Health Promotion MSc (PGCert PGDip)

Course in brief

The Health Promotion MSc will equip you with the practical skills and theoretical knowledge to work in health promotion and public health at local, national or international levels.

The course is modular, so you will study the essential core modules and then be able to choose one of four pathways to match your previous experience, future ambitions, and if you wish to study full-time or part-time.

During the course you will explore the environments and social conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age in relation to health, and the factors that influence our health behaviours.

You will have the opportunity to combine your health promotion study with complementary disciplines by choosing relevant modules from the Brighton Business School and Brighton and Sussex Medical School.

The course will benefit you if you are working in a role with a health promotion component and want to deepen your knowledge, or if you want to develop skills for working in a public health-related field. Our students include health and social care professionals, school teachers, voluntary workers and those changing career.

Scholarships

Scholarships are available for this course. Find out if you are eligible in the fees and funding tab below.

Key facts

Location Brighton: Falmer

Full-time 1 year
Part-time 2–6 years

We are a top 10 university for world-leading research impact in allied health professions, nursing and pharmacy (REF 2014)

Apply online

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

Apply now for your place

Entry requirements

The entry requirements listed here are our typical offer for this course if you wish to begin studying with us in 2017. 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

Normally a good UK honours degree or equivalent recognised award from an overseas institution.
Candidates with professional qualifications (eg nursing certificate), directly relevant experience, or record of active involvement in civil society organisations will also be considered, although they will need to demonstrate ability to study and write at level 7.
English-speaking students from overseas are particularly welcome.

Other

Applications are accepted throughout the year and prospective candidates may be interviewed by telephone or Skype.
Early application is recommended, particularly for international students, as time needs to be allowed for the IELTS and visa requirements.
Offers will be made depending on the following criteria: academic qualifications, professional experience, personal profile, and academic writing skills.
Claims for the Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning will be considered up to a maximum of 30 level 7 credits.

For non-native speakers of English
IELTS 7.0 overall and a minimum of 6.5 in the other elements, or equivalent qualification. Students with lower scores can enter through our extended masters programme.

International equivalencies

International equivalencies by country

Albania
Algeria
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Bahrain
Bangladesh
Belarus
Belgium
Bermuda
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Botswana
Brazil
Bulgaria
Burma (Myanmar)
Cameroon
Canada
Chile
China
Colombia
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Ghana
Greece
Guyana
Hong Kong
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Iran
Iraq
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Jamaica
Japan
Jordan
Kazakhstan
Kenya
Kosovo
Kuwait
Latvia
Lebanon
Liechtenstein
Libya
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Macedonia
Malaysia
Malawi
Malta
Mexico
Moldova
Montenegro
Morocco
Namibia
Nepal
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Palestinian National Authority
Philippines
Poland
Portugal
Qatar
Romania
Russian Federation
Saudi Arabia
Serbia
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Slovakia
Slovenia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sri Lanka
Syria
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan
Tanzania
Thailand
Tunisia
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United States
Uzbekistan
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Zambia
Zimbabwe

We can help you meet our English language or academic entry requirements.

Visit our language institute

For English language preparation courses.

Visit our International College

For academic preparation courses.

Course in detail

Course structure

The Health Promotion MSc has four possible course pathways.

Health Promotion MSc
International Health Promotion MSc
Health Promotion and Management MSc
Health Promotion and Education MSc.

All pathways share two core modules, providing a sound foundation in health promotion and public health systems thinking as well as an opportunity for you to get to know other health promotion students.

The combination of other modules depends on the pathway you choose and will be selected in consultation with the course leader – for information on the pathways, look at the other tabs on this page and the course structure diagram.

The multidisciplinary and international student mix provides a lively and stimulating classroom experience with plenty of interactive learning and sharing of experience.

Many UK-based students study part-time, alongside their work and home-life. This helps them incorporate their work into their studies through the course's dissertation/work-based project.

Academic contributors include local public health and health promotion practitioners, international health promotion academics and researchers and staff from the university's School of Health Sciences, and Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS). The course also benefits from educational exchanges with health promotion specialists at the University of Toronto and Hong Kong University.

School of Health Sciences postgraduate education
This course is part of our School of Health Sciences postgraduate education programme. The programme allows you to sign up for one module at a time and build your qualification as you go. It also gives you access to a range of interdisciplinary modules across a broad selection of health and social science subjects. Find out more

Core syllabus

You will take these two core modules no matter which pathway you choose.

