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Healthcare (Professional Practice) - BSc (Hons) / PgCert / PgDip / MSc / MSc

Currently viewing course to start in 2024/25 Entry.

The Professional Practice Course is flexible, practice-led, responsive and aims to foster excellence. This course will develop knowledgeable, critical thinking, proactive, professional practitioners who are fit to meet the changing demands of modern healthcare provision in the global arena....

  • Level Top-Up Pathways
  • Study mode Part Time/Full Time
  • Award BSc (Hons) / PgCert / PgDip / MSc / MSc
  • Start date September 2024
  • Fees View course fees

This course is:

Open to International Students

Overview

The Professional Practice Course is flexible, practice-led, responsive and aims to foster excellence. This course will develop knowledgeable, critical thinking, proactive, professional practitioners who are fit to meet the changing demands of modern healthcare provision in the global arena. 

The Professional Practice Course consists of a selection of modules that can be studied on their own or as part of an BSc/BSc (Hons) undergraduate or PG Cert/PG dip/ MSc postgraduate award. For help in deciding which modules to study or your outcome award please contact our Professional Navigators on navigator@bcu.ac.uk or potential Route Lead.

This course is open to International students.

What's covered in this course?

The programme offers a range of standalone modules and specialist awards from acute care to tissue viability (see below for a list of routes) to suit your needs. You can study a single module that is relevant to your practice or several to make up a full named award.

A varied range of learning and teaching approaches are used throughout the modules and programme to cater for the wide variety of students who access the programme from across the country. The underlying principle to the learning, teaching and assessment strategies for the Professional Practice Programme is the relationship between theory and practice and making the links to relevant, evidence based and current practice as you progress with your professional development. The programme team are from a range of health care backgrounds and specialists in their own right with continued close links to practice.

Teaching will be both online and face to face, with the face to face teaching at the city South campus.

Why Choose Us?

  • Clinically focused content
  • An opportunity to examine your practice critically
  • A strong focus on current issues and an emphasis on the practical application of knowledge
  • Flexible study options – chose to study over one or more academic years
  • Each module has a bespoke "Moodle" based website which contains all module documentation, handouts, links to key documents and supplementary articles of interest
  • Ongoing support from staff both academically whilst in university to facilitate your development as a learner
  • Excellence in delivering high quality standards of flexible and bespoke academic provision for post qualifying practitioners
  • Links with healthcare providers
  • State-of-the-art facilities.

Fees & How to Apply

Please select your student status to view fees and apply
  • UK Student
  • International Student

UK students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament.

Award: BSc (Hons) / PgCert / PgDip / MSc

Starting: Sep 2024

  • Mode
  • Duration
  • Fees
  • Part Time
  • up to 5 years (part time) or 2 years (full time)
  • £820 per 20 credit module

International students

Annual and modular tuition fees shown are applicable to the first year of study. The University reserves the right to increase fees for subsequent years of study in line with increases in inflation (capped at 5%) or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament.

Award: MSc

Starting: Sep 2024

  • Mode
  • Duration
  • Fees
  • Full Time
  • 1 year
  • £17,710 in 2024/25
The University reserves the right to increase fees in line with inflation based on the Retail Prices Index or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament up to a maximum of five per cent.

Entry requirements

Level 6 study

For entry onto the BSc/ BSc (Hons) students must have a relevant Diploma In Higher Education or 240 credits of which at least 120 credits are at level 5.

Students who have a Dip HE or equivalent but do not have any previous BCU credits will need to complete three modules at Level 6.

For entry onto the Graduate Certificate award, students must have a relevant bachelor’s degree or equivalent or a 60 credit Level 6 award in an appropriate subject area.

Level 7 study

For entry into the Post Graduate Certificate/Post Graduate Diploma/MSc award students must have a relevant bachelor’s degree or equivalent or a 60 credit Level 6 award in an appropriate subject area. Applicants with evidence of successfully completed Level 6 study within the preceding 2 years.

Where appropriate and on an induvial basis students may be required to undertake a pre-course assessment to enable the course team to support students study skills. We will use this to navigate your appropriate pathway assessment.

To prevent duplication of study, a student that has previously completed a Level 6 module or pathway award within the last 5 years cannot access the equivalent pathway award at Level 7.

Recognition of Prior Learning – RPL

If students have gained Level 6 or 7 credits either at Birmingham City University or elsewhere in the last 5 years, it may be possible to use them towards an award. The amount of RPL is stipulated by the regulations that apply at the time of enrolment.

Access

Diploma HE in nursing or equivalent appropriate for level 6 study

EU/International students

IELTs of 6 with no element below 5.5.

