Early Childhood Studies with Early Years Practitioner Status with a Foundation Year, BA (Hons)

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Key Course Details

UCAS Code: X31F
Mode of Study: Campus Based
Typical Offer (view equivalents): Enquire
Location: Singleton Park Campus

Start Date	Tuition Fees - Year 1
Sep 2025	£ 9,250

4 Year Full Time With a Foundation Year

UCAS Code: X31F
Mode of Study: Campus Based
Typical Offer: Enquire - More Information
Location: Singleton Park Campus

Start Date	Tuition Fees - Year 1
Sep 2025	£ 19,000

Early Childhood Studies with Early Years Practitioner Status with a Foundation Year, BA (Hons)

Undertake training working with children in a professional capacity

Course Overview

Early Childhood Studies with Early Years Practitioner Status (EYPS) offers a holistic approach to understanding children from birth to eight years. It marks the importance of early childhood as a significant period in life which is the basis for a life-long-learning, where children are viewed as capable and competent members of society.

The Foundation Year gives you an exciting introduction to Higher Education, setting you up with the skills, confidence, and knowledge that you’ll need to be successful on your undergraduate degree. It’s ideal if you need a little more support after Further Education or are returning to education after a gap.

Students spend 700 hours (approximately 20 weeks) on placement in early childhood settings and are required to display competency in National Occupational Standards set by Social Care Wales. Graduates will qualify with the Early Years Practitioner Status qualification awarded by Social Care Wales.

WHY EARLY CHILDHOOD STUDIES WITH EYPS FOUNDATION YEAR AT SWANSEA?

Early Childhood Studies at Swansea is ranked:

3rd in the UK for Research Quality (Complete University Guide 2025)
5th in the UK Overall (Complete University Guide 2025)
95% of graduates in employment &/or study, or doing other activities, such as travelling, 15 months after leaving Swansea University (HESA 2023)

You will learn how to support children and recognise them as being at the centre of families, communities and the wider socio-economic world. You will study diversity, the uniqueness of each child and how Early Childhood professionals can support children in difficult situations such as those suffering from trauma and in social crisis. Early Childhood Studies currently has an increasingly significant high profile internationally at government level and within international organisations, where children’s rights, health, well-being and social problems have attracted much attention due to recent global movements and the refugee crisis. The course aims to provide specific education and training for those wanting to work with infants, toddlers and young children in a professional capacity.

YOUR EARLY CHILDHOOD STUDIES WITH EYPS WITH A FOUNDATION YEAR EXPERIENCE

During your Foundation Year, you will learn the key skills you’ll need to make your degree a success while developing knowledge of your subject area and how it relates to the humanities and social sciences.

You will start the degree course in your second year. Early Childhood Studies with EYPS with a foundation year at Swansea is a flexible degree offering a wide-range of specialist modules that allow you to tailor your future career goals while developing your individual interests. You will learn about the best ways to support children and families and community connections.

You will earn qualified Early Years Practitioner Status (EYPS), gaining practical work-based experience combined with theoretical and policy-based knowledge as well as the transferable skills required for effective Early Years practice.

You will have the opportunity to undertake work placements in organisations such as schools, local authorities, businesses and charities to enhance your student experience and your career prospects.

EARLY CHILDHOOD STUDIES WITH EYPS FOUNDATION YEAR EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Our graduates will qualify with the Early Years Practitioner Status qualification awarded by Social Care Wales.

Careers can include:

Early Years Teaching
Family and Community Support Workers
Teaching Assistants
Postgraduate study

You will need an additional study for some careers, such as Initial Teacher Education (ITE) or Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) qualification to become a teacher.

Modules

In your Foundation Year, you will take a selection of modules that will provide you with key study skills, subject knowledge, and awareness of the importance of the humanities and social sciences. You’ll then progress to your degree

In the following three years, you will study areas that include contemporary education; the origin and theory of educational research and education in other countries; child development; protecting and promoting wellbeing in education; educational neuroscience and difference and diversity in education.

You will complete an independent research-based dissertation in the final year, developing the knowledge and skills to become a research-effective educationalist.

View the Early Childhood Studies Reading List.

