Advanced Practice (Health) MSc (PGDip)

Course in brief

Our Advanced Practice (Health) MSc enables healthcare professionals to develop their career at masters level, and prepares students from a number of different disciplines to practice at an advanced level, providing key clinical expertise and leadership.

Open to all healthcare professionals, for example, nurses, paramedics and paramedic practitioners, midwives, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, podiatrists and health visitors will all benefit from the curriculum. You will gain understanding, knowledge and skills to support advanced-level practice and new roles in a variety of settings.

A wide choice of modules is available from the university’s postgraduate education programme, and enables you to specialise in areas of personal and professional interest.

Graduate with the confidence and resilience to work in autonomous roles; inspired and equipped to become a leader of change and practice innovation.

Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

Part-time 2–6 years

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Please make sure that you meet the entry requirements before applying. If you have any questions the course team will be happy to help.

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Entry criteria

Entry requirements

The entry requirements listed here are our typical offer for this course if you wish to begin studying with us in 2018. They should be used as a general guide.

We operate a flexible admissions policy – this means that you could receive a lower conditional offer than the typical offer, informed by our assessment of your complementary non-academic achievements and experiences. For courses that require interview or portfolio review, this may also be considered in the level of any conditional offer that follows if your application is successful.

Degree and experience

Students should:

be registered with the appropriate professional body in the UK and should have a minimum of three years post-registration experience
be working for a minimum of 15 hours a week, in a role which is suitable for the development of an advanced level of practice
normally be expected to hold a first degree.

Graduates who have not studied in the previous five years would normally be required to complete and pass a single module relevant to the course, before enrolling on the full course. Credits from this module will then count towards the total number of credits needed.

Applicants without a first degree would normally be expected to demonstrate an ability to study at level 7 by completing a level 7 module, for example a study skills module, before enrolling for the full course.

Students require the support of a workplace mentor who is educated to at least masters level.

Applicants who meet the admissions criteria will also normally be required to attend an interview and provide one academic reference and one employer reference as to their suitability for the course.

Course in detail

Course structure

The course prepares students from a number of different disciplines to practice at an advanced level while developing their role as an advanced clinical practitioner.

You will complete a total of 180 credits for the MSc (including a 60-credit dissertation), or 120 credits for the postgraduate diploma. The contents of the compulsory modules form the basis of knowledge used in advanced practice in a multi-professional context and are the same for both the MSc and PGDip.

The course is based on the emerging consensus that in the absence of government or professional body legislation or guidance, advanced practice consists of four underpinning pillars: Clinical Practice, Leadership and Management, Education and Research (NHS multi-professional framework for advanced clinical practice).

There are a range of advanced clinical practice modules e.g. Advanced Physical Assessment (Adult or Child), Advanced Physical Assessment of Cardiac and Respiratory Conditions, Advanced Respiratory Care (with applied pathophysiology).

The course is based on our Falmer campus, with tutorials available at Falmer and on Skype.

Compulsory modules

There are two compulsory modules on this course:

Professional Competency (20 credits) – NA7141
Leading Advanced Practice (20 credits) – NA7139
Plus a research module (20 credits), optional modules e.g. Advanced Physical Assessment (20 credits) or Independent Prescribing (40 credits) and the dissertation (60 credits)

You begin with a course induction day, where you will begin the Professional Competency module and be introduced to your electronic portfolio (e-folio). The e-folio requires you to collect evidence in support of completing advanced practice capabilities linked to Health Education England’s Multi-professional framework for advanced clinical practice. This is done with guidance from your workplace mentor, peers and tutorial support.

Action learning sets develop an appreciation of multi-professional working including leading a professionally diverse team, discuss issues such as working autonomously or managing complexity as an advanced clinical practitioner. The output from these action learning sets will help you to build the e-folio in support of your advanced clinical practice role and work place projects.

Leading Advanced Practice is usually taken in the first semester and emphasises the critical leadership and business skills needed as an advanced clinical practitioner. You may then take modules in any order but are encouraged to discuss your personal development plan and choice of optional modules required to support your evolving advanced practice with the course leader, your practice mentor and your employer.

