BA (Hons) Community Development and Youth Studies with Foundation Year - Full-time

Community development work seeks to actively engage communities in making sense of the issues which affect their lives, setting goals for improvement and responding to problems and needs through empowerment and active participation.

The community development and youth work sector is currently undergoing significant change. Traditional sources of employment in the public sector and the voluntary, faith and community sector are changing, and are therefore having to adapt their services towards a broader set of activities. This shift is requiring employees with flexible, transversal and adaptive knowledge, skills and attitudes.

Enabling students to gain a range of skills that can be applied in a range of contexts is a central principle of this degree. Research suggests that future employment in the field will be non-routine, creative and people-centric. This degree is designed to support this broad curriculum and organisations that employ graduates have been involved in the overall course design.

During this course, you’ll have the opportunity to develop a wide range of transferable skills that will support your employment in a number of positions and sectors. These skills include presentation skills, oral and written communication skills, the ability to work independently and to deal with difficult and challenging situations, advocacy and empathy skills, team work and the ability to understand and work with people from all backgrounds.

Community Development and Youth Studies graduates can choose to work in a range of settings which can include schools and colleges, youth and community centres, charities, youth training schemes, housing associations, outdoor centres, youth offending teams, churches, community-based groups and residential settings such as care homes. Roles are often project-based, on fixed-term contracts and tackle issues such as social cohesion, homelessness, substance misuse, sexual health education and crime prevention.

Community development and youth work is challenging, as well as frustrating. You need to be prepared to cope with certain conflict and setbacks. Results are often long term rather than immediate, so patience and perseverance are essential.

Graduates may move on to postgraduate study; for example, a research-based master’s degree or a PhD in education or community/youth studies. MA courses for qualified youth and community workers are also available. Other graduates take vocational courses; for example, the Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE), which qualifies you to work as a teacher, or a Master’s in Social Work.

Alternative Career Options
The Arts
Mentoring
Teaching and education
Health promotion
Behaviour management
Learning support
Work with refugee and asylum seekers
Advice work
Community education
Family support
Probation
Social work
Careers advice
Prison service
Outdoor education/activities
Residential care
Volunteer co-ordination
Youth offending

Any subjects are acceptable at Level 3. You should also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent) in English and Mathematics.

You’ll need to provide evidence that you’ve completed at least 100 hours work experience, either working with young people, or in a youth work or community practice setting.

You'll be required to attend an interview as part of the application process.

Key Features:
Our programme gives you the chance to gain significant practice-based experience.
You’ll have access to excellent academic and pastoral support from teaching staff who are also experienced professionals in community development and youth work.
Throughout the course, we’ll support and encourage you as you develop your understanding and articulation of the key theories of personal and social change affecting young people and communities today.
Specialists in the field of community development and youth work join us as guest speakers and lecturers throughout the course.
You can change routes within the programme should you wish to – until the end of the first semester at HE4. If your circumstances change and you’re confident you can meet the placement requirements for the professionally endorsed route, you can transfer to our parallel course – the BA (Hons) Community Development and Youth Work with foundation year.