Early Childhood Studies BA (Hons)

This course is in clearing

Overview

Course options

Select year

Degree

UCAS code: X310 112 UCAS points
  • BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies, home applicant, full time

    • This course is in Clearing

    • Home Applicant
    • Full time, 3/4 years
    • Pound 9250 per year
  • BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies, home applicant, part time

    • Home Applicant
    • Part time
    • pro-rata full time fee

Degree with foundation year

UCAS code: X312 64 UCAS points
  • BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies, home applicant, full time

    • This course is in Clearing

    • Home Applicant
    • Full time, 4/5 years
    • Pound 9250 per year

What makes this course different

Highly rated by our students

91% of students surveyed on this course responded positively to questions on “The Teaching on my Course” in the 2024 National Student Survey.

(National Student Survey 2024, Results published 10 July 2024)

Read about the survey

1st in London

We are the top London university for Childhood & Youth Studies courses (Complete University Guide 2024).

See rankings

Teaching and learning

Develop a reflective approach to special education and critical thinking skills which are transferable to the workplace.

Course modules

NOTE: Modules are subject to change. For those studying part time courses the modules may vary.

Download course specification

Download the course specifications.

Your future career

We offer dedicated careers support, and further opportunities to thrive, such as volunteering and industry networking. Our early childhood education courses are created in collaboration with employers and industry to ensure they accurately reflect the real-life practices of your future career in education and provide you with the essential skills needed. You can focus on building interpersonal skills through group work and benefit from our investment in the latest cutting-edge technologies and facilities.

Industry links

We have links with: 

  • Child Care and Early Years Education - Newham Council
  • LEYF London (Early Years Foundation)

Graduate employers

Our early childhood graduates have been employed by organisations such as N Family Club, Bright Horizons, and London Early Years Foundation.

Job roles

Wondering what jobs you can do with an early childhood degree?

Typical roles our early childhood graduates go into are nursery educator, parental outreach worker, nursery manager and area manager.

Explore the different career options you can pursue with this degree and see the median salaries of the sector on our Career Coach portal.

Further study

We offer a wide range of master's degrees in special education, early childhood or leadership in education, should you choose to specialise further.

Dorcus, Early Childhood student
The job I am doing right now was advertised through the UEL careers service."
Dorcus

Early Childhood graduate

How we support your career ambitions

We offer dedicated career support, and further opportunities to thrive, such as volunteering and industry networking. Our courses are created in collaboration with employers and industry to ensure they accurately reflect the real-life practices of your future career and provide you with the essential skills needed. You can focus on building interpersonal skills through group work and benefit from our investment in the latest cutting-edge technologies and facilities.

Career Zone

This digital platform provides you with careers and employability resources, including:

  • Jobs board for internships, placements, graduate opportunities, flexible part-time work
  • Mentoring programmes for insight with industry experts
  • 1-2-1 career coaching services 
  • Careers workshops and employer events 
  • Learning pathways to gain new skills and industry insight

Mental Wealth programme

Our Professional Fitness and Mental Wealth programme which issues you with a Careers Passport to track the skills you've mastered. Some of these are externally validated by corporations like Amazon and Microsoft.

Our Mental Wealth programme

We are careers first

Our teaching methods and geographical location put us right up top:

  • Work-based projects
  • Networking and visits to leading organisations 
  • Support in starting a new business 
  • London on our doorstep

How you'll learn

Based at the School of Childhood and Social Care in Stratford, you'll explore the significance of early childhood in different cultures and societies. This is particularly relevant given the ethnic and cultural diversity that exists in east London and, indeed, among UEL's student intake and staff. We use that diversity to our advantage by incorporating discussion time into our teaching.

All of your lecturers are research-active and draw upon their own and others' publications to enhance your understanding of key themes and concepts.

You'll benefit from the extraordinary richness of the research conducted in childcare by UEL's International Centre for the Study of the Mixed Economy of Childcare (ICMEC), which has a worldwide reputation. Professor Eva Lloyd is a founder of the renowned research centre informing public policy and practice. This ensures you have access to contemporary fieldwork research relevant to the programme.