Facilities

Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite

Our state-of-the-art Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite is among the best-equipped in the country, and may be used as part of your education option module.

You may also benefit from our physical assessment suite, with a range of resources for developing advanced assessment skills.

Postgraduate education programme

Options modules for this course are chosen from the university's postgraduate education programme.

Find out more about individual modules, and their timetabling.

Careers and employability

Masters-level education is an important component of advanced practice. It allows you greater autonomy and to accelerate personal and professional development or promotion in your practice.

Our graduates are working in many different strands of advanced practice, for example, Assistant Director of Nursing, Senior Lecturer, Emergency Practitioners.

Fees and funding

Your fees

UK/EU 8,855 GBP

For individual module fees, contact fees@brighton.ac.uk.

NHS funding is available and may vary depending on individual circumstances.

If you require funding via NHS Trust Health Contract (formally the PTD contract) you may need to submit your application to a panel and/or need a designated signatory before you send it to the university. The forms for Health Education Contract or other sponsorship funding are available from the School of Health Sciences postgraduate education programme.

Scholarships, bursaries and loans

We offer a range of scholarships for postgraduate students. Bursaries and loans may also be available to you.

Find out more about postgraduate fees and funding.

Location and living here

Location

About Brighton

Forward-thinking and welcoming, the city of Brighton & Hove is a community of creative and diverse people who share values like sustainability and inclusivity – just like its university.

Miles of pebble beaches, hundreds of bars, restaurants and clubs, a packed calendar of culture, music and sport and great independent and high street shopping attract visitors from all over the world. By the end of your course you’ll still be finding new things to enjoy about the city.

The Brighton Festival, England’s largest arts festival, takes place every May – as does the Great Escape Europe’s leading industry showcase for new music, 300 bands perform over three days at venues across the city. Major events celebrate Pride, digital culture, cinema, photography, food and the winter solstice. Our own Brighton Graduate show is a highlight, turning the university into the largest exhibition space in the south east as we celebrate the outstanding creativity of our students.

As a student here you’ll have a unique opportunity to experience what the city has to offer. Volunteering and placement opportunities enable you to play your part in the events, organisations and communities that make Brighton such a compelling place to be.

Campus where this course is taught

Falmer campus

Surrounded by the South Downs National Park and just five miles from the centre of Brighton, our Falmer campus has benefited from over £60million of investment over the past 10 years. 7,000 students are based here, studying subjects including English, education, social science, nursing and medicine.

Recent developments include the Falmer Sports Centre – with its fitness suites and sports hall – and the innovative Checkland Building, which has natural ventilation systems and an insulating green roof.

Falmer has also recently installed more than 600 solar panels, which reduce the campus’s carbon emissions by more than 80 tonnes. The renovation has made us one of the top universities in the UK for on-site renewable energy production.

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Accommodation

Brighton: Falmer

We have halls of residence across the city in Grand Parade, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

Eligible students can apply for any of these options. Find out if you are eligible…
You’ll be prioritised for accommodation in the halls that are linked to your teaching base, subject to availability.
Falmer campus is linked to halls on the Falmer campus and Varley Park.
- Varley Park offers a mix of rooms and catering options. Varley Park is less than a mile from Falmer and four miles from the city centre. Public transport in the city is excellent, and there’s a shuttle bus between our Brighton campuses during term time.
- Paddock Field and Great Wilkins halls are on campus and offer a range of room types and catering options.

We also offer Unihomes and Unilets, student houses that we let out to our students on behalf of private landlords. This option offers the most choice and flexibility and can work particularly well when you’re balancing learning with placements and other commitments.

There’s plenty of support if you choose private rented accommodation. We manage our own studenthomes database of properties. And we run our housemates service over the summer for students, new and returning, looking for a place to live.

Find out more on our accommodation webpages.

Hillside hall of residence at Varley Park

Varley Park accommodation near to the Falmer campus

Student in our Moulsecoomb Place hall of residence

Maps

Accommodation

University building

Falmer campus

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