Advanced Clinical Pharmacy Practice

Do you want to advance your pharmacy career while continuing in employment?



This postgraduate distance learning programme allows you fit your studies around your work and family commitments.



Our Advanced Clinical Pharmacy Practice programme was developed following extensive consultation with pharmacists and their employers both within and beyond the United Kingdom. It provides a flexible study pathway that is designed to develop the therapeutic knowledge and clinical skills of pharmacists to an advanced level. The modules are designed to help pharmacists to acquire and demonstrate the advanced-level competencies defined in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's Core Advanced Pharmacist Curriculum.







The MSc is open to pharmacists in all employment sectors although students must be able to undertake a project in either the primary or secondary healthcare sector in their final year.







The MSc can be completed entirely off-campus by distance-learning and is therefore open to pharmacists both within and outside the United Kingdom.



Students in Great Britain may select the Independent Prescribing option in year 2, which includes a compulsory 5-day clinical skills residential at Queen's.

Core Modules

Developing evidence in practice (30 credits)



Optional Modules

Consultation and communication skills (10 credits)

Clinical skills, patient monitoring and onward referral (10 credits)

Disease Management (10 credits)

Professionalism (10 credits)

Critical Literature Review (20 credits)

Prescribing in Practice (0 credits)

Research Project (60 credits)

Development as an advanced practitioner (30 credits)

An introduction to UK Clinical practice (30 credits)

Service evaluation and development (30 credits)

Evidence-based medicine and safe prescribing (10 credits)

Influences on and psychology of prescribing and patient-centred care (10 credits)

Introduction to clinical pharmacy (30 credits)

Managing drug treatment (30 credits)

Advancing practice in primary care (30 credits)

Management of long-term conditions 1 (30 credits)

Management of long-term conditions 2 (30 credits)

Management of long-term conditions 3 (30 credits)

Entrance requirements

Graduate

This course is designed to meet the postgraduate education needs of pharmacists working in patient-facing roles, although applications are welcome from pharmacists working in any employment sector.



The programme is open to local, national and international applicants.



The University requires evidence that international applicants are competent in the use of English language.



Applicants must have a pharmacy degree (minimum Bachelor degree) from a university recognised by Queen’s University Belfast and be registered as a pharmacist with an appropriate regulatory organisation.



Students in Great Britain who wish to enrol on the Independent Prescribing option in Year 2 must:



• Be registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and/or the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI) and be in good standing with the GPhC and/or PSNI.



• Have relevant patient-oriented experience in a UK pharmacy setting and be able to recognise, understand and articulate the skills and attributes required by a prescriber (guidance on how to demonstrate this will be provided following application).



• Have a designated prescribing practitioner (DPP) who has agreed to supervise the learning in practice element. The DPP must be medically qualified (GP in primary care or Consultant/SAS [specialist, associate specialist or specialty doctor] in hospital)*.



• Have an identified an area of clinical or therapeutic practice on which to base their learning - please note that the DPP must have clinical expertise and experience in this area.



• Be able to attend 5-day clinical skills residential in Belfast in January 2027 (dates to be confirmed).



* Further guidance on the type of experience and DPP requirements will be provided when applying for this programme.



International Students

Our country/region pages include information on entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships, student profiles, upcoming events and contacts for your country/region at https://www.qub.ac.uk/Study/international-students/your-country/



English Language Requirements

Evidence of an IELTS* score of 7.0, with not less than 6.0 in any component, or an equivalent qualification acceptable to the University is required (*taken within the last 2 years).



International students wishing to apply to Queen's University Belfast (and for whom English is not their first language), must be able to demonstrate their proficiency in English in order to benefit fully from their course of study or research. Non-EEA nationals must also satisfy UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) immigration requirements for English language for visa purposes.



For more information on English Language requirements for EEA and non-EEA nationals see: www.qub.ac.uk/EnglishLanguageReqs.



If you need to improve your English language skills before you enter this degree programme, INTO Queen's University Belfast offers a range of English language courses. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for admission to this degree.

Applicants are advised to apply as early as possible and ideally no later than 31st July 2026 for courses which commence in late September. In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal prior to the deadline stated on course finder. Notifications to this effect will appear on the application portal against the programme application page.

3 years part-time

Entry Year: Academic Year 2026/27

Career Prospects

Professional Opportunities

This programme will enhance opportunities to progress your career as a pharmacist to advanced practitioner level.



Pharmacists in Great Britain have an option to undertake independent prescribing (IP) training in the second year.