Course overview

Approved by the HCPC

This degree is the professional qualification for social work, approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). It will provide you with the knowledge, theory, values and skills to work with the most vulnerable individuals and groups in society including children and families, people living with mental illness, people with a disability, vulnerable adults and people who misuse substances. It will prepare you to understand the fast-changing world of social work and to work in the ever-expanding range of voluntary, independent and statutory sector organisations that provide social work services.

The academics that make up our course team have a diverse range of practice and research experience, are experts in their field and are up to date on social work developments.

The course is a full-time programme comprising units of structured academic learning combined with 200 days of practice learning. The practice learning element of the course is made up of 100 days in year two and 100 days in year three. These two placements provide you with practice experience in different sectors of the social care workforce and involve working with two different groups of service users.

Partnerships

The course benefits from strong partnerships with a diverse range of local social work agencies whose practitioners contribute to admissions, teaching, assessment and curriculum development.

On this course you will work closely with the University of Portsmouth Social Work Inclusion Group (SWIG) – a service user group with experience of working, directly or indirectly, with social workers. The group aims are to work with students in ways that enable them to understand service user experiences and hear their narratives. SWIG members also contribute to admissions, teaching, assessment and curriculum development. For further information visit SWIG.

These contributions to the course from SWIG members and social work practitioners mean you will graduate with insight into service user needs and best social work practice.

Study abroad

In the academic year 2013/2014 you will also have the opportunity – for up to 30 days in your year three – to undertake part of your practice placement in another country. Currently options exist for placements in several European countries.

Course content

Your first year will ensure you gain the foundation knowledge, values and skills that will be developed in academic units and practice settings in the second and third year.

Year one

• Social Work in Context examines the contemporary context within which social work is practised. You will take part in projects with students from other professional disciplines, enabling you to develop inter-professional understanding and learning.
• Becoming a Fit Practitioner prepares you and evaluates your ‘fitness’ to undertake the practice element of the course.
• Social Work Theory, Methods and Introduction to Research examines the way theory impacts on social work practice and provides you with an introduction to social research.
• Life Course and Social Work Skills explores the human transition from early years to later years and the challenges people face across the lifecycle. The unit teaches methods and skills utilised by social workers.
• Values, Ethics and Diversity considers key issues impacting upon social work values and ethics.
• Introduction to the Legal and Policy Framework for Social Work provides foundation knowledge of the law and social work policy.

Year two

In year two you will study the following units:

• Children’s Services – National and International Perspectives explores the way children’s services meet the needs of service providers and service users within a national and international context.
• Mental Health and Vulnerable Adults – National and International Perspectives examines the challenges facing providers and users of these services, nationally and internationally.
• Law, Practice and Research builds on what you have learnt about the law in year one by applying it directly to social work practice. You will develop a research proposal which builds on what you have learnt about research in year one.
• Creativity and Empowerment enables you, alongside users of social work services, to produce a creative artefact illustrating an area around social inclusion.
• Practice Learning One and Inter-Professional Practice provides you with the opportunity to undertake 100 days of assessed practice learning. It also enables you to engage in a community-based project with students from other professional disciplines.

Year three

In the final year of the course you will study the following units:

• Professional Social Work in an Inter-Professional Context explores contemporary social work with a focus on inter-professional collaborative practice.
• Social Work Futures in a Global Context examines ideas for future configurations of social work, particularly given the current movements towards inclusive, inter-professional and international models of practice.
• Dissertation provides you with an opportunity to complete a substantial piece of independent study on a topic of particular interest to you.
• Practice Learning Two enables you to undertake your second 100-day period of assessed practice learning.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

You will be allocated a personal tutor who will support, monitor, advise and assess you throughout the duration of your degree. We use a variety of teaching methods from lectures and group work to direct and active contact with service users at all stages of the course. We also use creative art and performance in our teaching and learning.

A key component of this degree is practice learning. This involves working with a range of user groups and the individuals who support them. You will therefore work in different social care settings, from those for children and families, residential care for people with disabilities and community mental health teams to hospital social work departments, youth offending teams, advocacy agencies, drug and alcohol treatment centres and homelessness projects.

In addition, you will participate in inter-professional learning. This is a project run jointly by the University of Southampton and the University of Portsmouth and provides the opportunity to learn in conjunction with other health and social care professionals for parts of your studies in year one and year two.

Assessment

Your skills and knowledge learnt on the course will be assessed through a diverse and interesting range assessment techniques including written assignments, an online exam, compilation of DVDs, and group and individual presentations. Many assessments on the course are submitted online, which is development in response to student’s preferences.

Career prospects

This degree allows you to work as a social worker in a wide variety of statutory, voluntary and independent sector agencies. In the academic year 2010/2011, 90 per cent of students graduating from the course gained graduate-level employment in a diverse range of voluntary, independent and statutory sector social work organisations.

Facilities and features

Portsmouth has a reputation for providing a supportive and friendly atmosphere in which its students can quickly settle and enjoy their studies. You will have access to a full range of support services for personal issues and academic study. Personal tutors will help you access any support you may find helpful and you will also have access to University resources, including our main library and computing facilities, which are open seven days a week.

The School’s team members are all experts nationally, and in some cases internationally, in a range of specialisms. Their enthusiasm and motivation means you will get the most out of your time with us.

Entry requirements

View all the entry requirements for BSc (Hons) Social Work for the academic year 2013/14 (opens in new window).