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Early Years Education and Care: Early Years Practitioner Status (2 Years) (BA Hons)

Birmingham
2 Years Full-Time

Early Years Education and Care (2 years) is designed for students already working in the childcare and education sector and offers the opportunity to study flexibly around work commitments.

Lectures are delivered in the evening, and on occasional Saturdays, in order to enable students to carry on working while completing their degree.

On this course, you will develop your understanding of the practice and theory of early years education and care, giving you a full and rounded understanding of the subject.

Course details

Start date:
Study modes:
  • On-campus
Language:
  • English
Institution code:
T80
UCAS code:
YPR2
Course length:
2 Years Full-Time

Tuition Fees 2023/24 and 24/25
Home (Full-time): £9,000 per year
Overseas (Full-time): £13,500 per year

Why choose this course?

01
We focus on your development as early years professionals. This course will prepare you for a fulfilling and exciting career across a range of disciplines, including teaching and social work.
02
Bilingual and Welsh-medium study is at the heart of our provision.
03
Our unique, two-year fast track degree is delivered in the evening for those already working in the early years' education and care sector.

What you will learn

The BA Early Years Education and Care (2 Years) programme has been developed to provide opportunities for learning about all aspects of young children’s education and care.

The programme provides opportunities to link practical activities and experiences in the work environment to theories relating to children’s education and care.

Learning takes place through group discussions, workshops and study visits, as well as lectures, in order to develop a knowledge and understanding of a range of relevant topics.

There is an emphasis on hands-on learning in order to support understanding of the links between theory and practice within the early years. There are also optional residential visits to other parts of the UK and abroad.

Learning in the Digital Era

(20 credits)

Human Development

(20 credits)

The Professional Practitioner

(20 credits)

Children's Play: Theory and Practice

(20 credits)

The first 1000 days

(20 credits)

Multilingualism, Multi-thinking

(20 credits)

Language and Literacy in the Digital Age

(20 credits)

Awe and wonder- science, mathematics and the outdoors

(20 credits)

Leadership and teamwork in the early years

(20 credits)

Safeguarding: practice, legislation and the multi-disciplinary team

(20 credits)

Well-being, care and healthy living

(20 credits)

Research for Learning

(20 credits)

Inclusive leadership: working together to support families

(20 credits)

Regaining Paradise? Sustainability in the Early Years

(20 credits)

Supporting Children with Additional Learning Needs

(20 credits)

Catalytic leadership- rights, resilience and social change

(20 credits)

Early Years Curricula

(20 credits)

Leadership and Management for systems of quality

(20 credits)

testimonial

Staff

Our People

You will be taught and supported by a wide range of professional staff and teams here to help you get the university experience you are looking for. Our teaching staff were ranked 2nd in Wales for assessments and feedback (NSS 2023) meaning the comments you get back from your work will help you learn. Our commitment to your learning has seen our students us as Top 10 in the UK for Lecturers and Teaching Quality. Find out more about our academic staff who teach across our courses. 

Accommodation

Birmingham Accommodation

Birmingham is a great student experience, attracting thousands of students per year to this thriving student city. There is a variety of purpose-built student accommodation available and our accommodation team will be able to guide you. 

Further information

  • This programme is delivered in the evening and on occasional Saturdays.

    Entry criteria:

    • Early Years encourages and values applications from students who are returning to education, as they will have experiences and life skills that could support their entry onto the degree.
    • Generally, students will have attained or will be working towards, a relevant level 3 childcare/education qualification such as NNEB, CACHE, BTEC, NVQ, A-levels. However, other experience is also valuable. They will also be working or volunteering regularly in an early years setting or a workplace that provides services for young children and families.
    • All applicants will be required to provide a satisfactory enhanced disclosure document from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).
    • As part of the application process, students will be given an opportunity to attend meetings with the tutors. This provides applicants with the chance to visit the campus, meet the lecturers and ask questions about the degree. During visit days, the course lecturers are always interested in applicants’ experiences of volunteering and working with young children.
    • To gain graduate practitioner competences a C level GCSE Mathematics and English or other suitable equivalent literacy and numeracy qualifications may also be required.
  • All our programmes are assessed by 100% course work. There are no exams.

    We have found that using a varied range of assessment methods increases employability skills.

    Employers seek graduates who are problem-solvers and who have a range of transferable skills. Assessment gives opportunities to develop skills such as the ability to work in a team, have effective oral and written communication while using a range of information sharing methods, including briefing papers, academic posters, group debates and professional discussions.

    There are also opportunities for practical work experiences, supporting employability, professional development and careers.

  • All our programmes are assessed by 100% course work. There are no exams.

    We have found that using a varied range of assessment methods increases employability skills.

    Employers seek graduates who are problem-solvers and who have a range of transferable skills. Assessment gives opportunities to develop skills such as the ability to work in a team, have effective oral and written communication while using a range of information sharing methods, including briefing papers, academic posters, group debates and professional discussions.

    There are also opportunities for practical work experiences, supporting employability, professional development and careers.

  • You may be eligible for funding to help support your study. To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available, please visit our Bursaries and Scholarships section.

  • Graduates go on to careers in a variety of fields including:

    • Additional learning needs support
    • Afterschool Leader
    • Childminder
    • Children’s Charity Roles (e.g. Barnardo’s)
    • Community Support Officer
    • Family Facilitator
    • Family Support Officer
    • Parenting Officer
    • Pastoral Support
    • Play Workers
    • Room Leaders
    • Setting Managers
    • Youth Workers

    Further Study

    Some of our graduates progress to other further studies. Some students have progressed on to our own MA programmes including our MA Children’s, Youth and Community Services.

    Postgraduate programmes such as these offer opportunities for students to up-skill and deepen their understanding of young children and their families. Such studies have enabled postgraduate students to progress in their existing field of work and for others to move to new careers.

    Route into teaching

    As a UWTSD Early Years student, you will be guaranteed an interview for the PGCE Primary programme subject to meeting entry qualification requirements. When applying for the PGCE Primary programme we in conjunction with Initial Teacher Education will support you through a mock application and interview process.

    Postgraduate Study and Alternative Routes

    Graduates will also be able to progress onto a number of postgraduate courses in their area of interest, a good degree classification in Early Years Education and Care meet the entry requirements for many postgraduate routes.

    Below are a few examples of routes previous graduates have taken.

    • Family and Communities
    • Nursing
    • Play Therapy
    • Policy and Government
    • Research
    • Social Work
    • Speech and Language Therapy

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