Applied Health Studies - Online

This part time programme leads to the academic awards of PGCert/PGDip/MSc in Applied Health Studies and was revalidated in July 2020.



The Postgraduate Certificate can be completed over one year and is awarded after successfully completing 60 credits at level 7. Students have the choice of five pathway options each consisting of 2, thirty-credit modules.



The pathways are:

Continence Care

Developing Practice

Neuroscience Care

Stoma Care

Urology Care



The programme responds to the desire of current graduates working within the area of health and social care as they seek to develop their practice and better equip them to meet the demands of advanced practice roles and responsibilities. Changing health and social care requirements demand highly knowledgeable and skilled graduates from the health and social care professions. The programme particularly extends the knowledge base necessary for practitioners to function at an advanced level, to develop into expert or advanced practitioners, advisers, managers or educators within their particular area of expertise offering sound judgement, personal responsibility and initiative, in complex and unpredictable professional environments. There is emphasis upon the application of knowledge to practice, thus enhancing the leadership capacity.



Work placement / study abroad

Work-based learning forms a key element in these programmes especially but not exclusively for the completion of the clinical modules and their assessment. All students undertaking the Applied Health Studies programmes at postgraduate level will be working in some capacity within a health and social care environment (see entry requirements). This will enable students to combine procedural knowledge with declarative knowledge in context in order to produce professional knowledge, impacting positively on employability and career progression.



Revalidation

The University regularly ‘refreshes’ courses to make sure they are as up-to-date as possible.



In addition it undertakes formal periodic review of courses in a process called 'revalidation’ to ensure that they continue to meet standards and are current and relevant.



This course will be revalidated in the near future and it is possible that there will be some changes to the course as described in this prospectus.

Year 1

Optional Modules

• Underpinnings of Neuroscience Care

• Enhancing Neuroscience Practice

• Critical Application of Advanced Compassionate Communication in Health and Social Care Practice

• Developing Practice Through Innovation

• Advancing Care for People with Continence Disorders

• Advancing Care for People with Urological Disorders

• Advancing Care for People with Stoma

• The Fundamentals of Adult Continence Promotion

• The Fundamentals of Urology

• The Fundamentals of Stoma Care



Year 2

Compulsory Modules

• Advanced Methods in Research and Development in Health and Social Care

• Global Perspectives in Transforming Health



Year 3

• Compulsory Module

• MSc Project

Applicants must:

(a) have gained

i) an Honours or non-Honours degree from a University of the United Kingdom or Republic of Ireland or from the Council for National Academic Awards, the National Council for Educational Awards, the Higher Education and Training Awards Council, from an institution of another country which is recognised as being of an equivalent standard; or



ii) an equivalent standard in a Postgraduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, Graduate Certificate or an approved alternative qualification;



And



(b) provide evidence of competence in written and spoken English (GCSE grade C or equivalent); or in the case of international applicants whose first language is not English is a minimum acceptable score for the British Council IELTS of 6.0 (with no contributing band of less than 5.5) or equivalent.



Or



(c) In exceptional circumstances, as an alternative to (a) (i) or (a) (ii) and/or (b), where an individual has substantial and significant experiential learning, a portfolio of written evidence demonstrating the meeting of graduate qualities (including subject-specific outcomes, as determined by the Course Committee) may be considered as an alternative entrance route. Evidence used to demonstrate graduate qualities may not be used for exemption against modules within the programme.



And



In addition, applicants must:

i) demonstrate that they are working with the appropriate client base to facilitate study; and

ii) be currently registered with a Professional Health Care or Regulatory Body within their own country (where that is available).



English Language Requirements

English language requirements for international applicants



All applicants to the University (from the UK and overseas) are required to show evidence of English language proficiency.



The Applied Health Studies Programme requires applicants to provide evidence of competence in written and spoken English (GCSE grade C or equivalent); or in the case of international applicants whose first language is not English is a minimum acceptable score for the British Council IELTS of 6.0 (with no contributing band of less than 5.5) or equivalent.



If you do not meet the English language requirement we will give you a conditional offer subject to you meeting the requirement before the commencement of the course.

This is a fully online part-time programme, students are expected to engage regularly with the programme and online activity and interaction will be monitored and recorded.

Start dates:

September 2025

January 2026

Career options

Students on this programme are expected to be working within the fields of healthcare and/or social care. On completion of this programme of study we expect students to continue in their employment with an enhanced range of transferable and subject specific skills to benefit their employer, communities, individual patients/clients and their families. We also expect graduates to achieve a higher personal profile within their organisation thus enhancing their prospects of promotion and/or career development. A number of students may progress to other postgraduate and doctoral level studies and choose from a range of courses available in the School of Nursing and the wider University.