- Location
- Cardonald Campus
- SCQF Level
- 5
- Start Date
- 25 Aug 2025
- Qualification Type
- NQ
- Course Type
- Short Full-Time
- Duration
- 1 year (August to June)
Applications open 15th January 2025
This Access to Social Care course aims to provide you with the essential skills and knowledge required to pursue a career in social care as a care assistant or support worker, or to continue your studies on the NQ Social Care (Level 6) course. This Level 5 course covers various aspects of the caring role with a broad range of service users.
The social care sector makes up roughly 1 in 13 jobs in Scotland and has been steadily growing since 2008 (Source: Scottish Social Services Council). Studying social care opens up a wealth of career opportunities - with each one making a positive difference to peoples lives.
What will I learn?
In this Level 5 Access to Social Care course, you will study a range of social care units that incorporate core care subjects, core skills and other relevant care subjects.
These will include:
- Maintaining safety in a care setting
- Understanding mental health issues
- Social influences
- Understanding the needs of the older person
- Information and communication technology
- Communication
- Coping strategies and building resilience
- Skills for college and work
- Healthy eating in a care setting
- Working with individuals with additional support needs
- Understanding loss and grief
- Working in health and social care settings
- Human development and behaviour
- Values and principles
- Recognise, respond and report abuse in a care setting.
Entry requirements (minimum)
- Three National Qualifications at Level 4, or equivalent
- Applications are also invited from those without formal qualifications but who have relevant life and/or care work experience
- You should be aged 16 or over by the end of September
- Applications will be considered by personal statement, qualifications and a suitable supporting reference.
Entry requirement equivalency table
If you do not meet the entry criteria for your chosen course, you may be offered an alternative course in the same subject area.
Employer and industry links
Glasgow Clyde College has very strong links and partnerships with a range of care providers, supporting people in need with issues related to:
- Mental health and mental illness
- Homelessness and poverty
- Inequality and discrimination
- Teenagers and adolescence
- Drugs and alcohol
- Transitioning and change
- Loss and grief
- Gender and sexuality
- Abuse and protection
- Sex work and sexual exploitation
- Children and families
- Hearings and court
- Trauma and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PDST)
- Offending and criminality
- Residential and secure living
- Modern slavery and trafficking
- Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and child abuse survival
- Learning difficulty and disability
- Dementia and cognitive impairment
- Counselling and therapy
- End-of-life and palliative care
- Dysfunction and alienation.
Jobs and further study
Successful completion of this course will enable progression to NQ Social Care (Level 6) at Glasgow Clyde College.
Take a look at the course progression map for social care and counselling courses.
Employment options may include positions such as care assistant or support worker in the care sector.
The social service workforce is the largest publicly funded workforce in Scotland, making up 7.7% of all Scottish employment. That’s 200,650 people currently in paid employment within the independent, public and third sectors who are working with citizens who need support - ranging from vulnerability in older people to those with disabilities, mental ill-health and homelessness, children’s services and criminal justice. (Scottish Government)
Making an application
For courses starting in August, you can make up to two applications.
Applications are made to a course and a first choice of campus. If the course is oversubscribed at your first choice you will be automatically considered for alternative sites and may be made an offer without a further application.
I've applied — what happens next?
When you apply
You will receive an automated email confirming that we have received your application (remember to check your SPAM folder).
Your application will be reviewed by the admissions team and you will either be:
- Made a direct offer (unconditional or conditional)
- Invited to book an interview session
- Advised that your application is unsuccessful – you have not met the entry requirements for this course and are advised to contact the College Student Advice Centres to discuss alternative options which may be available to you.
- We aim not to reject an application and if you don’t meet the entry requirements you may be referred to a different course or level.
If you are invited to interview, you will be informed of the outcome of your interview by email within 14 working days. If a place is unavailable at your campus of first choice, you may be offered a place at one of our other campuses and you must respond to this within the timescale above
The outcome will be one of the following:
- Unconditional offer of a place – you have met all the entry requirements and your place is guaranteed. You will be required to accept this offer to secure your place.
- Conditional offer of a place – your place is secured pending you meeting the entry requirements. This may mean achieving school or college qualifications which you may not be able to provide to us yet. You will be required to accept this offer to secure your conditional place. Once your conditions are met this will change to an unconditional offer of a place which you must accept before you can enrol on the course.
- Waiting list – you have met all entry requirements, and have been interviewed however, the course is now full so you have been placed on a waiting list. If any spaces become available you may be contacted, usually around the course start date. We would advise that you also consider other application options.
- Reserve list – following your interview, you have unfortunately not been successful in this round of recruitment. We have placed your name on a Reserve list and your application may be reconsidered at a later date. This could happen any time up to the start date of the course but it is very possible that you will not be offered a place. We would advise that you also consider other application options.
- Unsuccessful – your interview has been unsuccessful. You may be offered a place on a course at a different level, or advised to contact the College Student Advice Centres to discuss alternative options which may be available to you.
Once an offer is received, you must reply within 14 working days or risk losing your place, as the system will automatically decline your offer after 14 days.
Once you have accepted your offer, you will be sent out instructions about student funding, joining instructions and induction date. This will normally be sent out in July.