Confident pharmacy manager in whitecoat consulting one of clients about new medicineConfident pharmacy manager in whitecoat consulting one of clients about new medicine

Course Summary

Demand for health services continues to be strong internationally – across public, private and not-for-profit sectors. This course is designed to support students who wish to move into managerial positions within the health services industry; complementing previous professional/academic qualifications or building upon workplace experience. It combines insights to both public and private healthcare services with contemporary management theory. 

The ethos of the course is to practically apply knowledge to help support you in developing your career prospects. To assist with this, a number of teaching sessions are also delivered by management and health service practitioners to ensure coverage of relative applied context.

There is an option to choose a Project/Placement year for this course, at an additional cost.

Switch combined course content

Optional 2-year master's to suit your needs

Choosing a Professional Placement MSc is a win-win for your career, giving you the chance to get real experience, apply your cutting-edge skills in the workplace and stand out to future employers.

In the first year you will have help from the University to find a placement, whilst developing your expertise. You will then spend your second year out in industry on placement, getting the chance to work with industry professionals and grow your network of industry contacts. Bringing the latest business school insights to industry, you will get to make a difference to the workplace and make lasting links with your employer.

Students need to find and secure their own placement, supported by the University. A preparation module will also help you to get ready for your placement.


What you’llStudy

During the MSc you will have the opportunity to improve your knowledge and understanding of core disciplines, concepts, ideas and theories of business and management. The Leadership Development and Change module will further enhance your technical knowledge of strategic leadership and its application in the contemporary workplace, and your ability to operate effectively in an increasingly global and multicultural environment. There is also a specialist module on commissioning best practice.
If you choose a placement or project year, the Research Dissertation module will be replaced by a placement or project module.

Module content:

A programme of individual study and research project in accordance with established research principles involving the completion of the following elements:

Management Research Project


Module aims:

To provide the opportunity to apply management knowledge, skills and research techniques developed during the programme to the identified area of management interest.

To develop students’ intellectual ability in terms of problem solving, critical analysis and conceptual thinking.

To provide students with the opportunity, and the enabling mechanisms to support their development towards independent learning.

Module content:

The nature, extent and purposes of management research

Management research paradigms

Research strategies

Research designs, methods and approaches

Research quality standards: establishing validity, reliability and generalisability

Sampling and Research instrument design

Research ethics

Research Data Management: collection, organisation and analysis

Managing a dissertation research project


Module aims:

The aim of this module is to enable learners to:

Understand and critically evaluate the findings of management research

Design and implement a management research project using methodologies and methods appropriate to research questions and objectives

Analyse and report management research findings meeting academic and practitioner needs

Module content:

  • Organisational behaviour/culture, structure and design;

  • The role of the manager, leadership theories, styles and approaches;

  • Groups and teams in the organisation – group formation, team working;

  • Individual personality, communication and motivation;

  • The role of Human Resource Management in the workplace;

  • Strategies for high performance working (HPW);

  • Employee relations and employment dynamics;

  • Performance Management and managing poor performance;

  • Learning and development methodologies; 

  • Theories and application of reflective practice.

 


Module aims:

This aims of this module are;

  1. For students to draw upon key concepts of leading and managing people and examine how these apply to the current and future world of work;
  2. For students to explore and develop an understanding of key theories and concepts in the field of people management and development;
  3. For students to be able to synthesise knowledge of people management, together with gaining awareness of wider contextual issues in order to address organisational challenges.

 

Module content:

The module content will include:-

  1. International healthcare systems and models of commissioning healthcare
  2. Epidemiology and inequalities
  3. Role of international organisations and policy development
  4. Main health challenges – international and selected country specific
  5. Models of commissioning – global approaches in detail
  6. Designing new approaches to healthcare management
  7. Evaluating healthcare outcomes

Module aims:

Health and social care professionals of the future need to be proactive in commissioning services to function strategically within dynamic professional and political contexts. This demands the development of capability, expertise and innovation in commissioning, as well as the ability to work in collaborative partnerships with multiple stakeholders, in local, national and international contexts.  

 This inter-professional module aims to:

  1. Promote critical understanding of the underpinning knowledge, statutory duties of co-operation, assessment and care planning processes essential to commissioning services and driving health and social care reform, both nationally and internationally.
  2. Enable students to use knowledge and skills to effect expert and imaginative commissioning plans and service redesign applied to area of study.
  3. Promote appropriate strategies for critical thinking, reflective practice and personal development.

Module content:

The module content will include: 

  1. Concepts of leadership and management.
  2. Contemporary theories and models of leadership.
  3. Understanding self and others. An Introduction to self-assessment tools and personal action planning.
  4. Leading change through teamwork and leading teams
  5. Project management
  6. The impact of leadership and management.

