About this course
Transform lives with a degree in Health and Social Care
Are you passionate about making a real difference to people's lives? This course is designed for those who want to create meaningful change, supporting individuals and communities facing challenges such as mental health issues, homelessness, domestic abuse, and social inequality.
Our teaching is led by experts alongside a curriculum shaped by the latest developments in the field. You will be equipped with the knowledge, skills, and hands-on experience to navigate the evolving health and social care landscape. You'll explore a diverse range of topics — from public health to criminal justice, lifecycle development to the impact of poverty — while critically examining the opportunities and challenges of a globalised, technology-driven world.
Whether you aspire to work on the front lines of care, influence policy, or continue on to postgraduate study, this course opens doors to a wide array of career paths. Join a community of changemakers and start your journey towards a rewarding future in health and social care.
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The Health and Social Care body of students is incredibly diverse, with students from the local area, around the UK and overseas, as well as mature students. We also consider applicants with professional experience in the field. -
With a wide range of optional modules to choose from, you'll be able to tailor your learning based on your interests in both your second and final years. -
This course includes 240 hours of Work Like Experience such as placements, volunteering, live projects or employer-led simulations. -
Our course is consistently one of the most popular Health and Social Care courses in the UK.
What you’ll study
We use creative teaching methods to bring issues to life and to help students make the links between theory and practice. Our teaching uses the latest research and utilises our close links with a range national and local organisations; guests from the sector regularly come to campus to share their experiences with our students.
Staff from the course have authored the leading textbook: Key Themes in Health and Social Care: a companion to learning. Fully revised in 2023, each chapter reflects the content and themes of the modules taught on the degree and is an invaluable resource for students.
Core modules
Foundations in Health and Social Care
You’ll gain a broad perspective on health and social care; the contexts and organisation of health and social care work; work with service users within diverse communities; and some of the issues that impact on and influence professionals working in these areas. It also provides an important opportunity for you to begin to take responsibility for aspects of your own learning and gain valuable experience of studying independently. You’ll do this through carrying out a primary investigation into an aspect of health and social care delivery that is of particular interest to you.
Current Issues in Health and Social Care
This module will help you to develop a range of key competencies in digital information and research skills, which will enable you to be a more effective learner and practitioner. The emphasis is on information skills for accessing, manipulating and presenting information. It will equip you with essential ICT skills, including the use of NTU facilities such as our Library and Learning Resources (LLR) and the Virtual Learning Environment called NOW. These skills will support your undergraduate studies and own research. You’ll also explore research that has been conducted in health and social care, and develop a basic understanding of research methodologies used by the social sciences.
Social Policy for Health and Social Care
You’ll be introduced to the language and basic concepts used in the study of social policy; competing perspectives on social policy matters; the key areas of British social policy; contemporary welfare issues; the links between social policy and health and social care; and how the lives of the users of these services may be influenced by social policy. This module uses a range of contemporary films and media sources to bring policy issues to life and to explore the lived experience of marginalised groups affected by policy.
Working with People
You’ll explore the complexities of working with people in health and social care environments. It is an essential quality of a practitioner to be able to effectively communicate, empathise, and to assess and evaluate the input and output of their own interactions and effectiveness. This module will consider the knowledge and skills base essential for health and social care roles and practitioners, as well as integrating concepts of equality, human rights and diversity. You'll also undertake a number of skills-based practices to explore the needs of service users who may be experiencing addiction, homelessness, living with a physical or learning disability, and may be neurodivergent. SEA (Services for Empowerment and Advocacy) are on hand to offer personalised feedback after the completion of this skills weeks.
Preparing for Practice
During this modules you'll gain an understanding of the roles and key responsibilities of health and social care professionals. You'll also acquire the basic knowledge to be able to start working in the industry. This module includes a 30-hour placement.
Human Growth and Development
Understanding how human beings grow and change over their lives is fundamental to working effectively with health and social care users. This module aims to provide you with a multidisciplinary understanding of human development in contemporary society. With input from current practitioners and experts in the field, you'll take part in workshops on enabling environments and cultural studies, and the differences in human growth and development.
Core modules
Research in Health and Social Care
The module aims to develop your understanding of different research approaches, and to enhance your ability to identify the role of research within health and social care, along with the development of appropriate research skills. You’ll develop an understanding of quantitative and qualitative research methodology.
