Bachelor's Degree in Social Services

Basic information

• Degree programme: Bachelor's Degree Programme in Social Services
  
  
• Degree title: Bachelor of Social Services
  
  
• Duration of studies: 210 cr, 3,5 years

Graduates can be employed by the public, private and third sector in various counselling, service, rehabilitation and prevention related tasks.

Studies consist of core competence and complementary competence studies (total 210 ECTS). You can target your interest and develop competences you see as important by means of selecting complementary competence studies, participating in various projects, and choosing your internships and planning your thesis subject. You gain credits by completing study units and projects. Credits can also be gained through recognition of prior learning or competence demonstrations.​

The special feature in this degree programme is that practical training is a significant part of studies: 45 ECTS. This includes three internships each with at least 10 weeks of full-time work . The first internship focuses on working with clients, the second on methods and the third on research and development of work.​

Core competence studies will give you an understanding of the fundamentals of different areas of social services and are obligatory for all students. The scope of core competences is 150 ECTS

Working with clients in social services (30 ECTS) ​

Service Systems, Inclusion and Developing a Better Society (30 ECTS) ​

Approaches and Methods of Work in Social Services (30 ECTS) ​

Developing Client-oriented Social Services (30 ECTS) ​

Expert in Development and Workplace Innovation (30 ECTS)

Complementary competences​

The remaining 60 ECTS  consist of elective complementary competence studies. Complementary studies give you the possibility to focus your specialization on specific fields within social services that you find interesting and useful. At least 30 ECTS of the complementary competence studies need to be related to social services.​

Health and wellbeing from a global per­spec­tive (30 ECTS) ​

Empowering diverse clients (30 ECTS) ​

Early childhood education and care competence (30 ECTS) ​

Eligibility to apply 

An applicant should have completed one of the following degrees: 

-the syllabus of the Finnish upper secondary school or a matriculation examination 

- an International Baccalaureate (IB) degree 

- a European Baccalaureate (EB) degree 

- Bachelor degree in all countries 

- Master degree in all countries 

- a Reifeprüfung (RP) or Deutsche Internationale Abitur (DIA) degree 

- a Finnish vocational upper secondary qualification with a scope of 120 credits or 180 competence points or an equivalent prior Finnish vocational qualification with a scope of a minimum of 80 credits 

- a Finnish post-secondary level degree or a vocational tertiary level degree 

- a Finnish vocational upper secondary qualification, further vocational qualification or specialist vocational qualification or an equivalent prior qualification completed in the form of a competence demonstration 

- a Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree, postgraduate licentiate and doctoral degrees. 

- foreign education that in the country in question provides eligibility to apply to studies in higher education institutions. 

If the language of the degree certificate is not Finnish, Swedish, or English, the applicant must also submit a copy of a translation of the degree certificate, prepared by an official translator. The translation should carry the translator’s name and stamp. 

Laurea University of Applied Sciences verifies the applicants’ eligibility to apply before student admission to the degree awarding program. Admission is conditional until the original eligibility providing degree certificates used in the application have been verified. 

Language requirements

Laurea University of Applied Sciences also use an internationally recognized language tests for the applicants to prove their English language skills (level B2): 

IELTS Academic*: a minimum total score of 6.0 (Test sections: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking) 

TOEFL Academic (iBT)*: a minimum total score of 60 (Test sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing) 

PTE Academic*: a minimum total score of 55 (Test sections: Speaking and Writing, Reading, and Listening) 

Cambridge English Scale Score: a minimum total score of 169 (Test sections: Reading and Use of English, Writing, Listening, and Speaking) 

* IELTS Academic UKVI, IELTS Online, PTE Academic Online and TOEFL iBT Home Edition are also accepted. 

There are no expiration dates, but the language test results must be verifiable from the online verification service of the organizer. If the test scores can no longer be verified, the test is not valid. The applicant must make sure that the test results are not too old. 

The applicants can prove their English language skills (level B2) also with one the following degree certificates:

• Higher education degree completed in English in an EU/EEA country, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom, or the United States, or a doctoral thesis completed in English in any country
• Upper secondary degree completed in English in an EU/EEA country, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom, or the United States

 
Student admission 

A student may be admitted to degree-awarding education only after they have completed the preparatory/pathway studies. Before the preparatory/pathway studies the entrance examinations are held and the student’s eligibility to apply will be verified from the students’ degree certificates. Before being admitted to degree-awarding education, the student must pass all study units included in the preparatory studies (Finnish language A 2.2., other study units). 

The entrance examination in social services and health care focuses on the applicant’s aptitude to the sector by assessing their motivation and interests in the sector, social skills as well as preparedness to study and work. The health status of students admitted to the programmes must be appropriate for the sector (SORA legislation). 

Student admission to the preparatory studies is based solely on the entrance examination and the eligibility of applicants provided by law. Students are required to have a B2 level proficiency of English before they are admitted to the preparatory studies. The language skills will be strengthened to level B2 (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR)) during the preparatory studies. The Finnish language studies should be completed at level A 2.2 during the preparatory studies. 

Content of the entrance examinations vary: 

Aptitude to the sector 

Learning and working skills 

English language skills, including oral language skills 

Each section of the entrance examinations must be passed at an approved level. 

See more information about tuition fees

Read more about the Finnish education system

Fact sheet of Laurea in Chinese 

For more information please contact by e-mail at education.export@laurea.fi