Early Childhood Education and Care BA(Hons)

Prepare for your career

Completion of our Early Childhood Education and Care degree and its placements will lead to you being counted as a level 3 early years practitioner, providing you also hold suitable literacy and numeracy qualifications at GCSE grade 4 or above or equivalent.

The degree is also an excellent foundation for a range of careers involving working with children. You’ll leave the course confident, articulate, highly skilled and well equipped to contribute as professionals in a variety of sectors, including health, education and social care.

The course provides subject knowledge and expertise, alongside opportunities to put what you learn into practice through placements and work-related experience. You'll also develop transferable personal skills in teamwork, and project and time management that will be valued wherever your career takes you.

100% of graduates were in work or further study 15 months after their degree - Graduate Outcomes Survey.

Placements

The placement offers you the opportunity to apply your theoretical understanding of child development in practice, develop the key skills valued by employers and gain hands-on experience.

Placements also enable you to explore different career paths and help you to decide what you might want to do when you graduate. We will help you find a placement that meets your interests and aspirations. This could include: a children’s centre, pre-school, nursery, maternity ward, childminder, reception class or children’s support services such as ICAN.

Prior to going on placement, you will attend our employability day, an annual event run by the school to ensure you are fully prepared.

Placement destinations previous students have chosen include:

• a children’s community centre
• a refugee camp
• an international school
• nurseries
• working with charities.

Work-related learning

Embedded into our course are many experiences that will help you in the workplace.

Observational study visits

During your study, you will take part in two separate observational study visits. These provide time for you to practise observation skills and experience different early year’s environments, supporting your understanding of the sector and highlight possibilities for future employment.

In your first and second year, you will take part in 24 hours of observational study visits. During these visits you’ll observe children’s development and see how theory learnt can be applied in early years practice.

Field trips

Field trips take your learning into the real world and let you get behind the scenes of an organisation. Trips have included a hospital baby unit, nurseries, reception classes, children centres, the Childcare and Education Expo and a forest school.

Visiting speakers

We also invite experts from early childhood fields to give guest lectures and seminars to encourage and challenge your critical reflection and understanding. Speakers have included the co-founders of Crisis Classroom, an SEN school head, managers from nurseries and a speaker from the National Citizen Classroom.

Graduate destinations

Our broad syllabus and focused support on employability ensures you’ll be equipped to be education professionals.

Your specialist knowledge and skills will be attractive to a wide range of employers. Our graduates have gone on to a variety of careers in education including:

• teaching
• Social care agencies
• early years sector
• SEND roles
• youth work
• alternative education
• learning support
• educational welfare
• educational agencies.

Many chose to continue their studies to gain professional teaching qualifications such as QTS or EYTS.

Further study

Many of our students choose to stay with us after graduation to gain a professional teaching qualification such as QTS or EYTS as the next step towards their career.

We also offer an Education MA.

Supporting your employability

Outside of your course, our Careers Service is here to support you as you discover (and re-discover) your strengths and what matters to you. We are here for you throughout your university journey as you work towards a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Connect with our careers team

• Find part-time work that you can combine with your studies.
• Find, or be, a mentor or get involved with our peer-to-peer support scheme.
• Develop your business ideas through our entrepreneurial support network.
• Get professional advice and support with career planning, CV writing and interview top tips.
• Meet potential employers at our careers fairs.
• Find rewarding volunteering opportunities to help you discover more about what makes you tick, and build your CV.

Whatever your career needs, we are here to help. And that's not just while you are a student, our support carries on after you've graduated.

Find out more about our Careers Service...