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Course type
Certificate
Credits
60

Credits

  • Credits measure the student workload required for the successful completion of a module or qualification.
  • One credit represents about 10 hours of study over the duration of the course.
  • You are awarded credits after you have successfully completed a module.
  • For example, if you study a 60-credit module and successfully pass it, you will be awarded 60 credits.
How long it takes

1 year
Read more about how long it takes

Study method
Distance learning
Course cost
See Fees and funding
Entry requirements
Find out more about
Entry requirements

Postgraduate Certificate in Childhood and Youth Studies

Course code: K32

Explore key aspects of children’s and young people’s lives while developing critical analysis skills. This postgraduate certificate is particularly relevant for graduates working with children or young people who want to advance academically and professionally, as well as those with backgrounds in childhood and youth studies, youth work, youth justice, sociology, health and social care, social work, nursing, anthropology, psychology, education, and the voluntary sector, including charities and NGOs. While it does not provide professional recognition, which may require additional study, it offers a strong foundation for those looking to transition into or between professions involving children and young people.

  • Suitable if you already work with children and young people or hope to move into the profession.
  • Explores diverse perspectives on childhood and youth and strategies designed to promote their welfare.
  • Examines the links between theory and practice, with a strong emphasis on your own context.

This certificate is the first stage of a study programme that progresses to a postgraduate diploma and masters degree. You can step off at any point or study the whole programme.

Please note this qualification does not provide professional recognition and additional study could be required to meet professional requirements.

Course type
Certificate
Credits
60

Credits

  • Credits measure the student workload required for the successful completion of a module or qualification.
  • One credit represents about 10 hours of study over the duration of the course.
  • You are awarded credits after you have successfully completed a module.
  • For example, if you study a 60-credit module and successfully pass it, you will be awarded 60 credits.
How long it takes

1 year
Read more about how long it takes

Study method
Distance learning
Course cost
See Fees and funding
Entry requirements
Find out more about
Entry requirements

How to register

Select the module you will study first, read the full description, and follow the instructions to register.

Modules

To gain this qualification, you need 60 credits as follows:

60 credits from:

Module Credits Next start
Children and young people’s worlds (E808)

This module provides a broad theoretical overview of some of the key contemporary issues in the global study of childhood and youth.

See full description

Register
 60 04 Oct 2025

You should note that the University’s unique study rule applies to this qualification. This means that you must include at least 20 credits from OU modules that have not been counted in any other OU qualification that has previously been awarded to you.

Learning outcomes, teaching and assessment

The learning outcomes of this qualification are described in four areas:

  • Knowledge and understanding
  • Cognitive skills
  • Practical and professional skills
  • Key skills
Read more detailed information about the learning outcomes.

Credit transfer

Credit transfer is not available for this qualification.

On completion

On successfully completing this course, we’ll award you our Postgraduate Certificate in Childhood and Youth Studies. You’ll be entitled to use the letters PG Cert CYS (Open) after your name.

You can progress from this Postgraduate Certificate in Childhood and Youth Studies to our Postgraduate Diploma in Childhood and Youth Studies (E93) or our MA in Childhood and Youth (F55) .

To claim all three qualifications you must study them in sequence (postgraduate certificate, postgraduate diploma and then the MA) and you can only gain all three if you do not use credit transfer towards the MA.

Regulations

As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the qualification-specific regulations below and the academic regulations that are available on our Student Policies and Regulations website. 

We regularly review our curriculum; therefore, the qualification described on this page – including its availability, its structure, and available modules – may change over time. If we make changes to this qualification, we’ll update this page as soon as possible. Once you’ve registered or are studying this qualification, where practicable, we’ll inform you in good time of any upcoming changes. If you’d like to know more about the circumstances in which the University might make changes to the curriculum, see our Academic Regulations or contact us. This description was last updated on 18 March 2025.

You must have a bachelors degree from a UK University (or equivalent) to study this course. Your degree can be in any subject, although childhood and youth studies, sociology, health and social care, anthropology, psychology or education are particularly relevant.

Your spoken and written English must be of an adequate standard for postgraduate study. If English is not your first language, we recommend that you will need a minimum score of 7 under the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Please see their website for details.

How long it takes

Most students study the Postgraduate Certificate in Childhood and Youth Studies part-time, completing 60 credits over one year. Typically, this means 19 study hours each week.

Career relevance

This qualification will be attractive to anyone with a personal or professional interest in exploring different aspects of children’s and young people’s worlds. It is aimed at those who are graduates and seeking to advance academically and professionally. It will also enable those with a related degree but not currently working with children and young people the opportunity to move into the profession and will help those people considering a move between professions within the sector. It could also be of interest to people in a managerial or supervisory role, to senior members of the workforce, or to those seeking to move into senior or managerial positions.

The content of the qualification will be particularly relevant to graduates working with children or young people, for example, in early years provision or with a background in childhood and youth studies; youth work; youth justice; sociology; health and social care; social work; nursing; anthropology; psychology; education and the voluntary sector including charities and NGOs. However, this qualification will not provide professional recognition so additional study may be required. It will be of particular interest to those who have completed the BA (Hons) in Childhood and Youth Studies, BA (Hons) Early Years or Early Childhood, BA (Hons) Education Studies (Primary) or the BA (Hons) in Health and Social Care. You should ensure that you check entry requirements for specific professional areas before embarking on study.

Careers and Employability Services have more information on how OU study can improve your employability.

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