Overview
This course allows you to jointly study Education Studies & Theology & Ethics, giving you a fully rounded experience of both subjects.
Studying Education Studies at BGU will provide you with an excellent understanding of education in its widest sense, nationally and globally, and is a great choice if you are interested in a career in teaching or are thinking about working in other education-related areas.
Whether you describe yourself as agnostic, atheist or a firm believer, if you have a passionate interest in the ethical, political, philosophical and religious issues of our time, this course is perfect for you. Here at BGU, we can look back on many years of experience in teaching Religious Studies, Philosophy and Theology. We designed this degree to bring the oldest of academic subjects into the present day – combining the richness of ancient tradition with the relevance and freshness of a 21st-century subject.
Please note this course is subject to revalidation.
Key Facts
| Award: | BA (Hons) |
| UCAS Code: | XV3P |
| Academic School: | School of Social Sciences |
| Duration: | 3 years |
| Mode of Study: | Full-time |
| Start Date: | September |
| Awarding Institution: | Bishop Grosseteste University |
| Institution Code: | B38 |
Entry Requirements
You will normally need 96 -112 UCAS tariff points (from a maximum of four Advanced Level qualifications). We welcome a range of qualifications that meet this requirement, such as A/AS Levels, BTEC, Access Courses, International Baccalaureate (IB), Cambridge Pre-U, Extended Project etc.
However this list is not exhaustive – please click here for details of all qualifications in the UCAS tariff.
Further Information
About The Course
Education Studies
How do people learn? What gets in the way of learning? Where might people learn best – and how? Do we need schools? Is it possible to ‘school’ the world? Can education make a difference to human rights? Women’s rights? Nationally? Globally? These are just some of the big questions that you will examine through studying Education Studies at BGU. We are proud of our highly contemporary, reactive and issues-based course that has been carefully designed to give you that ‘bigger’ picture of education in a global society. An Education Studies degree from BGU will equip you well for the future, no matter what your career destination, but if you are planning to go on to teach you will find that our modules will open your eyes to some different ways of thinking about education and its purpose and place in society.
Studying Education Studies with us will provide you with an excellent understanding of education in its widest sense, nationally and globally, and is a great choice if you are interested in a career in teaching or are thinking about working in other education-related areas. It will provide you with a deep and reflective knowledge and understanding of contemporary issues in education, directly related to everyday practice. You’ll debate education policy, find out more about the drivers of educational change in England today and critically consider different approaches to schools and schooling, both within the UK and globally.
A key feature of Education Studies is a focus on you as a developing practitioner. You will be encouraged to develop a strong personal ideology of education and will be supported in the development of secure employability skills through our work-based placements. A number of core modules each year incorporate placements in schools or other education-related settings and carefully structured placement tasks will ensure that you gain valuable first-hand practical experience.
Theology & Ethics
This course offers a different type of Theology and Ethics – we like to think of it as Theology ‘with its sleeves rolled up’. Our hands-on programme will take you beyond the classroom and will open doors that have the potential to change your life and empower you to make a difference to the world you inhabit.
Get ready to look at recent trends in theology alongside the implications of scientific discovery, exploring religious debate together with arguments for atheism and for the existence of God. You won’t stop studying world religions, however. You’ll also explore other key events and issues related to terrorism, race, gender and sexuality. Here at BGU, we have many years’ experience in teaching Religious Studies, Philosophy and Theology. We designed this degree to bring the oldest of academic subjects firmly into the present day – combining the richness of ancient tradition with the relevance and freshness of a 21st-century subject.
Throughout the course you’ll develop your curiosity and fascination about different religious cultures, learning from hands-on experience and developing research skills and critical evaluation skills.
Delivery
There is no one-size-fits-all method of teaching at BGU – we shape our methods to suit each subject and each group, combining the best aspects of traditional university teaching with innovative techniques to promote student participation and interactivity.
