MA Child Studies is designed for professional, personal and academic development. The programme offers a multidisciplinary approach to childhood issues within the context of current policy and practice developments in children’s rights, health and development, and protection. Students come from a variety of disciplines and professions including medicine, education, law, psychology and sociology.
KEY BENEFITS
- Multidisciplinary approach.
- Largely taught by external expert speakers.
- Covers latest developments in children's issues.
- Located in the heart of London.
KEY FACTS
Student destinations
Our graduates frequently progress to senior practitioner posts involving child-related work. Many students have found that the multidisciplinary aspect of the programme has opened up unexpected or unique opportunities, including research or policy positions with some of the larger children's charities.
Programme leader/s
Mrs Jenny Driscoll
Accreditation
Carries Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and Law Society CPD points.
Awarding Institution
King's College London
Credit value (UK/ECTS equivalent)
UK 180/ECTS 90
Duration
One year FT or two years PT, September to September.
Location
Waterloo Campus.
Year of entry 2013
Offered by
School of Social Science and Public Policy
Department of Education and Professional Studies
Closing date
30 July or until programme is full.
Intake
Approximately 10 FT, 15 PT.
Fees
PT Home: £3150; 1050 (per 30 credit module, 2013)
PT Overseas: £6000; 2000 (per 30 credit module, 2013)
FT Home: £6300 (2013)
FT Overseas: £12000 (2013)
CONTACTS
Contact information
Postgraduate Officer, Centre for Arts & Sciences Admissions (CASA)
tel: +44 (0) 20 7848 7207
fax: +44 (0) 20 7848 7200
Email
Website
PURPOSE
Designed for professional and personal development, as well as academic. We aim to enable our students to develop a multidisciplinary approach to childhood issues within the context of current policy developments. Students come from a variety of disciplines and professions including medicine, education, law, social care, psychology and sociology.
DESCRIPTION
Underpinned by a theoretical framework of children's rights, this multi-disciplinary programme is designed to encourage students to take a rigorous academic and analytical approach to contemporary issues in childhood which are of relevance to those working or intending to work with or on behalf of vulnerable children.
The curriculum is subject to change to keep up with policy developments.
STRUCTURE OVERVIEW
Core programme content
Child Studies dissertation (60 credits).
Indicative non-core content
Compulsory modules:- Children's Rights (30 credits)
- Child Health & Development (30 credits)
- Child Protection (30 credits).
Optional modules: one from
- Global Childhoods (30 credits)
- Multi-disciplinary Practice with Children (30 credits)
- Research Methods (30 credits).
FORMAT AND ASSESSMENT
FT: Weekly half-day lecture sessions on two days, currently Wednesday and Thursday.
PT: Weekly half-day lecture sessions one day a week.
Typical Assessments:
- 6,000 word essay (International Children’s Rights, Health & Development, Child Protection);
- 1x oral presentation 15 minutes - book review (Global Childhoods);
- 1x 3,000 word case study - policy or intervention (Global Childhoods);
- Research proposal, qualitative analysis and construction of questionnaire (Research methods);
- 16,000 word dissertation.
MODULES
More information on typical programme modules.
NB it cannot be guaranteed that all modules are offered in any particular academic year.
Teaching staff: Dr Ann Lorek, expert external speakers
Module code: 7SSEC002
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 1 (autumn); Semester 2 (spring);
Teaching pattern: Wednesday afternoons 13.30-18.00 for eight weeks
Assessment:
coursework
6,000 word essay from a choice of at least 3 titles
Pregnancy and birth; neonatal care; genetics; child development (physical, emotional and psychological); attachment and resilience; pervasive developmental disorders; anti-social behaviour; physical health (including obesity); mental health (including eating disorders and self-harm).
Teaching staff: Jenny Driscoll, Dr Hayley Davies, Dr Ann Lorek, expert external speakers
Module code: 7SSEC003
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 2 (spring)
Teaching pattern: Wednesday afternoons 1.30-6pm for 8 weeks
Assessment:
coursework
6,000 word essay from a choice of at least 3 titles.
Vulnerable families (including poverty, parental drug use, domestic violence, bullying); children 'in need'; inter-agency co-operation and information sharing; child maltreatment, including recognition, assessment and management; child protection investigations and emergency intervention; care and supervision proceedings; 'looked after' children
Module code: 7SSEC005
Credit level: 7
In addition, MA students will acquire a basic knowledge of qualitative research methods and an understanding of the ethical issues involved in research in relation to children and young people. They will also acquire an in-depth knowledge and understanding of their chosen dissertation topic.
