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Undergraduate

This degree equips you with the skills to empower young people, amplify their voices, and make a difference in communities.

Alongside your degree, gain the nationally recognised professional Youth Work qualification (JNC) while undertaking professional practice in diverse settings, from youth justice to alternative education projects. Explore topics like youth and community justice, applied professional ethics, and participation and engagement, while linking theory to real-world experience.

With extensive support from experts and hands-on opportunities, this course prepares you for a rewarding career in youth and community work.

About this course

Empower young people to find their voice and thrive with our Youth and Community Work degree. This professionally qualifying programme equips you with the nationally recognised Youth Work (JNC) qualification, preparing you to make a lasting impact in the lives of young people and communities.

You’ll explore key topics such as models, theories, and interventions in youth and community work, applied professional ethics, and youth and community justice, alongside the National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Youth Work. Through a blend of theory and practice, you’ll develop the skills to foster social inclusion, challenge inequalities, and support young people in shaping their futures and place in society.

With three professional placements in diverse settings - locally or abroad - you’ll gain invaluable real-world experience in statutory and voluntary projects, alternative education, youth justice, and more. Expert tutors will support you in identifying placements that contribute to your professional development, while qualified practitioners will mentor you throughout your journey.

At Hull, you’ll benefit from passionate teaching, innovative approaches, and extensive partnership networks that enhance your learning and career opportunities. From day one, you’ll connect theory to practice, building a strong foundation for a meaningful and rewarding career in youth and community work.

If you want to make a change in the world by facilitating young people to engage in activities and experiences that develop their voice, influence, and place in society, then youth and community work is for you.

Could you teach us a thing or two?

Module options

Each year, you’ll study modules worth a certain number of credits, and you need 120 credits per year. Most modules are 20 credits – so you’ll study six modules each year. Some longer modules, such as a dissertation, are worth more. In these cases, you’ll study fewer modules - but the number of credits will always add up to 120. Some modules are compulsory, some are optional, so you can build a course that’s right for you.

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  • Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

    This engaging module provides foundation knowledge and skills that will enable you to develop understanding and analysis of social inequalities and the nature of discrimination in contemporary society. There will be opportunities to explore key equality legislation and policy. The module will explore the ethical and political rationale for developing equitable, diverse, and inclusive practices as part of an agenda for social justice and social change.

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Education, Power and Knowledge

    Education is at the forefront of social change for social justice.  This module offers you the opportunity to make a difference, through Education, from the beginning of your studies.  As agents of educational change, you will undertake a collaborative project which focuses on the issues you are passionate about alongside fellow students and academics. You will examine how mainstream education has been shaped through agendas of power that reproduce social inequalities.  This module then introduces you to existing alternative approaches to education and to the direct action of educators and learners which come from those approaches. Alternative approaches to education can act as driver of change to challenge poverty, inequality, and sustainable community development at local, national, and global contexts.

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Learning Across the Lifespan

    This module explores a diverse range of theories of human development and learning. Using real world examples, you will be encouraged to apply a combination of theories to understand, consider and reflect upon appropriate courses of action to address issues found across a range: of relevant settings and contexts.

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Ethical Dilemmas and the Moral Maze

    Dealing with real-world, ethical, or moral dilemmas is both challenging and pertinent to all areas of lived experience and professional, practice.  The module will introduce you to a range of theoretical models and provide opportunities to explore these in relation to real world ethical dilemmas drawn from professional practice contexts.  

