Why study Health and Social Care in the UK?
UK Health and Social Care degrees combine clinical practice with policy, ethics and management theory. You'll cover the social model of disability, safeguarding legislation, the Care Act 2014, mental capacity, dementia care, end-of-life care, and the structure of UK health and social services. Most undergraduate programmes include 200-400 hours of placement in NHS Trusts, private care homes, hospices or local-authority safeguarding teams. International fees range from £12,500 to £18,000 at pathway colleges and £13,000 to £21,000 at universities. Three-year Bachelor's with Foundation Year option, two-year Foundation Degree (FdA), HND, Top-up and one-year MSc routes are all available.
Career outcomes
First-destination roles include support worker, care coordinator, mental health worker, community engagement officer, child protection officer, and clinical support roles in the NHS. According to NHS Workforce statistics 2026, the UK has 110,000 health and social care vacancies — graduates from this field are highly employable. The Health and Care Worker visa allows graduates from health-related qualifications to take certain UK care roles with reduced visa fees and a 5-year settlement route.
Courses available through AEN
We work with UK partners offering Foundation Year Health and Social Care (£5,760-£9,790), HNC / HND, BSc / BA Health and Social Care, BSc Mental Health and Wellbeing, BSc Public Health, MSc programmes (Health Management, Public Health, Health and Social Care Leadership), and specialist routes (Master of Public Health). January, May and September intakes widely available.
Entry requirements
Most UK universities accept any combination of school-leaving qualifications totalling 88-112 UCAS points (e.g. CCC-BBC at A-Level) for direct entry, plus IELTS 6.0 with no element below 5.5. Foundation Year accepts a wider range of qualifications and is suitable if your school grades are below the direct-entry threshold. For MSc programmes, a 2:2 or 2:1 in any subject is typically accepted, with relevant work experience strongly weighted in admissions decisions.