Social Work

Entry requirements

The general University entrance requirement for registration for a research degree is normally a First or Upper Second Class Honours degree.

Months of entry

January, April, October

Course content

Research profile

Social Work at Brunel enables graduates to make a real difference to the world around them including direct practice, community work and practice aimed at influencing social policy. The Social Work Division has particular strengths in working with the old and the young. A PhD in Social Work aims to enable someone to develop knowledge in a specialist area and offers the opportunity to make a valuable and novel contribution to knowledge in a policy, practice or educational aspect of Social Work.

Brunel Experts by Experience has a long and proud history at Brunel whereby service-users help the delivery of Social Work training to students and staff.

In the Division of Social Work we have members of staff who are:

• Editor of Ageing and Society, the leading social gerontology journal in the UK
• Editors of International Journal of Social Work, Gender and Education, Sex Education
• Fellow of the Faculty of Public Health
• Academician of the Academy of Social Sciences
• Core member of the Sex Education Forum
• Advisor on projects funded by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner
• Convenor of the British Educational Research Association’s Sexualities Special Interest Group
• Awarded the Ken Darby-Dowman Memorial Award for post-graduate teaching

The Division of Social Work have:

• specialism in gerontology
• specialism in working with children and young people
• research with practitioners on tackling gender violence
• commitment to anti-oppressive practice
• service user perspectives and experiences
• specialist researchers in gender and sexualities

Applicants are welcome to contact us about their own specialist topics and projects. However we particularly welcome proposals on

• Anti-oppressive practice and the development of resilient practitioners
• Children and young people’s experience of services
• Elderly and emotional well-being
• Sexualities and Sexual Violence

Information for international students

English language requirements

• IELTS: 7 (min 6.5 in all areas)
• Pearson: 64 (59 in all subscores)
• BrunELT: 68% (63% in all areas)
• TOEFL: 98 (min 23 in all areas)

Fees and funding

We offer a range of PhD studentships, partial scholarships, and academic prizes, to help with your research fees. Explore external funding, particularly the Research Councils, as well as other support.

Brunel offers a number of funding options to research students that help cover the cost of their tuition fees, contribute to living expenses or both. See more information here: https://www.brunel.ac.uk/research/Research- degrees/Research-degree-funding. The UK Government is also offering Doctoral Student Loans for eligible students, and there is some funding available through the Research Councils. Many of our international students benefit from funding provided by their governments or employers. Brunel alumni enjoy tuition fee discounts of 15%.