Mature student advice please

astraea

hi

I am 32 and mum to 4 girls and i am sick and tired of struggling on minimum wage!!

I want to go to uni and do a social work degree.

What sort of requirements would i need to get me on this course?

I have looked at a couple of options, i could do an access course, or the uni of lincoln do a 2yr p/t certificate in social care which could get me on the second year of the degree in social work.

Would i have to go down one of these options to have any hope of getting on the course? i have no A levels, i only have 5 GCSE's and an NVQ level 2 in business admin.

Any help would be great. just really trying to find out if i will have to do a year/2 years before i can even hope of getting on the 3 year degree?

thanks
vikki

Idiophreak

Do you have any relevant work experience that the uni might count towards your acceptance criteria?

bestpud

My understanding is work experience is essential and, in some cases, they will allow people with substantial work experience onto courses without an Access certificate, A levels or an equivalent.

I think you would need to do something though tbh, as it is quite a step from GSCE to HE, especially if you haven't studied in a while.

If you don't have a lot of experience, you could consider doing a lower level course with the OU and working alongside it, as that would improve your application no end.

astraea

hi not exactly relevent experience i dont know - i worked in a primary school for 3 years 2 years as a teaching assistant and a year looking after a 3 year old autistic boy. I am waiting to hear about a job interview i had last week to be out of hours support for a home care company (dealing with any emergencies, medical questions etc) i am looking into volunteering and also my friend who is a social worker herself is looking into sessional work for me?

i know its a big leap but i do think i could do it. i was with my friendwhen she was doing her degree a couple of years ago and i think i could keep up with it ok.

bestpud

I know two mature students enter uni by doing an essay as part of their application but I don't know how common this is. They both had A levels however, but from a long time ago!

I would go along to the uni you are thinking of and have a chat with them.

Do the have any open days coming up?

squirrelchops

Teaching assistant work is aboslutely relevent in terms of work experience for the social work degree. You will have dealt with issues of human growth and development (as with your own children), behavioural difficulties, working in groups etc so is all directly realtable.

Do be prepared for an overwhelming amount of work though with the social work degree. It is massive. It is a tough, challenging course that will have you sreaming in frustration sometimes and celebrating with elation at others.

Bear in mind you also have to do a total of 200 days work placements...ours are split 2x100 days in 2 and 3 years. Those with children struggled to cope with work/family/studying particualrly at these times as it is very full on. the course certainly tests your commitment put it that way.

However, if you can hack it the go for it. It isn't for the faint hearted or those who don't know what they want to do in life but a full time, professional qualification. I have made amazing friends on the course and have learnt a lot about myself too as well as the subject matter.

Oldernotwiser

astraea wrote: »

hi

I am 32 and mum to 4 girls and i am sick and tired of struggling on minimum wage!!

I want to go to uni and do a social work degree.

What sort of requirements would i need to get me on this course?

I have looked at a couple of options, i could do an access course, or the uni of lincoln do a 2yr p/t certificate in social care which could get me on the second year of the degree in social work.

Would i have to go down one of these options to have any hope of getting on the course? i have no A levels, i only have 5 GCSE's and an NVQ level 2 in business admin.

Any help would be great. just really trying to find out if i will have to do a year/2 years before i can even hope of getting on the 3 year degree?

thanks
vikki

Whether you do a one year Access course or two years part time and then into the second year of a degree, it will take you four years from now to qualify; I doubt very much that you'd get directly onto the degree course for this September as it's very late and your qualifications are too low.

I really think that you need to accept that it's going to take you four years to qualify and give yourself the best possible chance of success, rather than trying to rush things. Do your GCSEs include English and Maths, because these are mandatory for Social Work?

Personally I would do the access route as it's an excellent preparation for degree level study and you'd keep your options open for another year. Good luck.

paulwellerfan

i am now a fully qualified social worker.
However, i left school without any formal qualifications.
firstly, i worked at my daughters school as an unpaid classroom assistant then i enrolled on a child development course ( one year )
after that i did two years of access and then went to uni full time for three years
6 years of education.
more than when i was originally at school.

lilysgarden

I qualified as a social worker last summer, and started off doing an Access course because I had no qualifications. To be honest, it sounds like you have a fair amount of experience behind you already, but I'm not entirely sure you would be accepted on that basis.

But, if you don't ask, you don't get! So contact the uni's your interested in studying at, explain your experience, reasons for wanting to do the job, and the qualifications you have so far. They may accept you on that and your interview alone, although thanks to the latest Laming report, this may soon become more difficult. I know people who've gotten into uni on English literature degree's without even having GCSE's, but got accepted on merit of their letter to the uni, so it could always be possible.

Otherwise, I'd recommend the Access course, mainly because it's a really good stepping stone into the degree and good practice for the level of work you have to do.

astraea

hi
well i have been offered the job of care co-ordinator so thats a bonus!!
think i will go into uni and ask!!

i really like the look of the 2 year social care course as it is the first year of the degree basically but part time, has anyone on here got onto this course without qualifications?

Oldernotwiser

astraea wrote: »

i really like the look of the 2 year social care course as it is the first year of the degree basically but part time, has anyone on here got onto this course without qualifications?

Well, as the entrance requirements are listed as "There are no formal academic entry requirements for people over the age of 21 and social care experiencde is not necessary" it sounds quite normal! Do make sure you have those GCSEs though.