Skip to main contentSkip to footer
medical students in scrubs
Brighton & Sussex Medical School

cardiology

BSMS > Postgraduate > Cardiology

Cardiology

Key facts

MSc, PGDip, PGCert

Full-time: 1 year

Part-time: 3 years

Eligible applicants: UK, international

Due to visa restrictions, international students requiring a student visa (including EU/EEA who require a student visa) are eligible to apply for BSMS full-time Masters courses only. Part-time Masters courses, all PGDip and all PGCert courses are open to UK and Irish students and international students (including EU/EEA) who have an alternative visa/immigration permission to stay in the UK (such as settled/pre-settled status, Tier 2/work visa, indefinite leave to remain etc).

Location: University of Brighton, Falmer campus 

Course Leader: Dr Sean O'Nunain

Read Dr Sean O'Nunain's profile here >

Course Co-Ordinator: Camila Seligson

Read Camila Seligson's profile here >

General enquiries: brighton.ac.uk/enquiries

This course is jointly validated by the University of Brighton and the University of Sussex. Applications for 2024/25 entry are now open.

apply for the cardiology course here >

Download the course application handbook below.

Download the course application handbook here >

Staff and students standing with a skeleton in an anatomy lab

Key areas of study

  • Communication, learning and teaching in health and social care
  • Acute cardiology principles and practice
  • Fundamentals of cardiac diagnostic procedures and investigations
  • Invasive/interventional cardiology
  • Research methods and critical appraisal
  • Leadership and change management in clinical services
  • Quality, safety and service improvement in clinical services

Course overview

This internationally recognised course is designed to train healthcare professionals to be the clinical leaders of the future by providing a mix of clinical and professional knowledge relevant to the practice of cardiology in contemporary healthcare.

Learning in key professional domains includes service leadership and development, research, commissioning and communication and teaching. The cardiology content of the programme provides comprehensive learning to meet the professional development needs of a wide range of practitioners working in cardiology including: doctors, nurses, paramedics, pharmacists, physiologists and radiographers.

The course aims to increase students’ practical and theoretical knowledge of advanced clinical and interventional cardiology, by promoting their exploration of the current evidence for diagnosis and treatment. The course seeks to enable the student to use this evidence toward good practice through focussing on the practical aspects of the care of common cardiac conditions from a medical and patient perspective. In addition, the course aims to promote a wider understanding of the differing profiles and contributory roles of the various health care professionals involved in the care of cardiac patients.

"The Acute Cardiology module definitely had a positive effect on my practice in cardiology. It allowed me to review and discuss the main topics which I am most likely to encounter working in this field."

Ebraham Alskaf, current PGCert Cardiology student

Course structure

Most modules are assessed by means of a 3,000 word in-depth evaluation of a topic agreed by the student and module leader. The clinical modules are also assessed by means of an unseen written examination.

PGCert

  • Acute Cardiology Principles and Practice (20 credits)
  • Fundamentals of Cardiac Diagnostic Procedures and Investigations (20 credits)
  • Invasive and Interventional Cardiology (20 credits)

PGDip

  • PGCert modules

PLUS

  • Research Methods and Critical Appraisal (20 credits)
  • Communication, Learning and Teaching in Health and Social Care (20 credits)

AND

  • Leading and Transforming Services (20 credits)

OR

  • Quality, Safety and Service Improvement in Clinical Services (20 credits)

MSc

  • PGDip modules

PLUS

  • Dissertation (60 credits)

Career opportunities

On completion of the course, students will have developed a broad and systematic understanding of cardiovascular medicine and will be equipped to translate this knowledge into good practice.

Students will also have acquired a portfolio of advanced research, leadership, and communication and learning skills to support the development of a specialist interest in cardiology and enhance their future career opportunities.

Entry requirements

The course is open to post-registration doctors and qualified practitioners in any profession allied to medicine. Those with a first degree will have a minimum of two years’ clinical practice; those without will have a minimum of five years’ post-qualification practice in cardiology. Applicants who do not hold a first degree will initially register for either a Postgraduate Certificate or a Postgraduate Diploma award.

For international students a minimum IELTS score of 7.0 is required.

Fees and funding

Where courses are taken part-time over more than one academic year, fees are usually charged pro-rata for the modules taken during each academic year.  

With effect from 2021/22 onwards, EU nationals starting new postgraduate courses will pay international fees and will not be eligible for student funding from the UK government. However, there are exceptions to this for Irish nationals and EU nationals with settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme. For the latest information, please see gov.uk/student-finance. If you do not have settled status in the UK and require a work visa, then you will be fee assessed as Overseas and will therefore be subject to the International fee rate.

Find out more about 2024-25 fees and funding >

Scholarships

All BSMS students on Masters courses accredited jointly by the University of Sussex and the University of Brighton are eligible to apply for University of Sussex postgraduate scholarships in 2024/25. 

Read more about funding and scholarships >

Bursaries

A number of bursaries are available for Cardiology trainees employed by the NHS in the HEESE region. Please contact the Course Leader for further information.