Preventive Cardiology

Course Overview

This dual delivery course enables students to complete this postgraduate qualification either in person, blended or fully online. The scientific evidence for cardiovascular disease prevention and rehabilitation is compelling. Multidisciplinary approaches to cardiovascular health and lifestyle medicine are cornerstone to preventive cardiology and cardiovascular rehabilitation practice. This course equips students with the knowledge and skills required to make meaningful contributions to primary, secondary and tertiary prevention; both at an individual level as well as within populations. This course remains the only one of its kind worldwide and offers many unique features creating a highly fulfilling student experience:



Delivered in partnership with the National Institute for Prevention and Cardiovascular Health (NIPC): This programme is delivered in collaboration with the National Institute for Prevention and Cardiovascular Health located in the Croí, Heart and Stroke Centre, and as a result draws on considerable teaching expertise together with providing a range of high-quality research opportunities. This partnership enables an exceptional opportunity for students to interact with Croí’s specialist health team and engage in an array of exciting evidence-based initiatives in cardiovascular disease prevention and rehabilitation.

Flexible online learning: The course uses a dual delivery approach (with a fully online option available) by incorporating scheduled hybrid tutorials and workshops coupled with directed study. This enables students to simultaneously maintain professional roles in clinical practice or manage other commitments whilst completing their studies. International students residing in Galway and those not working in clinical practice are required to complete a weekly timetable of face-to-face activities that take place in a range of clinical settings.

Interdisciplinary expert teaching faculty: Students from a variety of backgrounds from all over the world interact with international leaders and clinical specialists from cardiology, nursing, nutrition, exercise, behavioural medicine and public health.

The taught modules address the development and practical use of cardiovascular disease risk estimation tools, implementation of healthcare policy, behavioural change strategies, lifestyle approaches to risk factor modification and medical management of risk factors including hypertension, dyslipidaemia, diabetes mellitus, obesity and smoking. There is also a specialist pathway in cardiac rehabilitation available as an option for practitioners with a specific interest in secondary prevention.



Students are supervised in designing an original research project which addresses a specific research question in any aspect of preventive cardiology. Contributors are drawn from clinical departments at Galway University Hospitals, scientific and healthcare disciplines at University of Galway, the Croí clinical team, and established international partnerships.



Why Choose This Course?

About you (i.e., the prospective student)

Are you interested in the risk factors which underlie cardiovascular disease? Are you motivated to prevent cardiovascular disease rather than merely treating its manifestations? Do you want to provide effective self-management support to individuals living with cardiovascular disease, diabetes and other related long-term conditions? Do you want to influence national healthcare policy by demonstrating the patient and economic benefits of cardiovascular disease prevention? If so, then preventive cardiology may be the course for you!



Why choose University of Galway?

At University of Galway we take pride in working closely with postgraduate students to develop their fullest potential. We understand the challenges of combining your personal and professional lives with a postgraduate programme and we work hard to support you in every way on this journey. The excellent course materials and innovative e-learning platform will enable you to make optimum use of your private study time. University of Galway’s unique collaboration with NIPC and Croí means that up-to-date, relevant information will always be close at hand and you will get to appreciate the translation of evidence-based preventive cardiology into clinical practice.

Course Outline

The MSc in Preventive Cardiology involves students participating in a number of Level 9 modules totalling 90 ECTS. 



In Semester 1 students participate in three core modules (total 30ECTs):



Fundamentals of Preventive Cardiology (10 ECT)

Research Methods (10 ECT)

Reflective Clinical Practice (Part 1 Semester 1 & Part 2 in Semester 2) (10 ECT)



In Semester 2 students are required to complete 30 elective ECTs from the following options:



Lifestyle Risk Factor Modification (30 ECTs)

Tobacco Cessation in Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Management (10ECTs)

Diet and Weight Management in Preventive Medicine and Cardiovascular Health (10ECTs)

Physical Activity and Exercise in Chronic Disease Management (10ECTs)

Pharmacotherapeutic Approaches in Cardiometabolic Medicine (10 ECTS)

Cardiac Rehabilitation (30 ECTS)

Across all three semesters, students work on a primary Research Project (30 ECT) that is submitted as a ready-to-publish article at the end of the programme. 



The course starts in September and finishes in August, covering teaching and clinical placement components. Structured weekly directed study is coupled with a schedule of group-based lectures, tutorials, and interactive workshops. These group-based sessions are delivered online via live sessions and are timetabled for Thursdays and Fridays (3 pm – 8 pm) with occasional Saturdays (10 am – 3 pm). Students working simultaneously in a clinical setting can complete their studies using a fully online option, enabling access to the programme from their home country. International students with a Tier 2 Visa choosing to reside in Ireland during their studies and those not working in clinical practice are required to complete a weekly timetable of face-to-face activities that take place in a range of clinical settings.



Each module has associated assessments. At the end of Semester 1 online examinations are run for these modules. The remainder of the course has continuous assessments in the form of essays or equivalent—e.g., written assignments, presentations, and case reviews.

Successful applicants will possess at least a Second Class Honours, Grade 1 degree (or equivalent) in a health care discipline or related subject area (e.g., medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, dietetics, sport and exercise science, clinical or health psychology, pharmacology, health scientist, health promotion, public health, etc). For those who do not hold a primary degree at the required level, a special case will be made if they have demonstrated an aptitude for the course material through at least three years of high-quality work experience in a relevant field of cardiovascular health.



Entry to the Master’s programme is conditional upon achieving at least 60% in the core compulsory modules of the Postgraduate Diploma that take place in Semester 1. Candidates coming to Ireland from abroad or who do not have a degree from Ireland, or the UK will be asked to provide evidence of an acceptable result in one of the recognised English language proficiency tests, e.g., IELTS total score of 6.5 (or equivalent). Prospective candidates may be interviewed as part of the selection process. This usually takes place remotely via telephone, Teams or Zoom.

Applications must be completed online at: https://nuigalway.elluciancrmrecruit.com/Apply/Account/Login.



An application requires a registration fee of €35. You will be asked to upload proof of identification, academic transcripts, a personal statement, an academic reference and documentation to fulfil the English requirement (where English is not your first language).

1 year full-time.

Next start date September 2025

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the course will be positioned as leaders in cardiovascular disease prevention and will find ample opportunities to apply their learning across a variety of clinical settings in both primary and secondary care. There will also be employment opportunities in public health, health promotion, healthcare management, academic and research settings and the pharmaceutical industry. Clinician graduates will benefit from career advancement within their chosen disciplines. Masters students completing the 5,000-word ‘ready-for-publication’ dissertation will be supported in preparing their work for submission to a peer-reviewed journal, which will further augment their career prospects.