Access to Higher Education: Criminolgy, Social Sciences and Education

Open to those aged 19 and over, our nationally recognised Access to HE courses give you the skills, knowledge and qualifications you need to go to university, or explore a change of career. This course focuses on Humanities and Social Sciences. It’s perfect if you want to explore options like English, History, Law, Sociology and Criminology in the future. If you don’t have traditional entry requirements for university, everything you learn means you’ll be fast-tracked to start a degree the following September. If you have been out of education for a while, it’s not a problem, with our small, supportive environment designed to bring yourself and other like-minded students together. Whatever your aims or future goals, there’s no better place to start.

Studying Humanities and Social Sciences means choosing exciting units to investigate, such as Youth Justice, Trends in Criminology, Introduction into Social Work and Theories of Learning and Safeguarding. On each, you’ll explore insightful and meaningful topics and find out the answers to questions around childhood experiences, how stress affects our health, reformation of criminals and mental illness. Dynamic lectures, group projects and practical sessions are designed to replicate what you would do at university, so you can explore your options early. Taking part in these alongside like-minded students will also grow your confidence, teamwork and management skills, which are perfect for any degree. UCAS application support is a key part of our courses, with our dedicated Careers and Support teams on hand to guide you through the process. Choosing EKC Ashford College means that whatever your next steps, you’ll leave confident, focused and ready for a meaningful future.

To test your knowledge and to ensure you’re ready for university study or a new career, assessments take place throughout the year. You can expect a unique blend of essays, group discussions, projects, presentations and more formal assessments, for you to showcase your new skills and abilities.

This study programme is designed to help you move quickly toward advanced jobs, higher education, or apprenticeship opportunities if you know what you want to do next and meet the entry requirements needed for success. Achieving a Level 3 qualification will improve your future earning potential and career choices. It also allows you to progress to Higher Education, Higher Apprenticeships, and Degree Apprenticeships. These can lead to roles like advanced technician or skilled supervisor at Level 3, and eventually to management or professional status as you continue your studies. To study at Level 3, including all T Level and A Level programmes, you will need an average entry score of 5.0 from your best 6 GCSE subjects, ideally including English and Maths.

Former students have gone on to universities across the country, studying a range of degrees from Sociology to Psychology, to other fields such as English, History and Law. Access to HE qualifications have also been used to kickstart careers in numerous roles found in Humanities and Social Science. For former student, Phoebe, studying with us was the push she needed to pursue her dreams: "I am so happy to have passed and gained enough UCAS points to progress onto university. I really want to pursue a career in Forensic Psychology and I'm so grateful that EKC Ashford College have helped me believe I can do it. This time last year I wasn't in education, so it just goes to show that it's never too late to come to College.”