September 2024

Youth and Community Work BA (Hons)

Honours Degree, Undergraduate, September 2024

Key Details

  • L530 Course Code
  • 3 Years
  • 112 Typical UCAS Tariff

**This course is subject to revalidation for September 2024 and we are applying for revalidation with JNC**

We’ve helped students gain a Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) professional Youth and Community Work qualification at Newman since 2007 

Newman has a long and proud history of teaching Youth and Community Work and has been at the forefront of developing Youth and Community Work education and training in the West Midlands. **Our degree is accredited by the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) for youth workers which means that you leave with a degree and with a professional qualification.** This is an essential step in gaining graduate employment.

Our course is an exciting application of theory in real-life practice, which will develop you as a critically reflective practitioner.

You will undertake 800 hours of supervised practice in a broad range of Youth and Community Work settings, which will enable you to develop your own professional identity, skills, understanding and reputation throughout your studies and prepare you for your future career.

Our course welcomes socially-conscious and diverse student voices, from a range of backgrounds and learning experiences. To support your studies, you will be taught by a team of JNC Youth and Community Work professionally qualified, research-active and enthusiastic tutors, who have strong partnerships with local employers and experience nationally and internationally.

Hear from our Youth and Community Work alumni about their experiences of studying their degree at Newman, and what they have been up to since graduation. 

We support students to gain a JNC professional qualification and gain a wide range of employment opportunities. Below are examples of roles in which our students have gained employment after graduation:

  • Youth work project manager
  • Faith-based youth work Lead
  • Hospital youth worker
  • Young offenders’ youth worker
  • Family Support worker
  • Detached youth worker
  • Pastoral care
  • Youth mental health and wellbeing worker
  • School-based youth mentors
  • Community development worker
  • Domestic violence worker
  • Youth homelessness worker
  • Social Enterprises around specific issues
  • Statutory and voluntary youth work
  • Addiction issues and young people project worker
  • Youth engagement roles

Newman is one of few professional Youth and Community Work courses in the West Midlands. Holding the professional JNC qualification means that you will be recognised nationally as a professional Youth Worker in the UK – expanding your employment options.

Studying with us at Newman will provide you with a broad range of fieldwork practice experiences in both the statutory and voluntary sectors in projects including:

  • Young people and mental health
  • Centre-based youth projects
  • Detached youth projects
  • Homelessness projects and addiction issues

In all contexts, you will be supported to demonstrate your application of theory in practice with ‘hands-on’ learning.

You can expect to be challenged and supported while at Newman, and gain an understanding of the contemporary world, which will set you up for a long and satisfying career.

What does the course cover?

During your first year of study you will develop a foundation of knowledge around understanding Youth and Community Work and includes:

  • Understanding Youth and Community Work
  • Understanding groups and self
  • Planning for applied reflective practice
  • Study skills for university,
  • Key thinkers and their big ideas
  • Introduction to Social Policy

In your second year, you will build upon these modules to explore topics that include:

  • Researching social issues
  • Critical pedagogy
  • Intersectionality in Youth and Community Work
  • Applied Reflective Practice, (400 hr block placement with scheduled recall days to university)
  • One option module from a selection in Criminology or Working with Children, Young people, and Families*

In your final year of study, the modules you will be involved in are:

  • Dissertation (10,000 words)
  • Applied Reflective Practice (400 hr block placement with scheduled recall days to university)
  • Management
  • One option module from a selection in Criminology or Working with Children, Young people, and Families*

*The option modules are chosen from a selection each year and they may change from year to year.

You will experience a range of assessment formats some of which include:

  • individual presentations
  • group presentations
  • seminars papers
  • peer assessment
  • poster presentations
  • traditional essays
  • e-portfolios
  • Small-scale research on topics/issues related to practice

You will not have to undertake any exams!

Newman University is located in Britain’s second city – Birmingham. With one of the youngest city populations in Europe, it is a vibrant and dynamic place to study.

