Health and Social Care with Integrated Foundation Year
Health and social care as an academic discipline examines how health and wellbeing are shaped by social, economic, and environmental factors, how care systems are organised and funded, and how the experiences of individuals navigating illness, disability, and care needs are affected by the services available to them. It is an interdisciplinary field that draws on sociology, psychology, policy studies, and biomedical science to understand why health outcomes vary so dramatically across populations, and what can be done about it. As the demands on health and care systems grow, graduates who understand these systems from multiple perspectives are increasingly valuable.
At Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, this four-year full-time programme includes an integrated foundation year, a sandwich year, a year abroad, and work placement opportunities. The foundation year provides a supported entry route, while the sandwich year, year abroad, and placements create substantial opportunities to apply your learning in professional and international settings. You will study the social determinants of health, the organisation of the NHS and social care systems, health inequalities, disability, ageing, mental health policy, and the ethical and political questions that surround healthcare resource allocation and priorities.
Research methods and evidence evaluation are developed throughout, giving you the analytical skills to engage critically with health and social care policy and practice.
Graduates of health and social care programmes pursue careers in NHS management, social work, public health, voluntary sector organisations, social policy, health promotion, and research. The combination of academic understanding and professional experience from placements makes graduates well prepared for a wide range of roles in health and care services and the organisations that support them. Further study options include postgraduate degrees in public health, social work, health policy, social care management, and health sciences.