Rate My Professor Sarah Beck

Sarah Beck is the Academic Director of Apprenticeships at the University of Sunderland in the Faculty of Education and Society. In this position, she provides academic leadership and drives the development of the university's apprenticeships provision across all disciplines. She collaborates closely with teams from Learning and Teaching, Quality, and Commercial Training Services to ensure that programmes comply with complex regulatory frameworks and deliver an enhanced experience for apprentices. Beck also serves on the University's Education Committee, contributing to broader educational governance.

Beck joined the University of Sunderland in 2018 as Associate Head of School, overseeing Social Work and Community and Youth Work Studies within the School of Social Sciences. She led the development of the social work apprenticeship programme in partnership with regional employers, establishing it as one of the largest such initiatives at the institution. This experience ignited her interest in apprenticeships as a professional education model aligned with the University's values. After five years, she advanced to her current role. A Registered Social Worker, Beck has 15 years of frontline practice experience in mental health services. She was active in social work education in the north-east of England from 2008 to 2023. Her research focuses on apprenticeships in social work education; she is pursuing doctoral studies on this topic and acts as co-investigator on a UKRI-funded project examining the role of mentors in social work apprenticeships. In 2024, she co-authored a conference presentation, 'Policymakers, practitioners and academics working together to explore the role of the work-based mentor on the social work apprenticeship programme,' delivered at JUSWAC with Diane Simpson, Julie Shaw, Vicki Ingham, Charlotte Roberts, and Stuart Brown.