Managing Health and Social Care
This module enables you to gain an understanding of the major changes to the management of health and social care organisations. It will consider some of the major political and social factors shaping policy change in this area. We will consider the implications for managing resources, information and people. The module will also enable you to develop an appreciation of the relevance and impact of these reforms for health and social care service managers, professional groups, and service users.
Professional Practice
In Term One this module focuses on preparation for your work placement or equivalent experience. It includes aspects of multidisciplinary teamwork, health and safety at work, safeguarding and reflective practice, and an understanding of organisational structures. In Term Two you will undertake the 150-hour placement and complete a reflective portfolio. Throughout the year you'll engage with a series of lectures titled, 'So you want to be a...'. Within this series you'll be exposed to a number of career options such as researcher, paramedic, lecturer, psychologist, social work and youth worker. The module is supported by our Employability team who will support to increase your confidence and self-awareness alongside setting goals, preparing a CV, and highlighting your skills.
Person Centred Interventions
This module will support you in developing knowledge and understanding of the person-centred approach, which is an essential aspect of health and social care practice and promotes high-quality effective care. The module will provide opportunities for you to observe and develop the skills required for planning and delivering personalised care and practise interpersonal communications skills for appropriate interventions. It is taught by a range of lecturers who have worked within different spheres of health and social care in order to provide you with maximum specialist input seminars.
Optional modules
You will also be able to select one option from a selection that currently includes:
Engaging with Vulnerable Groups
This module explores several key issues and topics associated with vulnerable groups. Over the module you'll deepen your knowledge of the social construction and exclusion and how individual members of these groups experience health, social care and society. This module uses a variety of creative methods including poetry, drama and role play.
Mental Health and Wellbeing
Gain a broad introduction to theories and approaches to mental health and wellbeing. You'll get input from current practitioners and experts in their field including talks on autism, dementia care and eating issues, and mental health.
Health, Social Care and Crime
The aim of this module is to provide you with an introduction to the UK criminal justice system, in particular its origins, factors affecting and / or sustaining its development, and its role in contemporary society. The module includes a day of educational workshops at the National Justice Museum in Nottingham, including role-playing a mock trial of a real case. You'll also have the opportunity to visit local Magistrates and Crown Courts to observe trials.
Core modules
Individual Research Project
The final year research project provides you with the opportunity for an in-depth independent study into a specific aspect of Health and Social Care. You’ll be able to choose between a practice-based or empirical research route. In each case, you’ll be developing a theoretical foundation from which you’ll go on to conduct primary research or develop a practice-based evaluation. The dissertation provides you with an opportunity to consolidate your learning and to further develop your understanding of your chosen pathway subject.
Leadership in Health and Social Care
Leadership and teamwork are key skills demanded of graduates by employers – but what makes a team effective? Do we understand our own preferences for roles within teams, and how do leaders typically motivate and monitor the performance of the teams they lead? This module provides the opportunity to explore various theories about how organisations work, what makes for an effective leader, and what motivates individuals and teams to give their best. Additionally, key issues relating to employment within the health and social care sector will be explored. Activities across the module will support you to develop your self-awareness, employability skills and understanding of contemporary work-related issues. The final portfolio is produced using web-based tools, such as PebblePad, giving you the opportunity to develop your IT skills and reflect upon your own approach to leadership, forming effective teams and ongoing career development.
Optional modules
You'll also be able to select three optional modules. Some of these are only available if you have taken the appropriate options in Year Two. The selection currently includes:
Children’s and Young People’s Mental Health
This module explores a range of perspectives on contemporary mental health practice for children and young people, including conceptual models (medical, social, and user), and assessment, policy and practice frameworks. It aims to enable you to develop a critical awareness of current provision, policy and practice, and to provide you with an opportunity to examine the contemporary issues in mental health. The module aims to develop your knowledge of the nature, role and purpose of current mental health care for children and young people, with a view to becoming a reflective and responsive practitioner. Enquiry based learning and research is an essential component to the module.
Young People and Social Care
During this module you'll analyse the impact, behaviours and consequences for society and communities of young people who face increasingly economic and social challenges.
