Health and Social Care (with Integrated Foundation Year)

Do you want to support and help others with your future career in health and social care? This foundation degree in health and social care is designed with a range of engaging modules to allow you to develop your professional and personal skills.

Our health and social care foundation course will provide you with the skills to allow you to pursue your ideal career by either progressing onto a professional health course or by completing the four-year degree to hit the ground running working in health and social care.

Course Overview
This integrated foundation year entry route offers an alternative, supportive route for students who may not have the required qualification(s) for direct entry onto some of our level 4 programmes, or those who may have taken an extended break from education.

By successfully completing the first year of this programme you may be able to apply to transfer onto one of our health professional programmes.

If you do not wish to specialise after completing year one, you can continue onto the full health and social care degree. The full degree will support your academic advancement to prepare you for your ideal career in health and social care. You'll enhance your personal skills including communication, teamworking, self-management, motivation, resilience, self-awareness and confidence.

On this course you will...
• Have the option to transfer onto one of our health professional programmes (listed above) or progress onto the full health and social care degree at the end of the integrated foundation year.



• Study a range of engaging modules that will develop your confidence in your academic skills so that you are prepared for further study.



• Be taught by expert lecturers who have professional experience from across our Institute of Health, covering a spectrum of health and social care professions.



• Study health and social care as part of an active and vibrant community of like-minded Institute of Health students who want to make a difference.



• Access pastoral and academic support that is embedded in the programme to guide you on your journey into higher education, with a Student Development Coordinator providing advice and guidance.

With campuses in the Lake District, Carlisle, Lancaster, Ambleside, Barrow, and London, you’ll be surrounded by natural beauty, supportive communities, and real opportunities.

With strong links to law firms, schools, NHS Trusts, creative agencies, and employers nationwide, we connect your learning directly to your future career.

Ranked the No. 1 university in the Northwest and in the Top 5 in the UK for Graduates into employment or further study within 15 months (97.5% of Graduates – Graduate Outcomes Survey, HESA 2026), Cumbria is a university focused on your future from day one.