Teaching staff: Jenny Driscoll, Dr Ann Lorek, expert external speakers
Module code: 7SSEC001
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 1 (autumn)
Teaching pattern: Wednesday afternoons 1.30-6pm for 8 weeks
Assessment:
coursework
6,000 word essay from a choice of at least 3 titles
The module addresses children's rights under the European Convention on Human Rights, United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and domestic law and policy in a range of areas, including Health, Education, Youth Justice, Immigration and children's representation.
Teaching staff: Jenny Driscoll,
Dr Hayley Davies,
Dr Ann Lorek, expert external speakers
Module code: 7SSEC006
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 2 (spring)
Teaching pattern: Thursday afternoons 13.30-18.00 for eight weeks
Assessment:
presentation/s
Case study 3,000 words (global childhood policy) (50%)
Presentation 15 minutes (child studies text) (50%)
The module will take a multi-disciplinary approach to contemporary issues in global childhood, including consideration of cultural and political constructions of childhood; gendered issues; child poverty and associated issues including child labour and child carers; child health, including infant mortality and HIV/AIDS; education; and child protection.
Teaching staff: Jenny Driscoll, Dr Hayley Davies, Dr Ann Lorek, expert external speakers
Module code: 7SSEC004
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 2 (spring)
Teaching pattern: Wednesday afternoons 12-1 for 2-4 weeks
Assessment:
written examination/s
3 hour open-book exam.
Optional open-book exam (3 hours) cased on the teaching for Children's Rights, Child Health and Development and Child Protection. Practice-based problems are addressed from a multidisciplinary perspective.
Teaching staff: Jenny Driscoll,
Dr Anwar Tllili among others.
Module code: 7SSEM060
Credit level: 7
Credit value: 30
Semester:
Semester 1 (autumn)
Teaching pattern: Research methodology sessions will be on Thursdays from 14:00 to 18:00.
Assessment:
coursework
- Essay: one analytic report on qualitative research interview dataset (2,500 words)
- Essay: one analytic report on a quantitative dataset (2.500 words)
- Research Proposal (research topic; rationale; research questions/aims/objectives; selecting and justifying methodological approach; data analysis; ethical considerations) (2,000 words)
In this module, students will be introduced to the range of research methods available to social scientists. They will be provided with a theoretical and critical understanding of the qualitative and quantitative research paradigms, and of mixed methods, and equipped with methodological skills and analytic techniques with which to formulate research questions and develop a valid and reliable approach to both quantitative and qualitative research design, data collection, data analysis and data representation.
This module will also enable students to identify and address methodological and practical issues that may be encountered in conducting qualitative and/or quantitative research; and to reflect on and address the ethical and political implications pertaining to the collection, analysis and dissemination of research data.
ACADEMIC ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
General entry advice
You will normally be required to have an upper second class honours degree or an equivalent qualification in a subject relevant to work with children and/or substantial professional work experience in a relevant field.
APPLYING TO KING'S
To apply for graduate study at King's you will need to complete our graduate online application form. Applying online makes applying easier and quicker for you, and means we can receive your application faster and more securely.
King's does not normally accept paper copies of the graduate application form as applications must be made online. However, if you are unable to access the online graduate application form, please contact the relevant admissions/School Office at King's for advice.
APPLICATION PROCEDURE
Please submit an application form, transcripts of your previous degree(s) or results to date if the degree is yet to be completed, and two references,including at least one academic reference.
PERSONAL STATEMENT & SUPPORTING INFORMATION
Your personal statement should explain why you would like to take the Child Studies MA, and how it would contribute to your career plan or development. It would be helpful to state where your particular area of interest lies, and how that specialism would be enhanced by a multi-disciplinary approach. If your first degree is in a subject not related to issues affecting children, you should set out what professional or other skills and experience you would bring to the programme.
FUNDING
Self-funded.
Student profiles
Child Studies MAHaving studied Educational Science for my undergraduate degree in Germany, I chose the MA in Child Studies at King’s College in order to further my knowledge of child-related issues. I felt that in order to work with children successfully I needed to understand the different factors which contribute to a child’s welfare.
Courses in Child Studies were taught by university staff members as well as external lecturers, which enabled us to study current research and policy developments, as well as problems in practice settings. I particularly felt that the mixture of full- and part-time students was beneficial to the MA, as both groups were able to learn from each other’s experiences. The course work was demanding, but continuous supervision offered me the necessary support in order to reach a high academic standard.
