Advanced Child Protection Studies MSc/PGDip/PGCert

Program Overview

The University of Birmingham's Advanced Child Protection Studies program provides multidisciplinary knowledge and skills for professionals in child protection and safeguarding. Through distance learning, it explores law, policy, international perspectives, and direct work, empowering graduates to enhance their careers or pursue further academic endeavors in child protection.

Program Outline

Advanced Child Protection Studies MSc/PGDip/PGCert - University of Birmingham

Degree Overview:

This multidisciplinary Masters programme in Advanced Child Protection Studies is designed to develop specialist knowledge and skills within the field of child protection and safeguarding. The programme is designed to appeal to experienced professionals already engaged in this area, such as those in social work, policing, law, education, nursing, and health. However, those with an academic interest in the area (e.g., social policy, law, or criminology graduates) are also encouraged to apply, subject to meeting the requirements of the various modules. The course is taught by experienced practitioners and experts in the field and provides the opportunity to focus on specific areas of interest. There are pathways for students wanting to focus on UK/English child protection and safeguarding work and students wanting to focus on international child protection work.

Outline:

The programme consists of four 30-credit modules, which can be taken on a part-time or full-time basis. There is also a dissertation for those taking the MSc.

Part-time students:

• Take 2 modules in years 1 and 2.
• Complete the dissertation module in year 3.

Full-time students:

• Take 4 modules in year one.
• Complete the dissertation component in year 2.

Modules:

• Law, Policy and Inter-agency Working (30 credits): This module aims to equip students with the necessary up-to-date legal and policy knowledge to effectively critique service delivery at all levels within the ‘child protection system’.
• International Child Protection (30 Credits): This module explores global perspectives on childhood and focuses on international frameworks for child protection, the individual work of multidisciplinary practitioners, organizational, social, cultural, economic, political, and geopolitical contexts, and contemporary challenges in child protection.
• Risk, Analysis and Decision Making (30 credits): This module develops students' ability to critically analyze the current processes, methods, and frameworks utilized in contemporary child protection practice, while critically reflecting on their own practice and the practice within the systems they work in.
It will critically interrogate how these systems have been designed and look at how we might design safer systems around a more sophisticated understanding of the relational dynamics within and between different professional groups.
• Dissertation (60 credits): This module aims to facilitate the development of higher-level critical analysis, and to develop students' capacities for knowledge-informed practice and more original thinking in relation to the complex issues that arise in the field of child protection.

Assessment:

Module 1: Law, Policy and Inter-agency Working

• A 2-hour timed assessment
• A process observation
• A proposal to improve some aspect of inter-agency working / policy

Module 1: International Child Protection (international child protection pathway)

• A short literature review
• A process observation
• A proposal to improve some aspect of service delivery related to the investigation or assessment of some aspect of child protection

Module 2: Risk, Analysis and Decision Making

• A short literature review
• A process observation
• A proposal to improve some aspect of service delivery related to the investigation or assessment of some aspect of child protection
• A short literature review
• A process observation
• A proposal to improve some aspect of service delivery related to help, assistance or direct work

Module 4: Organisations, Systems and Leadership

• A short literature review
• A process observation
• A proposal to improve some aspect of service delivery related to service design or service delivery

Module 5: Dissertation

• A 10,000 word dissertation
• A process observation requires the observer to observe and reflect on the general atmosphere and the social environment of the situation being observed, and to attend to the nature of the emotional relationships between the different participants or groups involved.

Teaching:

The programme is a online distance learning programme, which combines innovative learning and teaching techniques with interaction with the tutor and fellow students. Students are provided with high-quality teaching and have the flexibility to study anywhere at any time. No specialist knowledge in technology is required, only access to the internet and basic internet usage skills. Learning activities are structured for simplicity and students are supported throughout the programme.

Teaching methods include:

• Online learning environment
• Video lectures
• Interactive learning tasks
• Work-centred learning
• Social interaction through discussion forums, learning sets, and one-to-one tutorials

Careers:

The course particularly offers successful candidates the potential to:

• Enhance their careers through developing an expert or specialist child protection role in the workplace.
• Develop a research or development role within child protection or safeguarding organisations.
• Further develop their academic studies in the field of child protection, safeguarding, and child welfare.

Other:

• The programme does not lead to a professional qualification.
It is an academic qualification in child protection from the University of Birmingham.
• Students will need to be employed in, or have negotiated access to, an organisation that undertakes or contributes to child protection work.
• Students will need to supply the names of one reference from an organisational email address or as a PDF on headed paper and include a short personal statement with their application.