Adolescence unit. Similarly, our unit in Social Psychology and Education will allow you to explore key topics in developmental and social psychology, including aspects of biological, cognitive and social development from early to old age. With a particular focus on children and young people, our Inclusion and Psychology unit will expose you to the causes, symptoms and treatments for atypical or exceptional children. Furthermore, you will analyse social policy and inclusion in the context of UK contemporary welfare reform in our unit in The Inclusive Society. Moreover, with more young people experiencing mental health issues, our unit in Children and Young People’s Wellbeing will teach you to support children through understanding social and emotional issues in education.

Shifting to home environments, our Families and Communities unit will allow you to consider the social, economic and cultural factors that shape family experience in a contemporary British society. Additionally, you will be introduced to the concepts of coaching in our Coaching Psychology in Education unit. In other areas of study, you will discover why and how Safeguarding and Child Protection has changed in recent years while also completing relevant safeguarding training. Finally, you will complete an independent research project in our Dissertation unit where you will choose a topic of interest relevant to your course and apply your academic and practical skills under the guidance of a supervisor. To help you with this, our Key Concepts in Education unit will also give you the skills to produce academic work to a higher education standard and our unit in Investigating the Social World will equip you with an understanding of quantitative and qualitative research methods, data collection, analysis and reporting. Additionally, you can also undertake a Professional Practice Year (Education and English Language) to develop your employability skills.

How will you be assessed?


This course aims to provide a wide range of assessment methods to support the diverse needs of our learners. Assessments include exams exhibitions essays webfolios panel discussions debates practicals case studies reflective logs and presentations. The assignments will build directly on the teaching sessions and you will be supported by lectures to complete the assignments. Substantial guidance is provided on the VLE and in detailed assessment briefs. In level 4 more support is provided in the form of formative assessment opportunities and we will explain the role of constructive feedback to you. You will also have more hours dedicated to guided (staff directed learning activities) in level 4 compared to later in the course.

There are opportunities for 1 to 1 and group tutorials to support the assessments both within units and in personal tutorials and staff office hours. The overall purposes of assessment in this course are: 1. Objectively to measure your achievements against the specified learning outcomes of the unit and course (summative). 2. To assist student learning by providing appropriate feedback on performance (formative). 3. To provide a reliable and consistent basis for boards of examiners to determine the progression of and conferment of achievement.

Careers


Many of our graduates follow one of our postgraduate routes into teaching for rewarding careers in the education sector or working with vulnerable children and young people. In addition we see our graduates go on to careers in healthcare as well as the tertiary and voluntary sectors.

You also graduate with the skills and knowledge to continue on to a Master’s-level psychology conversion degree to gain British Psychological Society (BPS) accreditation. At the University of Bedfordshire completing our MSc Applied Psychology will give you BPS chartership opening career opportunities after further qualifications in the clinical field of educational psychology.

Entry Requirements

104 UCAS tariff points including 80 from at least 3 A-levels or equivalent

Entry Requirements

48 UCAS tariff points including 32 from at least 1 A-level or equivalent

Fees for this course

UK 2024/25

The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250 per year. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees. You can also apply for a maintenance loan from the Government to help cover your living costs. See www.gov.uk/student-finance

Merit Scholarship

We offer a Merit Scholarship to UK students, worth £2,400* over three academic years, which is awarded to those who can demonstrate a high level of academic achievement, through scoring 120 UCAS tariff points or more.

Bedfordshire Bursary

If you aren’t eligible for the Merit Scholarship, this Bursary is there to help UK students with aspects of student living such as course costs. The Bursary will give you £1,000* over three academic years, or £1,300* if you are taking your course over four academic years (including those with a Foundation Year).

Full terms and conditions can be found here.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the academic year 2024/25 is £15,500 per year.

There are range of Scholarships available to help support you through your studies with us.

A full list of scholarships can be found here.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

Fees for this course

UK 2024/25

The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the Academic Year 2024/25 is £9,250 per year. You can apply for a loan from the Government to help pay for your tuition fees. You can also apply for a maintenance loan from the Government to help cover your living costs. See www.gov.uk/student-finance

Merit Scholarship

We offer a Merit Scholarship to UK students, worth £2,400* over three academic years, which is awarded to those who can demonstrate a high level of academic achievement, through scoring 120 UCAS tariff points or more.

Bedfordshire Bursary

If you aren’t eligible for the Merit Scholarship, this Bursary is there to help UK students with aspects of student living such as course costs. The Bursary will give you £1,000* over three academic years, or £1,300* if you are taking your course over four academic years (including those with a Foundation Year).

Full terms and conditions can be found here.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding please email admission@beds.ac.uk

International

The full-time standard undergraduate tuition fee for the academic year 2024/25 is £15,500 per year.

There are range of Scholarships available to help support you through your studies with us.

A full list of scholarships can be found here.

Alternatively if you have any questions around fees and funding, please email admission@beds.ac.uk

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