This means that practitioners are often required to take a mix of postgraduate certificates or stand-alone modules that do not fit easily into existing Master's programmes. This programme is intended to provide flexibility within the choice of modules for practitioners, so that they can use their credits to gain an award.
The MSc Professional Studies programme is intended to:
- Offer a coherent programme of study directly relevant to the work environment of practitioners working in health and social care
- Offer practitioners choices of postgraduate studies in order that they can build a programme relevant to their own and their employers' needs
- Facilitate practitioners to utilise higher level critical, analytical and reflective skills within academic and practice environments
- Enable advanced practitioners to be cognisant of the holistic nature of health and social care, and to gain comprehensive higher level knowledge, expertise and the individual qualities necessary to work as autonomous, competent practitioners within unpredictable professional environments
- Enable practitioners to innovate and apply contributions to the evidence base of practice, and communicate conclusions clearly
- Continue to develop the practitioners' skills in collaborative practice and the partnership delivery of care, and to consider the impact of their professional role within the organisation and wider context
Why study this programme?
This programme enables professionals working in health and social care to integrate a range of modules applicable to their workplace into a coherent programme.
Features
The MSc Professional Studies programme allows for greater flexibility of modules so that practitioners may choose modules from education, practice, management or research. It also allows for a choice of dissertation between a traditional research dissertation and a work based project.
This programme is delivered at Riverside building in Chester.
Programme Structure
This programme is intended to provide flexibility within the choice of modules for practitioners, so that they can use their credits to gain an award. The programme has three core modules. These are:
- Research
- Leadership Development and Change
- Dissertation or Work Based Learning Project (Dissertation).
The other 80 credits are normally made up of four 20 credit modules chosen from the range offered by the Faculty of Health and Social Care, but if practitioners have completed modules elsewhere that are congruent with the programme, these will be considered for AP(E)L.
Practitioners may also complete one module of 20 credits offered by another Faculty within the University of Chester, providing the module is relevant to the programme and to the practitioner's professional development. (This should normally be agreed with the programme leader prior to commencing the module).
If the combination of modules selected would entitle the student to an alternative award within the Faculty of Health and Social Care, then the alternative award will be conferred.
The programme is linked to a higher education accreditation system, with existing mechanisms for the award of credit for appropriate learning and prior experiential learning.
Barred combination:
Students accessing this programme may NOT take the module Health and Well Being in Context as an option module.
- Postgraduate Certificate - 60 credits
- Postgraduate Diploma - 120 credits
- MSc Professional Studies - 180 credits
Students will be exposed to a variety of assessment methods designed to ensure that the content, outcomes and level of the modules are measured in a fair and transparent manner.
Examples include reflective analysis, seminar presentations, report writing, case scenarios and policy writing. Knowledge and understanding will be tested through written assignments, a seminar presentation, and individual case scenarios.
Intellectual skills will be assessed normally through course work, and students will be asked to demonstrate thinking and cognitive ability through written assignments, presentations, individual case scenarios and reflective accounts.
All aspects of the assessment strategy will be used to evaluate transferable/key skills and, where relevant, mapped against national standards.
This programme is applicable to practitioners who are working in health and social care.
- The programme is primarily designed for practitioners who are working in health and social care.
- All prospective candidates must formally apply for a place on the programme; an application form and academic interview underpin the recruitment process. This forms the basis on which the suitability of candidates will be decided.
- Applicants will normally hold a first degree. There is a requirement for this degree to be in a health or social care related subject.
- The classification of the first degree will normally be a 2:1 or above.
- Applicants without a first degree will normally be required to demonstrate extensive experience in a closely related area of health and social care, together with evidence of recent study or writing at an appropriate level.