Year 0 (Level 3)

Entry Level 3 / Foundation Year

Compulsory Modules

Module Name	Module Duration	Credits	Module Code
Academic Writing and Skills Development	September-January (TB1)	20	FY-011
Introduction to Being Human	September-January (TB1)	20	FY-012
Introduction to Research	September-January (TB1)	20	FY-015
Critical Reflection and Problem Solving	January-June (TB2)	20	FY-014
Research Essay	January-June (TB2)	20	FY-016
Social Science	January-June (TB2)	20	FY-019

Year 1 (Level 4)

FHEQ 4 Undergraduate / HECert

Compulsory Modules

Module Name	Module Duration	Credits	Module Code
Safeguarding and Children's Rights	September-January (TB1)	20	EDE102
The Social Construction of Childhood	September-January (TB1)	20	EDE107
An Introduction to Reflective Practice	September-June (TB1+2)	40	EDE116
Child Development	January-June (TB2)	20	DEC100
Policy and Curriculum in the Early Years: National and International Perspectives	January-June (TB2)	20	EDE117

Year 2 (Level 5)

FHEQ 5 Undergraduate / HEDip

Compulsory Modules

Module Name	Module Duration	Credits	Module Code
Play Throughout the Early Years	September-January (TB1)	20	EDE200
Embedding and Extending Reflective Practice	September-June (TB1+2)	40	EDE207
Communication, Language and Literacy	September-January (TB1)	20	EDE208
Protecting and Promoting Wellbeing in Education	January-June (TB2)	20	DEC200
Research methods in Education and Early Childhood Studies	January-June (TB2)	20	DEC201

Year 3 (Level 6)

FHEQ 6 Undergraduate / Honours

Compulsory Modules

Module Name	Module Duration	Credits	Module Code
		20	EDE305
Research Project	September-June (TB1+2)	40	EDE302
Professional Reflective Practice	September-June (TB1+2)	40	EDE303
Working in Partnership and Leading Others	January-June (TB2)	20	DEC300

Entry Requirements

To find typical offer ranges for this foundation degree you can contact us via email (study@swansea.ac.uk) or phone 01792 295111.

Please be aware that all students are required to complete an Enhanced Disclosure and Baring Service (DBS) check (or Police check for overseas students) as part of the enrolment process for our Early Childhood Studies programmes and there is a cost for this service. Please see our DBS Application Guidance page for more details.

The DBS Update Service:

The Update Service is a paid annual subscription that keeps your DBS certificate up to date, allowing you to reuse your certificate for future work and placements. We strongly advise you to register for the Update Service to avoid having to apply for a new enhanced DBS certificate for each placement. You can subscribe through the DBS website, though you must do so within 30 days of the issue date of your DBS certificate.

If you are already subscribed to the Update Service then please email cas.admissions@swansea.ac.uk

How You're Taught

We are proud to provide an outstanding educational experience, using the most effective learning and teaching approaches, carefully tailored to suit the specific needs of your course. Apart from a small number of online-only courses, most of our courses consist of in-person, on-campus teaching, enabling full engagement with your lecturers and fellow students.

Practical skills sessions, lab work seminars, and workshops predominantly take place in person, allowing for group working and demonstrations. We also operate virtual labs and Simulated Learning Environments which will facilitate greater access to training opportunities in the future. However, our approach also includes the use of some online learning to support and enhance traditional face-to-face teaching.

Online learning may take place ‘live’ using software such as Zoom, allowing you to interact with the lecturer and other students and to ask questions. Lecture recordings also allow for more flexibility to revisit material, to revise for assessments and to enhance learning outside of the classroom. Some modules have extra resources in Canvas, such as videos, slides and quizzes enabling further flexible study.

This course may offer some modules taught through the medium of Welsh or bilingually for students who consider themselves to be fluent Welsh speakers. For more details on the provision available see the Welsh Provision expander below.

Welsh Provision

No Provision

Unfortunately, there is currently no formal Welsh-medium provision on this course. If you would like to let us know that you are interested in pursuing an element of your course through the medium of Welsh, please email astudio@abertawe.ac.uk to indicate your interest along with your year of entry and we will do our best to see what is possible.

Whilst this course does not offer academic content delivered in Welsh, the University can provide you with the following, and Academi Hywel Teifi is here to support you:

An interview through the medium of Welsh when applying for a place.
The option to receive your personal correspondence in Welsh, English or bilingually.
The option to write and submit your coursework or exams through the medium of Welsh (even if you have chosen to study in English), and your work will be marked in Welsh.
A Welsh-speaking Personal Tutor.
One-to-one support to improve your academic Welsh language skills.
An opportunity to gain an additional free qualification that serves as evidence of your Welsh language ability for future employers.
Opportunity to be a member of the Swansea University Branch of the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol.

To learn more about the above and all the opportunities available to you through the medium of Welsh, visit Academi Hywel Teifi's undergraduate pages.

