Take your first steps towards a fulfilling future in health and social care. This degree will give you the skills, confidence and experience to make a positive difference to people’s lives and wellbeing.
A good application/performance will be taken into account if you do not meet the criteria/offer conditions.
- Prepare for a career where you can plan and deliver health and social care services which are fit for the future
- Put the theory you learn into practice, with work placements in different settings – from care homes to community projects
- Join a course designed in partnership with experts from the sector, ensuring your studies are up to date and relevant
- Draw on our strong professional links and benefit from guest lectures, fact-finding visits and networking opportunities
- Be inspired by our friendly and supportive teaching staff who have a wealth of experience in health and social care
- Make the most of our exceptional learning facilities
- Completion of the Foundation Year course leads on to the full BA (Hons) Health and Social Care
Health and social care is all about supporting people – working flexibly, creatively and confidently to address the needs of individuals, families and communities. This highly practical course equips you for a career in a sector which offers immense personal satisfaction.
Beginning with a foundation year
Studying BA (Hons) Health and Social Care with a Foundation Year is for you if you have the ability to study for a degree, but don’t have the necessary formal qualifications to enter directly on to the Honours degree programme.
It provides you with a firm grounding in the skills and knowledge you need and introduces you to the subject area, enabling you to achieve your full honours degree in four years.
We’re proud to welcome applications from candidates with practice experience in youth work, health, social care and education. This is as part of our commitment to enable those from non-traditional backgrounds to be able to study as part of our commitment to widening participation.
Foundation Year - helping you to achieve more
Including a foundation year as part of your four-year study programme will give you a head start in your academic and professional life. The foundation year offers the chance to strengthen your skills, knowledge and confidence – with extensive support from our expert staff – before you advance to stage one of your honours degree. It could also be beneficial if you are planning a career change and want to get to grips with aspects of subjects which are new to you.
Our degrees with a foundation year are continuous, meaning that you won’t need to apply again once you have successfully completed the first year.
Boost your employability with a placement year
Take an optional to put your skills into practice in a real-world setting. We’ll support you in finding a placement and throughout your time in industry. It’s a great way to gain valuable experience for your CV, build contacts, and explore career options before you graduate.
Please note that our modules are subject to change - we review the content of our courses regularly, making changes where necessary to improve your experience and graduate prospects.
From day one you’ll get all the benefits of being a University of Derby student, plus extra support to help you build your knowledge, skills and confidence.
Who you will meet
Our high-calibre teaching team is made up of academically and professionally qualified health and social care experts with vast experience across the sector. Many are still involved in professional practice. They are friendly, enthusiastic and approachable, giving you guidance throughout your studies so that you achieve your ambitions.
Our Programme Leader, Helen Morgan, is a qualified nurse and operating department practitioner. Helen has a background of working in critical care including intensive care and theatre. Her interests are in high dependency care and in dementia care.
Our emphasis is on nurturing versatile and flexible health and social care professionals who are not restricted by boundaries and who can work in multi-professional teams.
On completion of the full BA (Hons) Health and Social Care degree you will be prepared for rewarding roles in areas such as:
- Local authority, NHS and multi-agency teams working with children, young people and adults
- Homelessness and social housing services
- Refugee and asylum-seeker support agencies
- Appropriate adult and advocacy work
- Health promotion services
- Community mental health teams
- Intensive family support teams
- Residential and nursing care management
- Commissioning and care management teams
- Care co-ordinator management
Take your studies to the next level
The BA (Hons) Health and Social Care can pave the way to postgraduate study, including our: ou’ve completed your studies.
Ongoing careers support
As part of the course, you will develop the professional and inter-personal skills which employers are seeking, such as problem solving, communication, presentation, collaboration and reflection. We also offer a suite of bespoke sessions across all stages on themes such as job seeking, applications and interview techniques.
may apply to students who meet certain criteria.
These are the typical qualification requirements for September 2026 entry.
| Requirement | What we're looking for | | UCAS points | 72 |
| A Level | DDD |
| T Level | Pass (C or above in the core) |
| BTEC | MMP |
| GCSE | GCSE Maths and English are preferred, however if you don't have these qualifications you will be able to undertake Maths and English at Level 2 as part of your course of study |
| Access to HE | Pass Access to HE Diploma with 60 credits: 45 at Level 3 with a minimum of Distinction: 0, Merit: 30, Pass: 15 |
| English language requirements | IELTS: 6.5 (with at least 6.0 in each skills area) |
Additional entry requirements
| 2026/27 | Full-time | Part-time |
|---|
| UK | £9,535 per year | N/A |
| International | £15,500 per year | N/A |
Further information about our fees and support you may be entitled to
Teaching hours
Like most universities, we operate extended teaching hours at the University of Derby, so contact time with your lecturers and tutors could be anytime between 9am and 9pm. Your timetable will usually be available on the website 24 hours after enrolment on to your course.
Course updates
The information provided on this page is correct at the time of publication but course content, costs and other individual course details do change from time to time and are updated as often as possible, so please do check these pages again when making your final decision to apply for a course. Any updated course details will also be confirmed to you at application, enrolment and in your offer letter.
If you are thinking about transferring onto this course (into the second year for example), you should contact the programme leader for the relevant course information as modules may vary from those shown on this page.
Minimum numbers
Please note that this course is subject to minimum numbers in order to run.
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