Health Promotion in Practice
You’ll integrate theory, policy and practice relating to health promotion and explore in a critical way the broad skills necessary for effective professional activity in the field of multidisciplinary public health. You’ll gain a critical understanding of the broad strategic context of health within emerging policy agendas, and you'll develop skills for professional practice in public health, including Health Impact Assessment. You will also gain an understanding of the requirement for evidence-based practice, and appreciate how to effectively address health inequalities within multi-disciplinary partnerships. You’ll also understand how to operate as a reflective practitioner.
Global Health and Development
Within the module, you will be introduced to some major social theory perspectives that help us to critically consider issues relating to global health and development. You will explore the contested nature of the term "development", and reflect on how this has led to a culture of aid and dependency that has served to widen and deepen global health inequalities. We will examine emerging debates from the global south itself, and other voices that talk of valuing dynamics of development that are participatory and community-based in nature. The module will challenge you to understand the complex forces that shape health worldwide, from the household to the global level.
Using a Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) approach, this is a partnership between NTU and the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) in the United States, Over the course of four weeks, NTU and UMD students work together to complete key learning objectives of healthcare systems, alternative care, and COVID-19 response in the United Kingdom and the United States using technology such as Google My Maps, video recording presentations, and interview questions to further the learning around the key objectives.
Ageing in the 21st Century
In this module you'll develop a critical awareness of ageing in contemporary society. You'll build your understanding and awareness of what it takes to work 'successfully' with older people across different policy and practice settings. This module uses a variety of creative methods including poetry, drama and role play.
We regularly review and update our course content based on student and employer feedback, ensuring that all of our courses remain current and relevant. This may result in changes to module content or module availability in future years.
Don’t just take our word for it, hear from our students themselves
How you're taught
To provide you with a first-class learning experience and to guarantee you have an opportunity to make the most of your time at university, you'll receive contact time through a diverse range of delivery methods.
Structured teaching will be delivered through a combination of traditional lectures, seminars and workshops. The smaller group seminars and workshops provide opportunities to develop problem-solving, group working, analysis, debating and presentation skills, and to discuss a wide range of views.
You'll also learn from real-life observational exercises and self-assessment quizzes.
Tutorials with staff
As the relationship between students and tutors is an important one, you can expect to have lots of direct contact and support through seminars and one-to-one tutorials. At these sessions you'll have the opportunity to:
- discuss and gain feedback about your work
- ask questions about the projects you're working on
- raise any difficulties you are experiencing relating to your work, personal circumstances or your university experience.
Independent study
Independent study is an important part of this course. Throughout your three years of study, the scheduled contact hours you receive will gradually decrease as you develop the skills required to undertake an independent study or dissertation in your final year. You will still have regular contact with your tutors, and if necessary ad hoc tutorials can be arranged.
Student mentors
Student mentors from Years Two and Three provide first year students with an informal, friendly ear. They're there to answer your questions and point you to appropriate sources of support.
Transition between levels
In Term 2 of year one and two students will engage with a number of talks about the option modules available. There will be personal tutorials arranged providing the opportunity for you to reflect on your learning, explore what will be expected of you at the next stage, and make links between option choices and career planning. Interactive transition resources provided at the end of your first and second year will also support your move to the next level of study.
Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)
This is a partnership between NTU and the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) in the United States, Over the course of four weeks, NTU and UMD students work together to complete key learning objectives of healthcare systems, alternative care, and COVID-19 response in the United Kingdom and the United States using technology such as Google My Maps, video recording presentations, and interview questions to further the learning around the key objectives.
Virtual learning environment
You'll also use our virtual learning environment NOW, which is a flexible web-based system that allows you to have 24-hour access to module learning materials and reading lists. It allows you to discuss work with tutors and other students, and submit coursework electronically from anywhere in the world.
Learning from experts
You'll be taught by enthusiastic, engaged and expert staff. The course draws upon their expertise, research interests and experience, and many have also published textbooks in their specialist area of interest.
In addition to the traditional lectures, tutorials and independent study, you'll also hear and learn from renowned experts and professionals in related fields, who are regularly invited to come and talk to our students and provide you with an insight into their specialist knowledge and experiences. In the past, health and social care students have heard from:
- Framework Housing
- Nottingham Drug / Alcohol Advisory Service
- Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS trust
- Nottingham City PCT Health Promotion Team
- Nottingham City Council Homelessness project
- Nottinghamshire Police
- Remedi
- HMPPS
Enriching opportunities
- Health and Social Care Internships: available to second and third year students these placements provide an opportunity for students to work alongside an academic from the Health and Social Care team to develop and deliver teaching content and material to other groups of students to gain invaluable teaching and communication skills.
