Health & Social Care

Course Overview 

Are you a good communicator? Do you care about other people and how our society develops? Are you interested in pursuing a career working with children, older people or in the NHS? Health and Social Care can give you these opportunities.

The Edexcel BTEC Extended Certificate is equivalent to one A Level. It is a natural progression from the BTEC L2 in Health & Social Care and is designed to further develop you into an independent learner. You can still study L3 Health & Social Care if you have not studied it before. Throughout the course you will study a variety of topics and build upon your knowledge and understanding of the world of Health, Social Care and Early Years. The nature of the course not only gives you the opportunity to develop your knowledge and  understanding but it also allows you to improve your research and application skills, organisational skills and time  management. You will develop personal skills and attitudes  essential for successful performance at university and in working life.

Assessment Objectives

The BTEC Level 3 in Health & Social Care is run over two years and content is broken down into four units, with two being externally assessed. The size of each unit is determined by how many guided learning hours (GLH) have been set for delivery and to successfully complete the course, you must complete a total of 360 GLH. You must complete the selected four units in order to fulfil the course requirements.

Units studied over the 2 years:

Unit 1: Human Lifespan Development (90 GLH)

Unit 2: Working in Health & Social Care (120 GLH)

Unit 5: Meeting Individual Care and Support Needs (90 GLH) Unit 14: Sociological Perspectives (60 GLH)

Examination Board:

Pearson

Entry Requirements:

Ideally you will have a grade 4 in Maths.

You must have 5 qualifications at level 2 at grade 4/pass or above.

Course Level:

BTEC – Level 3

What skills will I develop?

Clinical skills
First Aid qualification
Caring for a variety of service users
Communication and interpersonal skills

How will I be assessed?

40%
Coursework
60%
Exam

The components comprise a comparative analysis of poetry and an unseen text and the critical response to prose. Students will also study drama texts including a Shakespeare play. This course also develops student engagement with spoken language and non-literary materials. The non-exam assessment enables pupils to pursue an independent line of enquiry investigating language usage within a particular text or genre.

Is there anything else I should know?

The Edexcel BTEC Level 3 in Health & Social Care can be studied with a variety of other subjects to suit the needs of the student. Many students combine with A Levels in Psychology, Sociology and English or BTEC’s in Children’s Play, Learning and Development and Applied Science. It is widely accepted by universities and during the UCAS application process, students will need to provide details on attainment/expected attainment within individual units.

Progression Routes

Many students who study Health & Social Care go on to  university to study Nursing, Midwifery, Social Work and Teaching. The Level 3 course is excellent preparation for entering university or going directly into Social Care/Early Years employment.