Guided independent study

When not attending timetabled lectures you will be expected to continue learning independently through self-study. This will typically involve reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects, undertaking coursework assignments and presentations, and preparing for exams. Your independent learning is supported by a range of excellent facilities including online resources, Microsoft Teams, and Moodle.

Students are supported with any academic or subject-related queries by an Academic Adviser, module leaders, and former and current UEL students. If you need a bit of extra help with certain skills such as academic writing, English, maths, or statistics, our Academic Tutors offer workshops, drop-in sessions, and one-to-one appointments to help our students achieve their potential. You can receive advice and guidance on all aspects of the IT systems provided by the university from our IT Service Desks located on all three campuses. Our Student Support hubs in Docklands and Stratford feature centralised helpdesks to cater to your every need. We have new, modern library facilities on both campuses offering inspirational environments for study and research. Libraries contain resources in print and digital formats, a range of study spaces, and a dedicated librarian who can assist with your learning.

Fieldwork

The subject of early childhood is only relevant when it is applied to the reality which exists outside UEL's walls. That's why we take your learning off campus and give you the chance to work on real-life projects that benefit society directly. This fieldwork will not only broaden your own practical experiences but allow you to observe the practice of professionals as you do so.

Dedicated personal tutor

You'll be taught by staff with relevant experience and practice to ensure you learn from real-life experience and research. We encourage an educational experience that is active, social, collaborative, engaging, and student-owned. You will have access to a variety of resources ensuring your learning experience goes beyond the classroom. 

Our aim is to prepare our students for a broad range of careers so that they can make amazing contributions to their communities. When you arrive, we'll introduce you to your personal tutor. This is the member of staff who will provide academic guidance, be a support throughout your time at UEL, and who will show you how to make the best use of all the help and resources that we offer.

UEL provides also support and advice for disabled students and those with specific learning difficulties (SPDs). Your overall workload consists of class and online tutor-led sessions, individual learning, and practical activities.

Workload

Each year you will spend around 300 hours of timetabled learning and teaching activities. These may be lectures, workshops, seminars, and individual and group tutorials. Contact hours may vary depending on each module. 

The approximate hours for this course are: 

  • Year 1: scheduled teaching - 300 hours; guided independent study - 900 hours 
  • Year 2: scheduled teaching - 300 hours; guided independent study - 900 hours 
  • Year 3: scheduled teaching - 300 hours; guided independent study - 900 hours

Your timetable

Your individualised timetable is normally available to students within 48 hours of enrolment. Whilst we make every effort to ensure timetables are as student-friendly as possible, scheduled teaching can take place on any day of the week between 9.00am and 6.00pm. For undergraduate students, Wednesday afternoons are normally reserved for sports and cultural activities, but there may be occasions when this is not possible.

Class sizes

To give you an indication of class sizes, lecture sizes are normally 30 people. However, this can vary by academic year.

How you'll be assessed

Assessment tasks are mainly spread across the year to make the workload manageable. Assessment methods include group work and individual work including essays, presentations, case studies, professional development and practical activities depending on the nature of the course. All grades count towards your module mark. More details will be included in the student handbook and module guides. 

The course is assessed entirely by coursework such as essays, video presentations, and a research dissertation. Coursework will include assignments, self-reflective assignments, presentations, and group work.

Feedback is provided within 15 working days in line with UEL's assessment and feedback policy.

Campus and facilities

Water Lane, Stratford

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Statistics for BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies Degree, Full Time

Statistics for BA (Hons) Early Childhood Studies Degree, Full Time

What our students and staff say

Lisa Taylor
As a former University of East London New Beginnings and undergraduate student, I feel privileged to be able to work with our current and future students in the university that supported my academic journey."

Lisa Taylor

Senior lecturer in Early Childhood Studies and Education Studies

Summer Campaign 2016 - Emma Welch - Early Childhood
Without a doubt, the best thing about my course at UEL is the dedicated and knowledgeable lecturers that I've been taught by. I'm well supported in my learning. I feel valued in the classroom and inspired to learn and progress further in my field."

James Bennett

Special Education, BA (Hons)