Course structure 

You can choose to study this programme as a complete pathway award or as a standalone module, dependent on your individual need and the needs of your organisation. All programmes offer a convenient part-time format to fit around home and work commitments

Pathway awards in Healthcare can lead to:

  • Module only Professional Practice Level 6
  • Module only Professional Practice Level 7
  • BSc Professional Practice
  • BSc (Hons) Professional Practice 
  • Grad Cert Professional Practice 
  • PG Cert Professional Practice
  • PG Dip Professional Practice
  • MSc Professional Practice

How to apply

Complete the online application form via the link above, including the name of the pathway or module you are enrolling onto. 

Course in Depth

Degree (Level 6)

In order to complete this route a student must successfully complete at least 60 credits from the List of Additional Optional Modules* for Year 1 and an additional 60 credits for Year 2. (totalling 120 credits)

Year 1 Pathway Award – Exit Award: Grad Cert / BSc Professional Practice (Healthcare)

*Any appropriate module (relevant to Pathway / Speciality) from University / Faculty portfolio as agreed with the Pathway Leader.

Postgraduate (Level 7)

In order to complete this route a student must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 180 credits):

Year 1 Pathway Award – Exit Award: PG Cert Professional Practice (Healthcare)

Year 2 Pathway Award - Exit Award: PG Dip Professional Practice (Healthcare)

In order to complete this route a student must successfully complete at least 40 credits from the List of Additional Optional Modules * for Year 1 and an additional 40 credits for Year 2.

*Any appropriate module (relevant to Pathway / Speciality) from University / Faculty portfolio as agreed with the Pathway Leader.

MSc

Year 3 Pathway Award – Exit Award: MSc Professional Practice (Healthcare)

Option 1

Option 2

Download course specification

Download now

International

Birmingham City University is a vibrant and multicultural university in the heart of a modern and diverse city. We welcome many international students every year – there are currently students from more than 80 countries among our student community.

The University is conveniently placed, with Birmingham International Airport nearby and first-rate transport connections to London and the rest of the UK.

Our international pages contain a wealth of information for international students who are considering applying to study here, including:

Facilities & Staff

 

Our Facilities

Our Nursing and Midwifery courses are based at our City South campus in leafy Edgbaston.

We’ve spent £41million expanding our facilities at City South. These facilities offer hands-on practical experience, replicating the spaces you will come across in professional practice.

In a sector where new techniques are constantly being discovered, we work hard to ensure that you learn using the most up-to-date equipment available. Alongside physical spaces such as a mock operating theatre and wards, we also make use of online and virtual technology, such as our virtual ward and virtual case creator.

See more of our skills facilities at City South

Centre for Skills and Simulation

The Centre for Skills and Simulation offers a range of different spaces which replicate situations that you will encounter in practice. These include hospital wards, an operating theatre and a home environment room.

Our mock wards enable you to get a feel of what a ward is really like before you head out for your first placement. The hospital wards can be adapted from low care to high dependency care environment with the necessary monitoring equipment.

The home environment room is the perfect space for teaching communications skills and allows us to simulate a community setting for our students. It is particularly useful for mental health nurses, learning disability nurses and midwives.

Simulation Manikins

We have several Simulation men (SIM men) and simulation babies (SIM babies) which are anatomically correct manikins used for teaching specific techniques such as advanced adult and paediatric life support skills, acute and high dependency clinical skills, first aid and communication skills. The manikins contain software which replicates real symptoms, and can manipulate indicators such as blood pressure, pulse and heart rate for extra realism. SIM man can even ‘talk’ to the students as they are treating him, to add another dimension to learning.

Computer Facilities

The Seacole building has two open-access IT Suites which offer PCs, printers, photocopiers and scanners. There is also an IT Helpdesk for quick and easy help with your computing or internet issues.

Our PCs utilise the latest Intel i5 core technology, all with:

  • Fast (unrestricted) internet connectivity
  • Ability to save files to USB, DVD & CD
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Research and statistical software
  • Storage space which can be accessed from any PC across the University and from home

Our PCs are also designed to support students who may have difficulties with reading and writing, featuring specialised software with zooming/magnification and screen reading capabilities, which may also be customised for individual student needs.

In addition to desktop PCs, we also offer a laptop loan facility, allowing students to borrow a laptop for up to six hours while on campus.

Our staff

Alison Simons

Senior Lecturer of Nursing & Midwifery

Alison was a cancer nurse for 18 years looking after patients with a variety of cancer and receiving a variety of treatments. She was the junior sister of a mixed oncology ward within a large teaching hospital. Alison then went on to become a professional development sister responsible for the educational needs of 200 oncology and haematology...

More about Alison

Enquiries

Enquiries

For any enquiries about this course please contact us on:

International Enquiries

If you are an international student please contact the international office for more information on entry requirements:

Professional Navigator

The Professional Practice Programme consists of a selection of modules that can be studied on their own or as part of an award. For help in deciding which modules to study or your outcome award please contact our Professional Navigators on navigator@bcu.ac.uk