Practice Education PgCert
- Social work
- Postgraduate
Are you a registered social worker ready to help aspiring professionals develop? Kingston University’s Practice Education PgCert will enable you to gain Stages 1 and 2 of the Practice Educator Professional Standards, currently held by the British Association of Social Workers.
Help the next generation of social workers to succeed
Teaching will come from practising social workers, who will bring theory to life with their front-line experiences.
Studying this PgCert in Practice Education at Kingston University will give you the skills to specialise in the field or teach at a university. You could even progress to another role within learning and development, or go on to study Kingston’s Advanced Social Work MA.
During the course, you’ll build the skills you need to teach, support and assess social work students on practice placements. You’ll graduate fully equipped for a successful career.
You’ll learn how to teach social-workers-in-training during practice placements, progressing through the Professional Capabilities Framework (PCF) levels and developing your leadership skills.
This well-established programme aligns with Chief Social Workers' Knowledge and skills statements for practice leaders and supervisors. It has a strong professional reputation and has been developed in partnership with a range of social work organisations and users.
Why choose this course
While you study, you’ll benefit from top quality teaching at Kingston University. Not only are we ranked Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework, we’re also top in London for Social Work (The Guardian University Guide 2025).
The Skills Lab
A portion of your learning will take place in our purpose-built Social Work Skills Lab, where you can develop professional assessment, intervention, mentoring, teaching and supervision skills.
The Skills Lab is a flexible, multi-functional space. It’s perfect for developing your creative and communication skills, as well as receiving feedback and simulating a range of environments. In the Lab, you’ll find a series of spaces fitted with cameras and microphones to record all activities. They include:
- A 20-person seminar/case conference room
- A living-room and front door to simulate home visits
- Five interview rooms simulating work environments
- A control room with a two-way mirror and viewing monitors
Sector-leading research
Many of our staff are active in research, often in partnership with NHS Trusts. That means they bring the latest thinking and best practice to your studies. Key social work research activity focuses on everything from risk and child abuse, children’s rights and adult safeguarding to professional education, mental capacity and more.
Kingston is No.1 in London for Social Work (The Guardian University Guide 2025).
Course content
Stage 1 of the course prepares you to work with a social work student on their first placement. You will learn to develop a curriculum, manage the placement, support learning and assess achievement. You will put this into practice through providing a student placement (usually a 70-day placement).
In Stage 2 you will provide a placement for a second social work student (usually a 100-day Final placement). If you have significant experience in practice education, or have taken an Enabling Others' Learning (Social Work) course, you may be able to join Stage 2 directly.
From this PgCert, you may progress to the Advanced Social Work MA, depending on your module choices.
Core modules
Core modules
Career opportunities
You’ll complete this course with the skills required to specialise in practice education. Previous graduates have gone on to teach in universities, work in local authority learning and development teams or progress to management roles. Some have even written or contributed to textbooks.
Links with business and industry
Throughout the course, you’ll benefit from Kingston University’s Developing Together teaching partnership with local authorities and voluntary organisations. The partnership creates a leading community of social work education, academic research and frontline practice.
The partnership aims to create a culture of ongoing learning, research and support to grow and retain a community of passionate and capable social work professionals that will meet with the region's future workforce demands.
Teaching and assessment
For both modules trainees are assessed in practice by a Practice Assessor (a Stage 2 qualified Practice Educator) and are required to produce a portfolio of practice evidence including: a Practice Learning Agreement, Induction Programme, Midway and Final Report on the student, examples of a teaching activity, direct observations of the student by the trainee practice educator, direct observations of the trainee by the PA and feedback from the student, tutor and line manager.
There are slightly different requirements for the modules that will be explained to you by your course tutors and are described in some detail in the Module Handbooks. In addition both modules require trainees to produce critical analyses of their development as Practice Educators and Professional Development Plans.
Fees and funding
Funding support for postgraduate students
If you are a UK student living in England and under 60, you can apply for a loan to study for a postgraduate degree. Find out more through the government's website.
Scholarships and bursaries
Interested in studying Practice Education PgCert at Kingston? The following funding support is available:
Additional course costs
Some courses may require additional costs beyond tuition fees. When planning your studies, you’ll want to consider tuition fees, living costs, and any extra costs that might relate to your area of study.
Your tuition fees include costs for teaching, assessment and university facilities. So your access to libraries, shared IT resources and various student support services are all covered. Accommodation and general living expenses are not covered by these fees.
Where applicable, additional expenses for your course may include:
Apply for this course
Before you apply
Please read the entry criteria carefully to make sure you meet all requirements before applying.
Apply online
Use the course selector drop-down at the top of this page to choose your preferred course, start date and mode, then click 'Apply now'. You will be taken to our Online Student Information System (OSIS) where you will complete your application.
If you’re starting a new application, you’ll need to select ‘new user’ and set up a username and password. This will allow you to save and return to your application.
Trainee PE Placement Information Form
You will need to complete the Trainee PE Placement Information Form as part of your application.
Application deadlines
We encourage you to apply as soon as possible. Applications will close when the course is full.
Course changes and regulations
The information on this page reflects the currently intended course structure and module details. To improve your student experience and the quality of your degree, we may review and change the material information of this course. Find out more about course changes
Programme Specifications for the course are published ahead of each academic year.
Regulations governing this course can be found on our website.
