Course summary

As a Social Worker, you’ll interact with some of the most marginalised groups in society, supporting them in overcoming barriers to a fulfilled life. Our degree is focused on the quality of your placements, linking theory to practice and helping you register with a professional body. The choice to become a Social Worker shouldn’t be taken lightly. We welcome students who are committed to their future career and determined to make a difference to the lives of others, but most importantly, want to join our community. Choosing to gain a degree means you’re taking the decision to play a crucial role in our society. Knowing how to work with someone and overcome the challenges they face isn’t easy, but a Social Work degree from us gives you the insight and skills to do just that. Why study at Buckinghamshire New University? At BNU you’ll gain experience working with people who might need Social Work support because your study will combine classroom theory with real-life experience, some of which involves working alongside current Social Workers. We work closely with People with Lived Experience so you can hear first-hand about the impact you could make with individuals and communities. We also work with a broad range of partners to offer interesting Social Work placements including Local Authorities, Healthcare Trusts, and organisations from the voluntary and independent sectors, all of which are within a 25-mile radius of our High Wycombe campus. Our lecturers, all of whom are former Social Work practitioners, have rich experience from which to draw on. They will help you make sense of the theoretical elements of your studies by introducing their practice wisdom to lectures. Our tutors remain up-to-date with the latest sector changes and many of them lead and are involved with external forums, discussing and influencing the future of the sector. We also have course lecturers who are published authors in the field of Social Work. One of the most rewarding elements of studying Social Work is sharing your experience with other students. Some days will be intensely emotional, so it’s important that you have a friendly team around you. We pride ourselves in our ability to get to know all our students, so you’ll be supported by personal tutors in groups of no more than ten. This will help you to get to know us as well as each other. We recognise how crucial Social Workers are in the community and this course will prepare you to work with marginalised people across the lifespan, from birth to death. You’ll gain the necessary skills that employer’s value, like teamwork, communication, problem solving, analysis and evaluative skills. Modules will also offer you the opportunity to gain relevant knowledge in theory, law and policy and how to implement this knowledge in practice. The experiences of people who need Social Work support will also be explored and examined, both from a theoretical perspective and a practice perspective, during your placement experiences. What are my career prospects? Our BSc (Hons) Social Work programme is accredited by Social Work England which means you’ll be eligible to apply for registration as a Social Worker in England as soon as you graduate. We’re proud of our consistently high employability rate for our graduates. We have close and collaborative relationships with a range of Local Authority employers. We offer a recruitment event in your final year where you’re able to meet with employers to explore the next steps in terms of your first year of newly qualified status. Our employer partners are very keen to ensure that they provide opportunities for our successful graduates every year. We also encourage you to start networking in your final year placement, which is often a springboard to future employment. We recognise that your journey to becoming a Social Worker does not simply end with us and we strive to ‘mind the gap’ between your education and your new career.