BA (Hons) Special Education

This intellectually challenging and thought-provoking course offers you a hugely rewarding undergraduate experience here at the University of East London. It opens up the world of Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and offers you the chance to enter the world of work with confidence. We’ll equip you for a range of careers helping to bring about a more inclusive society. Our course takes you on a fascinating journey through this complex area. You’ll learn about every aspect of the subject in line with government policy, including autism, speech, language, and communication, challenging behavior, disabilities, dyslexia, therapeutic teaching, and learning, as well as alternative educational provisions. You’ll develop a reflective approach to special education and critical thinking skills that are transferable to the workplace. Students on this course come from all over the country because its content is so comprehensive. Many already work with children with SEND. We’ll give you the opportunity to bring your own passion and experience to the course. We put an emphasis on sharing and discussing personal experiences to enrich our teaching.

Year 1

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 1 (Core)
• Exploring Social Worlds (Core)
• Key Principles for Inclusion (Core)
• Emerging Research Communities (Core)
• Practice module Part 1 Technical and procedural knowledge for SEN practice (Core)
• Practice module Part 2 Technical and procedural knowledge for SEN practice (Core)

Year 2

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 2 (Core)
• Identity and Social Justice (Core)
• Building Research Communities (Core)
• Contemporary Issues in Education (Core)
• Specific Learning Difficulties (Core)
• SEND Careers (Core)

This course offers the opportunity for year-long placement between years two and three. If you choose to take this option, you’ll spend your third year on a placement with a relevant company or organization, adding valuable practical experience to your growing academic knowledge. The extra placement year means it will take four years to complete your studies, instead of three.

Year 3

• Mental Wealth: Academic and Professional Skills for Life 3 (Core)
• Critical and Global Perspectives on Education (Core)
• Volunteering (Core)
• Communication and Interaction (Core)
• Active Research Communities (Core)

Employability

There’s an increasing demand for skills in Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and 75 percent of our Special Education graduates go on to work or study in this field. Of these, 61 percent go into caring and personal service occupations, while 18 percent move into professional or managerial positions. Our teaching team’s strong relationship with local schools, SEND organizations, and loyal alumni mean you’ll have plenty of contact on the course with potential employers through work placements, mentoring careers fairs, and guest lecturers. As a graduate of this course, you could apply to train as a teacher, for example via a Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) course. The University of East London offers PGCEs specializing in SEND in primary education and a number of secondary subjects. Our staff is readily available to support you and give you advice. Alternatively, you might consider working within the public and private sectors as a teaching assistant in a school, or train as a speech and language therapist, occupational therapist, social worker, or in the wider caring industry. Other postgraduate avenues open to you at UEL include Postgraduate Certificates in Autism Spectrum Conditions and Learning, Understanding and Supporting Behaviour and Special Educational Needs Coordination.