What will you study

Theoretical Perspectives on Gender, Violence and Interpersonal Relationships	Module code: DSVM4001 In this module, we explore a range of theories that have been applied to the issues of domestic and sexual violence - ranging from feminist explanations of violence against women, to social learning theories which focus on the family environment, to biological explanations that explain violence according to the psychology of the offender.
Recognition, Responses and Impact of Violence	Module code: DSVM4002 In this module we look at the impact of domestic and sexual violence on victims and the costs of violence to our society. The module is designed to examine the impact of violence from a range of cultural perspectives, which will also focus on faith and spiritual beliefs providing students with an in depth critical awareness of the multiple costs of domestic and sexual violence.
Preparing for Independent Research	Module code: DSVM4003 This module prepares students to conduct research in the field of domestic and sexual violence in preparation for their dissertation. Students will learn to critique different research methodologies and consider their theoretical underpinnings. Students will also be asked to consider the practical and ethical issues associated with researching in the field of DSV and will develop their own research proposal which is contextualised by the existing literature.
Public Health Responses to Violence and Managing Perpetrators	Module code: DSVM4004 In this module we look at perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence and the work that is being done to try and prevent these forms of violence in our societies. The module will critically analyse perpetration and interventions within social and culturally specific contexts and explore implications for good practice in relation to prevention; enabling students to develop a critical understanding of legislation, policy and practice.
Dissertation	Module code: DSVM4005 The dissertation module allows you to focus on as aspect of domestic and/or sexual violence that you wish to explore through primary research. You will be allocated a supervisor who will guide you through the research process.

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How will you be taught?

Teaching and Learning

Teaching and Learning

The University places emphasis on enabling students to develop the independent learning capabilities that will equip you for lifelong learning and future employment, as well as academic achievement. A mixture of independent study, teaching and academic support through the personal academic tutoring system enables you to reflect on progress and build up a profile of skills, achievements and experiences that will enable you to flourish and be successful.

Teaching

Teaching

You are taught through a combination of traditional face-to-face study days and innovative online learning sessions.

Each module will consist of four face to face teaching days (delivered in two blocks) in addition to online learning activities to be completed at your convenience. These sessions include activities such as: set readings, narrated lectures, video clips and discussion boards.

In addition, meetings with personal academic tutors can be arranged, either on campus, via skype or via the telephone.

Contact time

Contact time

As this course is delivered in blocks, you will be on campus for four full days per module (two days at a time).

In addition to the contact time, you are expected to engage with the online learning sessions that are made available between teaching blocks. These sessions equate to 66 hours of learning over the duration of the module.

Independent self-study

Independent self-study

In addition to the contact time, you are expected to undertake around 15 hours of personal self-study per week. Typically, this will involve reading and assignment preparation.

Independent learning is supported by a range of excellent learning facilities, including the Hive and library resources, the virtual learning environment, and extensive electronic learning resources.

Teaching staff

Teaching staff

You will be taught by a teaching team whose expertise and knowledge are closely matched to the content of the modules on the course. The team include:

Beverly Gilbert

(

Senior Lecturer

) has 30 years experience of working within the criminal justice sector and has undertaken research evaluation of domestic violence prevention initiatives across the UK within the criminal justice sector. .

Claire Richards (Senior Lecturer)

has considerable experience of multi-agency partnership working within the voluntary and statutory sectors. Her roles have varied in the fields of mental health, substance misuse and domestic abuse and her research focuses on child advocacy in the context of the safeguarding children.

Teaching is informed by the research and consultancy, and all of our course lecturers have a higher education teaching qualification or are Fellows of the Higher Education Academy. You can learn more about the staff by visiting our

staff profiles

.

Assessment

Assessment

The course provides opportunities to test understanding and learning informally through the completion of practice or 'formative' assignments. Each module has one or more formal or 'summative' assessments which are graded and count towards the overall module grade.

Assessment methods include essays, report writing, poster presentations and individual presentations.

Feedback

Feedback

You will receive feedback on practice assessments and on formal assessments undertaken by coursework. Feedback on examination performance is available upon request from the module leader. Feedback is intended to support learning and you are encouraged to discuss it with personal academic tutors and module tutors as appropriate.

We aim to provide you with feedback on formal course work assessments within 20 working days of hand-in.

Pathway timetable

Pathway timetable

The PG Certificate is completed in one year for both full and part-time students.
The PG Diploma is completed in one year full-time and two years part-time.
The MA is completed in one year full-time and two years part-time.

What our students say

What our students say

“I am currently in my second year of the course and have found the course to be extremely informative whilst also challenging. As a practitioner in the field with over a decade of experience I have found the course to be a real asset and strongly believe that it has improved my knowledge and practice. I would highly recommend the course to anyone who has an interest in the area of domestic and sexual abuse.”

“The course has far exceeded my expectations. The lecturers are incredibly knowledgeable and the content has expanded my professional practice to a considerable degree. I have been challenged to think differently about the historical roots and social impact of domestic and sexual violence and cannot recommend the course more highly.”

“For me the course has given me more confidence to support the young people I work with, in terms of relationship issues. I have a more thorough understanding of the support available in my area and how to help young people access this. The course itself has been well run, with supportive staff who are always at the end of the phone or email to answer queries and are always happy to help. I have very much enjoyed my time at Worcester and hope to continue onto to a PhD program in the near future.”

"This course has given me the confidence to evaluate and alter my own professional practice as well as constructively challenge working practices within my own organisation. This has enabled me to develop best practice and become a more well-rounded practitioner which has greatly benefited my client group."

‘’The course has challenged what I thought I knew and tutors have sensitively delivered material that has taken me out of my comfort zone. The diverse skills and knowledge in the group has enriched the learning and supported my development, my thinking and working practice.’’

‘’This course has grown me as an academic, professional and as a person. There is no other university where I would wish to undertake this research due to the excellent quality of teaching available and it has been a privilege to be taught by such a wealth of experience and knowledge’’.

Programme specification

Programme specification

For comprehensive details on the aims and intended learning outcomes of the course, and the means by which these are achieved through learning, teaching and assessment, please d

ownload the latest programme specification document.

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Where could it take you?

Our Domestic and Sexual Violence degree will prepare you for a range of careers working with victims and/or perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence, including:

Violence prevention
Victim support for survivors of abuse
Working with abuse perpetrators
Working with adults, young people or children in domestic abuse support roles

You will develop a range of skills on this course that should have an immediate and positive impact on your professional role.

For those who would like to start working in the areas of domestic or sexual violence, your increased knowledge and skill-set should prepare you for future job applications.

For those already working in this sector, you will enhance your ability to critically reflect on your professional practice and make valuable contributions to service improvement.

Our Domestic and Sexual Violence degree will prepare you for a range of careers working with victims and/or perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence, including:

Violence prevention
Victim support for survivors of abuse
Working with abuse perpetrators
Working with adults, young people or children in domestic abuse support roles

You will develop a range of skills on this course that should have an immediate and positive impact on your professional role.

For those who would like to start working in the areas of domestic or sexual violence, your increased knowledge and skill-set should prepare you for future job applications.

For those already working in this sector, you will enhance your ability to critically reflect on your professional practice and make valuable contributions to service improvement.

Understanding Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence MA/PG Cert/PG Dip

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