BA in Professional Social Care (Disability)

Note: This course will open for the Autumn 2019 commencement in Spring, 2019. However, some modules may be taken individually on a CPD basis. Contact the College for more information on www.opentrainingcollege.com, or via this website.

This degree programme will prepare social care workers for CORU registration. Focusing specifically on the disability sector, the three-year, part-time/open learning degree provides participants with the skills to work effectively within the rapidly evolving disability services sector.

The course was created by people with extensive first-line experience who fully understand the area and the problems that come with attempting to balance work, life and learning when you work in it.

It is an applied programme dealing with real world challenges. The choice of course materials is determined by the needs of people employed in the sector. They are dealt with from the perspective of someone working in the disability arena and their relevance/quality is determined by the ways in which they can be applied to, and improve, everyday practice.

Our assignments tackle issues that you are likely to face in the workplace. While completing these you will have access to our expert tutors and a community of people who are almost certainly trying to deal with the same issues. On completion, you will be able to deliver better services to the people you support.

We work in partnership with over 180 organisations from the human services and non-profit sector. Together we ensure that the BA in Professional Social Care (Disability) always reflects:

• The current regulatory and public policy environment (including HIQA, New Directions and the challenges posed by the new Assisted Decision Making legislation)
• The issues driving the sector, and
• Contemporary best practices for managing them

Student-Centred
The degree is designed to accommodate the pressures and responsibilities that you face. Its mixture of workshops, tutorials and online learning will allow you to balance your work, life and college commitments. Remember; our active learning community (made up of students, tutors and learning support staff) is always there to support you as you learn.

The course content is based on:

• Our expertise in the disability and broader social care area
  International best practice
  Current legislation and policy
  Ongoing feedback from course participants
  Input from graduates, professional bodies, regulatory bodies and service users

This is reflected in the choice of learning objectives, course materials and the award winning approach that has been developed to deliver the course.

Learning Objectives

After completing the course you will:

• Possess a detailed understanding of the services, systems and regulations that affect professional social care practice
• Understand the various roles of the social care professional
  in pan disability services
• Be able to explain the central importance of human rights and social justice in pan disability contexts
• Know how to use a range of research, enquiry and analysis methods to investigate social care issues
• Have the critical and analytic skills required to investigate, understand, and solve problems that arise in professional social care settings
• Know how to accurately, objectively and sensitively record information relating to service users in a way that complies with current legal, quality and ethical regulations and requirements
• Be able to work in inter-professional contexts and make substantive contributions to collective decision-making
• Have the ability to reflect on personal practice, and recognise and address the limitations of your current knowledge, skills, and competencies
• Know how to engage in self-directed practice and key work with service-users, groups, communities, families
• Know when to seek professional support/guidance when performing your role
• Be able to take responsibility for safeguarding and protecting service-users
• Understand the professional and ethical commitments of being a social care professional

Course Content

Year 1

The first year of the course provides a detailed introduction to the person centred approach to working with persons with pan disability. During it you will begin developing the core competencies required to use it. During the year you will also acquire the skills needed to successfully complete a third level degree.

Year 2

The second year concentrates on developing the knowledge, skills and competencies needed to provide innovative, person centred supports for service users within a rights based, empowering, quality driven environment.

Year 3

The 3rd and final year of the BA programme concentrates on the specific social care skills required to deal with practitionership issues that arise from supporting individuals with disability in a rapidly changing environment. It also provides an opportunity to further develop your formal research and analytic skills to critically investigate disability issues from a range of perspectives including the service user, organisational, societal and policy viewpoints.

Year 4 – Hons BA in Professional Social Care (Disability)

Course Content

The course is made up of five modules.

1. Applied Research Methods

2. Comparative Social Policy

3. Disability in the Context of Social Equality and Inclusion

4. Current Issues in Social Care: Mental Health, Elder Care, Children

5. Supporting Individualised Living and Alternative Services

How Will I Be Assessed?

The course is assessed through a combination of assignments, online activities, written examinations and assessment research project.

It is an applied course so you must be working at least 10 hours per week in a appropriate work environment.

Promoting best practice in services is integral to the College’s mission. As part of this, we place particular importance on encouraging students to apply what they are learning – as they are learning – in their professional environment the application of course learning to the everyday work and experience of the student. Therefore, our learning materials, workshops and assessments are practical in nature. A significant proportion of assessment marks are allocated to applying what you learn in real world settings.

How to Apply?

Applications are accepted through the OTC online application centre at opentrainingcollege.com.