Principles of Health Promotion
Strategy and Project Planing

The masters award
You need to earn a total of 180 credits for the masters award, consisting of six 20-credit taught modules and a 60-credit dissertation. Twenty-credit modules have approximately 30 hours' classroom-based lecturer contact or group work and we expect this to be backed up by approximately 170 hours of individual study and work on assignments.

Teaching and assessment

The course team are active in public health research particularly around healthy weight, inequalities, mental health, sexual health, infant feeding, diabetes prevention and young people and we provide dissertation research opportunities in these areas.

You will experience formal teaching alongside a series of extracurricular seminars both within the school and through forums such as the Brighton and Sussex Universities Food Network, or the Global Health Network which operate across University of Brighton, Brighton and Sussex Medical School and University of Sussex.

The assessment and teaching methods are varied, including problem based learning in response to public health triggers, and assessments by presentation, vivas as well as formal written critical reports.

Dissertation
The dissertation consists of a literature review, small-scale prime research or a work-based learning project.

You will be supported through your dissertation via monthly optional discussion groups in addition to formal dissertation supervision. If you are working, the dissertation provides an opportunity to conduct a work-based learning project (if you wish), for example evaluating or developing a particular aspect of your organisation's work from a health promotion perspective.

Health promotion pathway

As well as the two core modules you will take:

two option modules chosen from our postgraduate education programme. The course leader can advise you about which modules would be suitable based on your background, experience and interests.
a research methods module
a community placement module.

And complete a final dissertation.

Typical option modules

Nutrition in Public Health
Epidemiology
Social Marketing
Managing Change
Contemporary Issues in Health and Wellbeing in Older People
Community Psychology Theory and Practice
Health Protection

International pathway

As well as the two core modules, if you choose the international masters pathway you will take:

a global or cross-cultural module
a community placement module in a country other than your own, and
complete a research methods module
research and write a dissertation on an aspect of health promotion of your choice with an international dimension.
one option module.

Typical option modules

Nutrition in Public Health
Epidemiology
Social Marketing
Managing Change
Contemporary Issues in Health and Wellbeing in Older People
Community Psychology Theory and Practice
Health Protection

Community placement module
This is a minimum of 65 hours of placement, working towards objectives which you identify in a personal learning contract drawn up during the module induction.

Non-UK students typically conduct their placements with local partners in south-east England, others are supported to arrange placements in other countries.

Management pathway

Students following the management pathway choose to expand their capacity to work at a managerial level in health promotion.

As well as the two core modules, you will:

take the community placement module
take two management modules from the university's School of Health Sciences postgraduate education programme
complete a research methods module
write a dissertation on an aspect of health promotion of your choice which includes a management perspective.

Education pathway

As well as the two core modules, if you choose the education pathway you will:

take three education modules from the university's School of Health Sciences postgraduate education programme.
complete a research methods module
write a dissertation on an aspect of health promotion of your choice which includes an education perspective.

Facilities

Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite

Our Clinical Skills and Simulation Suite is among the best equipped in the country, and is an invaluable tool for assessment and monitoring students' progress throughout the course.

You will benefit from practising nursing skills in an environment that simulates real-life professional experiences. Provided by the NHS’ South East Coast Ambulance Service, you may have access to our Simbulance, enabling you to work alongside paramedic students in an interprofessional learning environment. On board is a high fidelity mannikin with multiple uses, and a child-size mannikin for paediatric scenarios.

Learning by simulation means you will be confident in your ability to apply your knowledge and skills in your professional life.

Careers and employability

On graduation, you will be prepared for a career as a health promotion specialist working in public health practice in the public, not-for-profit, voluntary or commercial sector.

Our students often find employment in public health, or change their job role to include more public health, part way through their masters and may shift from full-time to part-time study to complete their MSc.

Typical roles include, programme coordinators or commissioners for local public health, health project coordinators for voluntary sector organisations, young peoples’ welfare or sexual health advisers in a college or primary prevention setting.

Global health issues are considered throughout the teaching, making the course relevant to participants from all types of economies.

If you are a UK student, you will graduate with a better understanding of international health for working with diverse communities in Britain, preparing you for working internationally and raising awareness of the challenges for public health in our globalised world. The course has long-standing links with the International Union of Health Promotion and Education (IUHPE) and local public health departments and organisations..