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Social Justice and Social Change

    Social Justice and Social Change offers an exciting opportunity for you to make a difference from the outset of your studies. You will work collaboratively to co-produce the big social justice questions.  Why are so many children still living in poverty in the UK? Why does inequality still exist?  Why do so many young people leave school without being able to read and write?  What will good work look like in 2030. How is social media affecting ideas about education? What is your vision for the type of society you want to live in?  With these big questions in mind, you will become familiar with innovative, creative projects and initiatives that work with children, young people, and communities, locally, regionally, nationally and globally.  The module provides field work visits and placement alongside teaching and learning.

    compulsory

    40 credits

  • Managing Self in Contemporary Practice Contexts

    This module will provide opportunities to understand how organisations work in contemporary society and will consider different approaches to leadership. The module will encourage you to explore your own approach to leading and managing in the 21st century and introduce you to a range of graduate futures across all organisation types including for example schools, charities, health services or your own enterprise business. The module will encourage you to think about leadership in new ways as well as understanding the challenges facing organisations in developing ethical and socially just practices and services. You will acquire a range of skills and develop your knowledge to help you make a difference through activities such as knowing where to source funding and write a funding bid to evidence good practice.

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Participation, Engagement and Applied Professional Ethics with Young People and Communities

    As Youth and Community Workers you will draw on an appreciative view of young people and communities, recognising and valuing what is strong and not wrong to challenge the dominant deficit discourse that portrays young people as deviant and communities as lacking. This module supports you to examine innovative and creative ways to make a difference in society and in facilitating young people as active citizens.  This module will provide you with the opportunity to develop essential knowledge and understanding of the important profession of Youth and Community Work which will enhance your ability to excel in your chosen field of work.

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Issues and Interventions in Youth and Community Work

    This module provides a sound basis for understanding key issues such as mental health, child criminal exploitation, youth offending, victimisation and the interventions and practices which seek to address these. Working in small project teams you will have the opportunity to identify and explore issues through real world case studies and practitioner experiences from which you can apply relevant theory and policy. During the module you will develop your understanding of the youth and community justice system, health services/projects and the role of Youth and Community Work within both health intervention and justice services. 

    compulsory

    20 credits

  • Communities of Practice

    This is a participatory, experiential, and collaborative module in which you will be introduced to a series of provocations identified by practitioners working at a grass root level in range of youth and community work settings.  The module works alongside the professional practice placement and will enable you to undertake in-depth investigation into issues you are encountering in practice.

    compulsory

    20 credits

Our facilities

Study the theory in our lecture rooms – before you put your learning into practice in the classroom.
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Watchlist

Play

Dr Patricia Shaw

Course overview

2 mins

Play

Rewilding Reading

Course Highlight

9 mins

Our academics

You'll benefit from the outstanding support of academic staff who are experienced education practitioners.

Our research is driven by the belief that education can challenge inequalities and injustices in society, and seeks social and educational change to enhance fairness, equity and social justice.

Julie Rippingale

Julie Rippingale

Lecturer

Christine Smith

Christine Smith

Lecturer

Entry Requirements

Fees & Funding

How much is it?

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Future prospects

Graduates of this course go on to impactful roles such as Youth and Community Workers, Youth Justice Officers, Mental Health Practitioners, and Outreach Workers. Others specialise in areas like child exploitation, domestic abuse support, or sexual health projects, making a real difference in young people’s lives.

The course also provides a strong foundation for postgraduate study, for example our MA Social Justice and Community Engagement or MA SENDI degrees, opening doors to advanced roles in education and beyond.

Become part of the next generation of futuremakers

Like what you've seen? Then it's time to apply.

The standard way is to apply through UCAS. This will give you the chance to showcase your skills qualities and passion for the subject, as well as providing us with your academic qualifications.

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Not ready to apply yet?

Visit our next Open Day, and see all that Hull has to offer for yourself. Talk to our lecturers about your subject, find out what university is really like from our current students, and take a tour of our beautiful campus and amazing facilities.

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94.9% employability (Education Studies) UK domicile full-time first degree leavers; Higher Education Graduate Outcomes statistics, for the academic year 2021/22, published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency June 2024.

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1st in the UK for teaching on my course National Student Survey (NSS) 2024, HEIs only.

3.

Students studying the Youth and Community pathway will receive the Professional JNC qualification in Youth and Community Work.

All modules presented on this course page are subject to availability and this list may change at any time.