Overview

If you want to jump into a rewarding, people-focused career in social work, our MA course is the perfect next step for you to professional practice and make a real difference.

When you join our Social Work MA, you jump right in from day one. Through a combination of study and placement work you'll gain the knowledge, skills and confidence you need for your career.

You'll have access to placements across a range of settings, allowing you to develop your practice and research skills and apply your knowledge to practice. We have close links with employers such as Kent County Council, Medway Council and Avante Care, who not only provide student practice learning opportunities but are also engaged in joint research projects with us. This close link means the practitioners who you learn from are leaders in the field, bringing you with them as they break new ground.

Our learning community also includes service users and carers who work with us to ensure that this programme and our research work represents a wide range of perspectives, including those of people who receive services.

Social work graduates from Kent become confident, competent practitioners, ready to go out into the world, improve lives, and effect change in the places they want to see it.

Funding

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) is responsible for the administration of social work bursaries. Please refer to the NHSBSA website for the latest available information including the eligibility criteria.

We do not receive confirmation of the number of MA bursaries we will receive until the summer prior to the programme starting. There are generally fewer bursaries than students registered. We are obliged to provide the NHS Business Services Authority with a ranked list of students. Students are ranked according to their scores during the selection process for the written test and the interview. We inform students where they are ranked as soon as we know the number of bursaries we will receive. Social Work MA students who receive a bursary in stage 1 of their programme, will also receive it in stage 2.

Students who do not receive a bursary, but meet the eligibility criteria, are currently able to apply to the NHSBSA for a Travel Allowance to help with placement-related travel costs.

Students who do not receive a bursary may also apply for the Postgraduate Loan from Student Finance England.

Home/EU students may be eligible to apply for a Department of Health bursary for both years of study.

In addition, Kent offers generous financial support schemes to support eligible postgraduate students during their studies. Find out more on our fees and funding page.