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust

Fees and funding

Your fees

UK/EU (full-time) 6,120 GBP

International (full-time)12,830 GBP

For up-to-date details of 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 webpages.

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.

The Forward Bound Scholarship (up to £25,000) is exclusively for Health Promotion MSc applicants from low or lower-middle income countries.

The fees listed here are for full-time courses beginning in the academic year 2017–18. Tuition fees are payable for each year that you study with us.

Where UK/EU students are subject to regulated fees, the annual fee increase cannot exceed the UK government’s maximum regulated tuition fee limit set for the relevant year. For all other students, ie those not subject to regulated fees, tuition fees are subject to a maximum annual increase of the higher of 5% or RPI.

You can find out more about our fees in the the university's student contract and tuition fee policy (pdf).

The tuition fee you have to pay depends on a number of factors including the kind of course you take, and whether you study full- or part-time. If you are studying part-time you will normally be charged on a pro rata basis depending on the number of modules you take.

What's included in the fee?

When costs such as health or DBS checks, or use of specialist materials are incurred as a mandatory requirement of the course they are included in your tuition fee.

You may incur additional costs depending on the optional modules or activities you choose. The cost of optional activities is not included in your tuition fee and you will need to meet this cost in addition to your fees. Before you apply check with the school that provides your course using the contact details in the Find out more tab (at the end of this page) for advice about what is included and what optional costs you could face so you can budget accordingly.

See our finance pages for advice about funding and scholarships as well as further information about fees and advice on international and island fee-paying status.

Location and living here

Location

About Brighton

Brighton has been called the happiest place in the UK, and it’s easy to see why. With five miles of pebble beach, more than 300 pubs and a packed festival calendar, Brighton is the ideal place to spend your student years.

Arts and culture: The Royal Pavilion is the most famous landmark in Brighton, opening its doors to around 400,000 tourists every year. Right next door is the Brighton Dome, the south coast’s premier multi-arts venue, and the Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, which holds a diverse collection of decorative arts, textiles and archaeological artefacts.

Festivals: The Brighton Festival is now the largest arts festival in England and a major milestone in the international cultural calendar. Meanwhile, The Great Escape has been established as the UK’s leading event for new music, with over 300 bands playing 30 venues across the city over three days.

Nightlife: Aside from the many nightclubs that line the city’s seafront, student favourites include The Haunt, Concorde 2 and Patterns, which attract leading bands and DJs from around the world. If you don’t feel like dancing, you can take your pick from the many hundreds of pubs and bars that dot the city centre.

Shopping: The quirky North Laine district houses Brighton’s finest collection of boutique shops and independent cafes, while the narrow, winding streets of the South Lanes house collections of jewellery and antiques. Churchill Square is the city’s main shopping centre and serves all of your high street needs.

Sports: Brighton’s seaside location offers the perfect opportunity to try paddle boarding, kayaking and windsurfing. Further into the city, The Level has a skate park for skateboarders and BMX riders to practise their skills.

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.

Accommodation

Brighton

Our Brighton halls of residence are located across the city in Grand Parade, Moulsecoomb, Varley Park and Falmer.

Our Grand Parade campus is in central Brighton and has one hall of residence, Phoenix Brewery, within walking distance. We have around 300 rooms available in Phoenix Brewery, which are all ensuite and self-catered.

Moulsecoomb is two miles from the city centre and also has one hall of residence, Moulsecoomb Place, on campus. All accommodation in Moulsecoomb Place is catered, offering breakfast and an evening meal during term time. There are more than 150 rooms available here, with six to eight rooms per flat.

Varley Park offers the biggest choice of student accommodation with ten halls of residence. The site is four miles from Brighton centre but within walking distance of Falmer train station.

Falmer campus has two halls of residence: Great Wilkins and Paddock Field. Great Wilkins offers 150+ self-catered single rooms and one-bed couples flats, while Paddock Field offers 450+ catered and self-catered single rooms only. All rooms in Falmer are en-suite.

Aside from halls, you have the option of Unihomes, which we let out to our students on behalf of private landlords. The rent covers all utilities and includes £5,000 of contents insurance for your personal belongings.

You can also choose to join the many students who live away from campus in private rented accommodation. We have a list of high-quality, university-endorsed private sector accommodation and can help you find housemates to move in with.

Find out more on our Brighton accommodation webpages and if you have any questions, our accommodation team will be happy to help. You can contact them by email at accommodation@brighton.ac.uk or by telephone on 01273 644100.

Paddock Field