Ensuring students are adequately prepared to undertake practice is a topic of national and international interest in social work education. This project seeks to further develop knowledge in this area by undertaking empirical research into student perceptions of the effectiveness of teaching and assessment approaches to preparation for practice. The study develops previous research already undertaken with students during their first practice learning opportunity by tracking the same cohort into their final practice experience before they qualify as social workers (Wilson & Kelly, 2008). The main aim of the research is to identify ways in which teaching, learning and support might be improved in order to enhance the student learning experience throughout the social work education programme. Key messages from the research will be disseminated through a learning and teaching guide and workshops with social work educators and other stakeholders across the UK.

This project report informs on a research study into the experience of first year undergraduate students on an Applied Social Studies Programme. The objective of the project was to gain an understanding of factors that contribute to the support, development of learning, progression and retention of a diverse range of non-traditional entry first year students in order to be able to create appropriate and meaningful changes to learning and teaching support for learning strategies. The report includes background information, methodology, research findings and outlook.