- Clubs and societies: there are a wide range of clubs and societies available to Health and Social Care Students which provide support and entertainment, these include:
- The Health and Social Care Society run by and for Health and Social Care students. A variety of activities are delivered throughout the year, some educational, some recreational!
- International Student Society
- Mature Student Society
- Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Student Support Peer Group
- Social Sciences Society
- CERT Mentors: Take on a flexible paid role whilst developing networking and leadership skills that will make you stand out in your future career? Each year, the Centre for Student and Community Engagement works with schools across NTU to recruit Student Mentors to support first-year students throughout the academic year.
- Course and School rep roles: NTSU's Course Reps are students who represent their course mates by gathering student feedback to help improve their course.
- Black Leadership Programme: The programme is designed to empower second year undergraduate students of black heritage to gain confidence and become resilient leaders through a series of interactive events and community-building activities throughout the academic year.
- Links with Potsdam University: We have a partnership with the University of Potsdam, which is just outside Berlin. We have the opportunity to take four students from the Health and Social Care degree and four students from the Social Work degree to experience university life in another country and to learn about social welfare and social work in Germany.
- Deaf Awareness and Introduction to Basic Sign Language: delivered by Nottinghamshire Deaf Society, this is available to second-year students.
Work Like Experience on this course
The Health and Social Care degree includes 240 hours of assessed Work Like Experience for all students across the three years of their study. Work Like Experience includes many types of experience undertaken by students with employers to enhance graduate employment prospects. We guarantee that the 240 hours of experience will involve our students working directly with employers in the Health and Social Care sector and that it will be assessed as part of the course. Students engage with Work Like Experience across all three years of the degree.
There is more to Work Like Experience than just placements, although there should always be obvious benefits to both students and employers. The exact nature of Work Like Experience will differ from student to student but can include work placements, volunteering, working on live projects, or employer led simulations.
As part of the Work Like Experience offer, the Health and Social Care degree at NTU offers all students a minimum of 30 hours of work experience on a placement for the first year ‘Preparing for Practice’ module’, a 150-hour placement as part of the second year ‘Professional Practice’ module, and 10-15 hours of employer led assessment centres and interview simulations in the third year ‘Leadership in Health and Social Care’ module.
All Work Like Experience is supported by academic staff from the Health and Social Care team, a dedicated Work-Related Learning Coordinator, and NTU’s employability team.
Learn a new language
Alongside your study, you also have the opportunity to learn a new language. The University Language Programme (ULP) is available to all students, and gives you the option of learning a totally new language or improving the skills you already have.
Learning a new language can:
- enhance your communication skills
- enrich your experience when travelling abroad
- boost your career prospects.
Find out more about the University Language Programme.
How you're assessed
Full-time and part-time
- Year 1 coursework
- Year 2 coursework
- Year 3 coursework
Coursework includes different forms of assessment such as:
- coursework-based essays
- reports
- examinations
- individual and group presentations
- your work experience portfolio
- a final year research-based dissertation.
There will also be practical assessments, which will include:
- group and individual presentations
- video exercises
- poster presentations
- IT-based exercises.
Contact hours
Full-time and part-time
You will have around 10-12 hours per week of contact time (lectures, seminars and workshops) with our teaching staff which is around 30% of a full-time week. Approximately 90% of our teaching is in-person.
The remaining 70% of your time will be devoted to independent study.
Careers and employability
Your career development
Graduates of this degree are, and will continue to be, in high demand. The way this course will help you to stand out is through development of much-needed leadership and management skills that will help you to embark on an exciting and rewarding career that can match your ambitions. You'll graduate with the confidence, experience and ability to make a difference to people's lives.
You may be interested in pursuing a career in:
- health promotion
- housing
- social work
- nursing
- guidance providing agencies
- the police
- probation service
- teaching.
Some past students have also gone on to lead projects aimed at reducing disadvantage within communities.
Certain occupations in health and social care require a professional qualification as well as a degree, and many of our students go on to study for further qualifications or higher degrees.
Further study
After completing your degree, you may also wish to consider postgraduate study at NTU. Graduates from this course often consider courses such as:
Our Employability team
We have a dedicated Employability team located on the City Campus. The team are well placed to give you specialist guidance and practical help that will really make a difference to your prospects once you do graduate.
