‘Hanging on a Little Thin Line’: Barriers to Progression and Retention in Social Work Education

Identifying the reasons why students leave higher education without completing their studies has become an increasingly important issue in higher education in the United Kingdom. This paper reports on a series of interviews held with social work students, social work educators, and higher education staff with responsibilities for recruitment and retention in four English higher education institutions (HEIs). The interviews aimed to identify some of the reasons why students might consider leaving before achieving a social work qualification and some of the initiatives the HEIs had set in place to reduce this risk. The findings suggest that some of the widening participation initiatives established in many HEIs are aimed at students at the beginning of their studies but that social work students might benefit from additional support at other periods, for example, both during and on their return from practice placements. Furthermore, the changing profile of social work students may have implications for cohort dynamics and social work educators need to be alert to these developments.