After graduating from King’s College I returned to Germany in order to begin a training programme in child and adolescent psychotherapy. Already in my first week of work at a psychiatric unit I have had to draw upon the multidisciplinary knowledge which I had gained during my year in London. My studies at King’s College benefited me in so many ways and I can highly recommend this programme to anyone interested in a child-related career.
Staff profiles
Child Studies MA
I worked for four years as a consultant in hospital paediatrics and neonatology, and have been a consultant community Paediatrician since 1999. I love working with an inner city diverse population and hold a broad case load of developmental and disability work, immunisations and public health, child death meetings, child protection and Looked After Children assessments, as well as on call commitments for the Haven sexual abuse service in Camberwell. I am committed to a clinical approach that enables children (and carers) to reach their potential, and allows the voice of the child to be heard. My research interests include the health needs of refugee and asylum-seeking children and public health related paediatrics. I joined Child Studies as co-director for health in 2006 and love the opportunity to reflect on my work from an academic perspective as well as learning more from multidisciplinary perspectives on the needs of the child. Over the years I have also valued a number of opportunities to work abroad for short periods teaching and learning in both hospitals and community settings and welcome being able to maintain this international interest within the Child Studies programme.
Child Studies MABefore working at King’s, I studied for a BA in History and Sociology, an ESRC-funded Masters in Social Research and PhD (Department of Sociology, University of Warwick). My PhD was a sociological study examining children’s (age 8-10 years) understandings of family and close relationships, in particular, the meaning children give to relationships and connectedness in contemporary society. Building upon the data generated for my doctoral research, I have undertaken postdoctoral research at King’s College (Keeping each other safe) which examined the extent to which children perceive themselves, and children more generally, to be able to help and provide emotional and practical support for one another. Asking children to identify those they turn to for support, and the people that they provide support for enabled an exploration of the people at the centre of children’s personal lives. Both projects form the basis of a book about children’s personal lives, which I am currently working on.
This research informs my teaching on the MA Child Studies and the MA International Child Studies. A sociological approach to child studies encourage students to examine children’s experiences of childhood internationally, the ways in which childhood is socially and culturally constructed, and to reflect upon how such constructions manifest in policy and practice, which in turn shapes aspects of childhood experience.
The relatively small cohort of MA Child Studies students allows students and staff to get to know one another well, and makes teaching on, and studying for this MA a rich and rewarding experience. Staff teaching on this programme work hard to ensure that there are opportunities to socialise with those studying on and contributing to the Masters programmes through end of term parties and post-presentation drinks and nibbles. Whilst the primary aim of such get togethers is social, the network of international contacts that students develop and foster throughout these programmes will be invaluable to a future child-related career.
- Listen to Hayley on BBC Radio 4 - Thinking Allowed, Surnames - War, Politics and comic strip Superheroes
Child Studies MAI practised at the Family Law bar for over a decade, specialising in child protection cases before moving to work at King’s in 2005. I was a trustee of The Children’s Society from 2003-2011, and was a member of the Good Childhood Inquiry steering committee. As a graduate of the MA Child Studies myself, I am convinced of the value of a multi-disciplinary approach to childhood issues, the importance of evidence-based research to professional practice, and also the stimulation and excitement of learning with and from others from different disciplinary and cultural backgrounds.
I’m interested in all aspects of the child protection system, particularly the state’s responsibility for children in state care, and the apparent tensions between children’s rights and their welfare. My current research is concerned with the educational transitions of care leavers and has led to my interest in ethical issues arising from research with vulnerable children and young people.
If you would like further information about the either of the programmes, or to discuss their suitability for you, you are very welcome to contact me directly at jenny.driscoll@kcl.ac.uk.
Child Studies MA
The courses that I lead offer students an opportunity to read, reflect and conduct research into an aspect of educational policy and provision that they are curious about and want to explore in more detail. Our courses offer students particular insights into a sociologically, historically and policy-oriented approach towards education provision.
I completed an MA and a PhD at King’s and have a great fondness for the College. As an alumni, I can testify to the rigour of the courses. As a tutor and researcher, I can also testify to the quality of the library provision and other facilities that are essential to the development of critical scholarship.
Some of our students already work in educational settings as teachers, lecturers, administrators and policy workers. Other students follow our courses with the intention of doing further study or moving into or on in their educational careers. Whether you already work in education or are simply fascinated by studying one of the key welfare provisions that any country makes, we hope that if you choose to join us in the department, that your time will become an enriching investment into your personal and professional development. I know it was for me!