Campus and facilities
You’ll mainly be studying in the Chaucer and Newton buildings, at the centre of our vibrant City Campus.
NTU’s City Campus has everything you’ll need to stay busy between lectures. As well as the Boots Library and its beautiful roof garden, there’s our stylish Students’ Union building and two-storey, 100-station gym; a whole host of cafés, bars, restaurants and food outlets for every taste; our much-loved Global Lounge; performance and rehearsal spaces for musicians; and much, much more!
Take a few steps off campus and you’ll find yourself in the heart of Nottingham — one of Britain’s top 10 student cities, and one of Europe’s top 25. It’s stuffed with history, culture, and well-kept secrets to discover at your leisure. Enjoy lush green spaces, galleries, hidden cinemas and vintage shopping by day, and an acclaimed food, drink and social scene by night.
As a Health and Social Care student, you will also have the opportunity to travel to our Clifton Campus to experience the state-of-the-art facilities in our Health and Allied Professions Centre. This includes using the virtual reality room, and the mock apartment suite - both of which simulate real world environments.
Take our virtual tour to get a real feel for the campus.
Entry requirements
UK students
Standard offer: 96 UCAS Tariff points from up to four A-levels or equivalent qualifications
To find out what qualifications have tariff points, please use our tariff calculator.
Additional requirements for UK students
There are no additional requirements for this course.
Contextual offers
If you don’t quite meet our entry requirements, we might be able to make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (such as where you live and the school or college you attended), your experiences and your individual circumstances (you may have been in care, for example). This is called a contextual offer, and we get data from UCAS to help make these decisions. We do this because we believe everyone with the potential to succeed at NTU should have the opportunity to do so, no matter what barriers you may face.
Meeting our entry requirements
Hundreds of qualifications in the UK have UCAS Tariff points attached to specific grades, including A-levels, BTECs, T Levels and many more. You can use your grades and points from up to four different qualifications to meet our criteria. Enter your predicted or achieved grades into our Tariff calculator to find out how many points your qualifications are worth.
Other qualifications and experience
NTU welcomes applications from students with non-standard qualifications and learning backgrounds, either for year one entry or for advanced standing beyond the start of a course into year 2 or beyond.
We consider study and/or credit achieved from a similar course at another institution (otherwise known as credit transfer), vocational and professional qualifications, and broader work or life experience.
Our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy outlines the process and options available for this route. If you wish to apply via Recognition of Prior Learning, please contact the central Admissions and Enquiries Team who will be able to support you through the process.
Getting in touch
If you need more help or information, get in touch through our enquiry form.
International students
Academic entry requirements: 96 UCAS Tariff points from up to four A-levels. We accept equivalent qualifications from all over the world. Please check your international entry requirements by country.
English language requirements: See our English language requirements page for requirements for your subject and information on alternative tests and Pre-sessional English.
Additional requirements for international students
Undergraduate preparation courses (Foundation)
If you need help achieving the academic entry requirements, we offer a Foundation preparation course for this degree. The course is offered through our partner Nottingham Trent International College (NTIC) based on our City Campus.
English language requirements
View our English language requirements for all courses, including alternative English language tests and country qualifications accepted by the University.
If you need help achieving the language requirements, we offer a Pre-Sessional English for Academic Purposes course on our City campus which is an intensive preparation course for academic study at NTU.
Other qualifications and experience
If you have the right level of qualifications, you may be able to start your Bachelors degree at NTU in year 2 or year 3. This is called ‘advanced standing’ entry and is decided on a case-by case basis after our assessment of your qualifications and experience.
You can view our Recognition of Prior Learning and Credit Transfer Policy which outlines the process and options available, such as recognising experiential learning and credit transfer.
Sign up for emails
Sign up to receive regular emails from the International Office. You'll hear about our news, scholarships and any upcoming events in your country with our expert regional teams.
Getting in touch
If you need advice about studying at NTU as an international student or how to apply, our international webpages are a great place to start. If you have any questions about your study options, your international qualifications, experience, grades or other results, please get in touch through our enquiry form. Our international teams are highly experienced in answering queries from students all over the world.
Policies
We strive to make our admissions procedures as fair and clear as possible. To find out more about how we make offers, visit our admissions policies page.
