About the Programme

Social Care work is a relationship based approach to the purposeful planning and provision of care, protection, psychosocial support and advocacy in partnership with vulnerable individuals and groups who experience marginalisation, disadvantage or special needs (coru.ie)

This programme has made an application for CORU Approval, there is no guarantee that the programme will be approved.

The BA (Hons) in Social Care programme is offered jointly by University College Cork and Munster Technological University with the programme team comprised of staff from both universities. The collaboration blends the particular strengths of the two institutions in Social Care education and more broadly, educating for the health and social care professions. 

The division of teaching will follow a structured pathway that reflects the distinct disciplinary strengths of both institutions. This will see MTU leading on the profession’s specific modules, focused on building students' core knowledge and skills in social care preparing them for direct, frontline work in a variety of social care settings.

UCC will lead on the social research, social policy and work-integrated learning, focusing on students' theoretical understanding and application of social care work and developing advanced competencies in areas such as social research, critical social policy analysis, and social action.

This programme takes a multidisciplinary approach to social care work, drawing from psychology, sociology, social policy, legal studies and the creative arts to learn how to best respond to the experiences of all stakeholders in the social care work setting. The programme is committed to fostering diversity in the field of social care and believe that a diverse group of social care workers better reflects and serves our communities. 

Work-integrated learning experiences strive to deepen understanding of the changing social care landscape by applying care practice skills, such as advocacy and communication skills, digital, creative and recreational approaches to practice, and health and wellbeing programmes for practice to address client needs and challenges in dynamic care environments, including de-escalation skills.

Furthermore, the integration of reflective practice, design-based problem-solving, including methods and tools that facilitate service user co-design and co-participation,  foster an inclusive, empathic insight into the needs of people across various care settings and diverse backgrounds with an emphasis on hearing the voices of supported persons/care groups throughout the course.

Through an innovative, evidence-informed lens, this programme aims to integrate theory and practice with an emphasis on ethical and evidence informed practice. A student-centred approach is used drawing on various teaching and assessment methods, enabling students to develop a professional insight into the various roles of a Social Care Worker, needs of various care populations, and contexts, CORU standards of proficiency and their own supervised practice.

Further Information & Contact

For general queries about the programme or if you are interested in this programme and would like to know more, please email: BASocialCare@ucc.ie