Meet Your Lecturers

Our degrees are taught by experts, who have a wealth of knowledge to pass on to our students.

You can find out more about our academic expertise on our staff pages.

Tuition Fees

Start Date	UK	International
September 2024	£ 9,000	£ 18,100
September 2025	£ 9,250	£ 19,000

Fees for full time Undergraduate UK students may be increased in subsequent years of study by an inflationary amount determined by Welsh Government.

Fees for full time Undergraduate EU/International students will increase by 3% for each subsequent year of study.

You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.

You may be eligible for funding to help support your study. To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.

Current students: You can find further information of your fee costs on our tuition fees page.

Funding and Scholarships

You may be eligible for funding to help support your study.

To find out about scholarships, bursaries and other funding opportunities that are available please visit the University's scholarships and bursaries page.

Academi Hywel Teifi at Swansea University and the Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol offer a number of generous scholarships and bursaries for students who wish to study through the medium of Welsh or bilingually. For further information about the opportunities available to you, visit the Academi Hywel Teifi Scholarships and Bursaries page.

Additional Costs

Access to your own digital device/the appropriate IT kit will be essential during your time studying at Swansea University. Access to wifi in your accommodation will also be essential to allow you to fully engage with your programme. See our dedicated webpages for further guidance on suitable devices to purchase, and for a full guide on getting your device set up.

You may face additional costs while at university, including (but not limited to):

Travel to and from campus
Printing, photocopying, binding, stationery and equipment costs (e.g. USB sticks)
Purchase of books or texts
Gowns for graduation ceremonies

Travel to and from placement schools
Please be aware that all students are required to complete an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (or Police check for overseas students) as part of the enrolment process for our Early Childhood Studies programmes and there is a cost for this service.

The DBS Update Service:

The Update Service is a paid annual subscription that keeps your DBS certificate up to date, allowing you to reuse your certificate for future work and placements. We strongly advise you to register for the Update Service to avoid having to apply for a new enhanced DBS certificate for each placement. You can subscribe through the DBS website, though you must do so within 30 days of the issue date of your DBS certificate.

If you are already subscribed to the Update Service then please email cas.admissions@swansea.ac.uk

Careers and Employability

Swansea Employability Academy (SEA) will support you at each stage of your career journey helping you build a bright future.

Our career support services include:

Employability workshops, employers’ talks, bespoke events and careers fairs
Individual advice and guidance from professionally qualified Careers Advisers
Help with finding jobs, internships, work placements and volunteering opportunities
Access to information resources on a wide range of career management topics
Advice and guidance on postgraduate study and funding
Funding to support student internship opportunities and Student Society/Club events.

We also provide help and advice for Swansea University Alumni up to two years after you graduate.

Academic Support

As well as subject specific support by college teaching staff and your personal tutor, the Centre for Academic Success provides courses, workshops and one-to-one support in areas such as:

Academic writing
Maths and statistics
Critical thinking
Time management
Digital skills
Presentation skills
Note taking
Revision, memory and exam techniques
English language skills (if English is not your first language).

In addition, if you have a Specific Learning Difficulty (SpLD), disability, mental health or medical condition, the Centre for Academic Success have Specialist Tutors to support your learning, working alongside the Disability Office and Wellbeing Service to support all your needs and requirements whilst studying at Swansea University.

Study Abroad and Global Opportunities

To learn more about study abroad, visit our Go Global webpages. Enrolment on a programme with a semester/year abroad does not guarantee you a semester/year abroad placement. Spaces are limited and subject to a competitive selection process. In the event you do not secure a semester/year abroad placement, you will be transferred to the standard variant of your degree scheme without a semester or year abroad.

International summer programmes are open to students from all schools. Programmes typically range from 2 to 6 weeks, across destinations such as China, Zambia, South Korea, Japan, Canada and across Europe. For more information about programmes and eligibility visit our Summer Abroad webpages.

All of our students have the option of study abroad. Our 4-year programmes offer a full-year abroad and we also offer a semester abroad for 3-year degrees, during your second year from January to May in Hong Kong, Singapore and the USA. The semester abroad is an exchange programme so you will pay UK tuition fees and be responsible for accommodation and living costs at the semester partner institution.

How to Apply

Apply now – UK, EU and international students.

For further guidance please visit our how to apply pages.

EU students - visa and immigration information is available and will be regularly updated on our information for EU students page.

Application Deadlines

We recommend that you submit your application to our courses as early as you can in advance of our application deadlines. Courses will close earlier than the application deadlines listed if all available places are filled. You can find further information on our Application Deadlines webpage.