You will be taught in a variety of ways, from lectures, tutorials and seminars, to practical workshops, coursework and work-based placements. Small group seminars and workshops will provide you with an opportunity to review issues raised in lectures, and you will be expected to carry out independent study.
Placements are a key part of degree study at BGU. They provide an enriching learning experience for you to apply the skills and knowledge you will gain from your course and, in doing so, give valuable real-world experience to boost your career.
Assessment
We recognise that individuals come from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, so we use a variety of assessment strategies on our courses.
In Education Studies, assessment is carried out through coursework of different types, including essays, reports, oral presentations, multimedia presentations, reflective logs and portfolios. There are no examinations. You can expect to give one or two oral presentations or poster presentations as one of a small group of students throughout the course. You will gradually build up skills of multimedia presentation and third-year students currently present a short, assessed multimedia film to their peers. You will build up your writing skills steadily throughout the course and in the first year, you will complete a portfolio of shorter written pieces and two longer essays, receiving formative feedback from your tutors to help you build up your academic capabilities.
On our Theology courses, we believe that we have an imaginative approach to assessment that allows us to utilise your strengths. We assess our students using a wide range of methods which include written assignments, paired and single presentations, research-based dissertations, files of work and exams. A good deal of continual assessment and easy access to our course tutors means that we are in a strong position to get the best possible results from our students.
Careers & Further Study
Education Studies graduates enjoy very high levels of employability – the course facilitates your personal and profession employability skills superbly through regular work-based placements – and our students are in high demand. Currently, around 70% of our students complete a teacher training course and will go on to be highly successful Primary or Secondary teachers, but with an Education Studies degree from BGU, your career opportunities are diverse.
In addition to careers in Education, Education Studies graduates are well placed to work in the other education-related, health, social care, public information or communication sectors. The course provides good training for a role within the business, service industries, personnel, museums, galleries or charities.
Combining your study with Theology & Ethics opens up a variety of other career possibilities.
Many Theology students will pursue careers directly related to the disciplines of Theology, Ethics and Religious Studies, in education and schools. However, graduates of this course are highly skilled individuals fully prepared to pursue a wide variety of careers in other fields, such as Community Work, Counselling, Policing, Librarianship, Social Work, work in the third sector, Politics, Museum Work, Education Officers attached to religious buildings or organisations and Media work. Specialised modules and the ability to choose individual routes through our programme will prepare you for whatever career might best suit your interests.
As well as an in-depth understanding of ethical and theological issues, you will gain a wide range of transferable skills which will prepare you for further study or employment. Possible future careers for Theology & Ethics graduates may include work as an RE Teacher/Primary specialist, Theology lecturer, Social or Youth work, Politics and Policy planning or Museum work.
Year 1 Modules
Year 2 Modules
Year 3 Modules
Academic Staff
Dr Jack Cunningham
Programme leader
Reader in Ecclesiastical History
Jack Cunningham teaches on the undergraduate Theol
Dr Helen Hendry
Programme leader
Helen oversees and co-ordinates provision for the ‘21st Century Curriculum’ Module, and the ‘Collabor
Support
Studying at BGU is a student centred experience. Staff and students work together in a friendly and supportive atmosphere as part of an intimate campus community. You will know every member of staff personally and feel confident approaching them for help and advice, and staff members will recognise you, not just by sight, but as an individual with unique talents and interests. We will be there to support you, personally and academically, from induction to graduation.
Fees & Finance
A lot of student finance information is available from numerous sources, but it is sometimes confusing and contradictory. That’s why at BGU we try to give you all the information and support we can to help to throughout the process. Our Student Advice team are experts in helping you sort out the funding arrangements for your studies, offering a range of services to guide you through all aspects of student finance step by step. Click here to find information about fees, loans and support which will help to make the whole process a little easier to understand.
Undergraduate course applicants must apply via UCAS using the relevant UCAS code. The application fee is £12 for a single choice or £23 for more than one choice. For all applicants, there are full instructions at UCAS to make it as easy as possible for you to fill in your online application, plus help text where appropriate.