Studying at Newman University, you have the advantage of being near to the city, but living in, or commuting to peaceful and comfortable surroundings on campus.

Dining out

Birmingham has lots of wonderful places to dine out with a range of different cuisines. Places where you can dine out include; Brindley Place, Mailbox and Hagley Road (just 10 minutes’ from Newman).

Entertainment

Whether you like to go to; the theatre, gigs or clubs, or enjoy: sports, shopping visiting art galleries or exhibitions – Birmingham will not disappoint and you will be spoilt for choice!

Location

Getting around Birmingham is easy via train, bus or by car. Birmingham has excellent transport links to the rest of Britain, making it easy for those weekend getaways!

Why not explore the city for yourself by visiting one of our Open Days?

Want to find out more about Birmingham? Then take a look at some Birmingham City Secrets.

Ask Us a Question

Entry Requirements

You must achieve at least 96 UCAS points including a minimum of CC at A level or equivalent (e.g.MM at BTEC Diploma; MPP at BTEC Extended Diploma) towards the total tariff.

Access Students can achieve the requirements with the following combination of Distinction, Merit and/ or Pass grades at level 3 achieved from a completed Access course. 96 UCAS Points: D21-M3-P21; D18-M9-P18; D15-M15-P15; D12-M21-P12; D9-M27-P9; D6-M33-P6; D3-M39-P3; D0-M45-P0.

The University accepts appropriate T Levels as part of its usual entry requirements.

We would expect all students applying to the degree to have a minimum of a relevant or related Level 3 qualification prior to entry such as; BTEC L3 Extended Diploma in Health and Social Care, A Level Social Science subjects, Adult Education courses relating to Access to HE or Social Care courses, and a minimum of 100 hours relevant experience in a youth or community setting (verified by a reference).

Although not required prior to starting this course, Applicants will need to apply for an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) clearance for the Planning for Applied Reflective Practice module. For more information on your DBS application please click here.

For those without a relevant or related Level 3 qualification, we signpost onto the Youth and Community Work (with Foundation Year) which enables such applicants to access a university degree via a four year route. Upon successful completion of their foundation year, students will progress to Year 1 of a named degree. Whilst not a condition of entry onto the Foundation Year, students wishing to follow particular named routes with additional entry requirements, will need to meet these requirements before they make the transition from their foundation year to year 1.

In all cases we will assess their ability to write, function and conceptualise at degree level through the interview process:

Interview Process

As part of the conditions of our professional endorsement, we interview all prospective students. This is a four-stage process. All prospective students begin by applying through the UCAS process. Applications received by the Admissions Team are then reviewed and those meeting the criteria are called to interview.

The interview process consists of:

  1. An introduction to the course and the university,
  2. A group discussion (part of assessing aptitude to becoming a worker and ability to function and conceptualise at degree level),
  3. An unseen written exercise (part of assessing both academic ability and aptitude to becoming a worker)
  4. An individual interview (part of assessing aptitude to becoming a worker and ability to function and conceptualise at a degree level).

International Students
The University is not licenced by the UK Government to sponsor migrant students under the Student route and is therefore unable to accept applications from international students at present.

Applying Direct Option

You can apply direct to Newman University for this course if you have not previously applied to Newman University through UCAS and you are not applying to any other universities.

Simply click on this Direct Application link to do this.

N.B. will need to enter ‘New User’ account details when first accessing this portal.

Course Fees

The full-time course fee for September 2023 is £9,250.

The University will review tuition fees and increase fees in line with any inflationary uplift as determined by the UK Government, if permitted by law or government policy, in subsequent years of your course. It is anticipated that such increases would be linked to RPI (the Retail Price Index excluding mortgage interest payments).

Additional Costs

An Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) is required by Newman University before students can begin their Year 2 (level 5) fieldwork practice, students will be required to pay for their DBS in the second semester of their first year of study.  Find out more about completing the DBS application form and the related additional costs.

Students are also responsible for their own travel costs to fieldwork practice organisations.

Find out more about the other additional costs associated with our undergraduate degrees.