Module aims:

The aims of the module are: 

  1. To enable students to utilise leadership skills in order to lead change in service provision, delivery and personal development.
  2. To promote a critical understanding of the need for effective leadership, within the health and social care setting.
  3. To promote appropriate strategies for critical thinking and reflective practice.

Module content:

This module content will include:

  1. Introduction to financial management in health and social care contexts
  2. Financial accounting, budget management and effective reporting 
  3. Sources of funding and financial strategies in healthcare organisations
  4. Business planning and financial decision making for the enhancement of quality of care
  5. Performance management techniques, including non-financial performance indicators
  6. Development of robust business cases within the health and social care sector
  7. Global perspectives and international good practice in health and social care financial management 

Module aims:

The module aims to enable students to:

  1. Understand the funding sources and financial mechanisms involved in managing health and social care organisations effectively.
  2. Develop knowledge and skills in financial accounting, budget management, and reporting specifically tailored to the healthcare context and the financial responsibilities of healthcare management.
  3. Comprehend and apply business planning and performance management techniques, including non-financial performance indicators and the development of robust business cases within the healthcare sector.
  4. Foster an awareness of global perspectives and international good practice in relation to financial management in health and social care. 

Module content:

This module will introduce students to innovation theories and process in the context of health and social care services globally. 

Indicative content will include:

  • The theories and processes of innovation;
  • Creativity, innovation, and idea generation;
  • Catalysts and drivers for innovation in the context of health and social care;
  • Understanding service users, policy and social trends as applicable to the health and social care sectors;
  • Strategies to confront challenges relating to transformation and improvement of health and social care.
  • Digital and emerging technologies for innovation;
  • Managing innovation and leading change;
  • Creating a dynamic culture that supports innovation and implementation of change;
  • Social entrepreneurship in the health and social care sector;
  • Appraising innovation and scaling for social impact;
  • Understanding and reporting social impact for stakeholders, patients, service users, and benefactors;
  • Ethical and social implications of innovation in health and social care.

Module aims:

The overarching aim of this module is to help students critically analyse, evaluate, and apply concepts and theories of innovation in a health and social care context.

The module aims to enable students to:

  1. Evaluate the catalysts for innovation and enterprise in health and social care, including the various drivers of innovation in health and social care, such as changing patient needs, advances in technology, policy changes, and social trends.
  2. Explore management challenges that arise during the innovation process, including funding, stakeholder relationships, and regulatory compliance, and evaluate strategies to overcome these challenges.
  3. Examine and apply concepts on creating a culture that supports innovation and enterprise.
  4. Assess the different stages of the innovation process, from idea generation and concept development to implementation and evaluation of social value.
MSc Health Services Management YouTube video

MSc Health Services Management

Who you’ll Learn from

Dr Robert Walford

Visiting Lecturer
Robert Walford

Karen Cregan

Senior Lecturer in Human Resources & Business Management
Karen Cregan

Andy Firr

Programme Leader for MSc Engineering Management
Andrew Firr

Joseph Mcardle

Deputy Head of Marketing and Professional Development
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Athalia Dangerfield

Programme Leader for MSc Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Athalia Dangerfield

Vina Mistry

Programme Leader for MSc Health Service Management
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Temitope Bello

Lecturer, Business, Management, Accounting & Finance
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How you'll Learn

This course is taught by the University of Chester’s Chester Business School and the Faculty of Health and Social Care. We use a range of teaching methods, including lectures, seminars, practical workshops and tutorials. The course is assessed through a mixture of project work, written assignments, presentations and a research report. 

Entry Requirements

2:2 honours degree

An honours degree in a complementary area, usually 2:2 or above, and/or suitable work experience, is required. Applicants whose first language is not English must provide evidence of proficiency to IELTS 6.5 with no less than 5.5 in each band or equivalent. 

2:2 honours degree

An honours degree in a complementary area, usually 2:2 or above, and/or suitable work experience, is required.  Applicants whose first language is not English must provide evidence of proficiency to IELTS 6.5 with no less than 5.5 in each band or equivalent. 

English Language Requirements  

For more information on our English Language requirements, please visit International Entry Requirements

Where you'll Study Queen's Park, Chester

Fees and Funding

£8,775for a full-time course (2025/26)

Guides to the fees for students who wish to commence postgraduate courses are available to view on our Postgraduate Taught Programmes Fees page. Here you will also find information about part-time fees and project/placement year fees.

£15,000for a full-time course (2025/26)

The tuition fees for international students studying Postgraduate programmes in 2025/26 are £15,000.

Please note: For MSc programmes where a placement or project year is undertaken there will be an additional charge of £2,750 for the placement/project year (due at the start of the second year of the course).

The University of Chester offers generous international and merit-based scholarships for postgraduate study, providing a significant reduction to the published headline tuition fee. You will automatically be considered for these scholarships when your application is reviewed, and any award given will be stated on your offer letter.

For more information, go to our International Fees, Scholarship and Finance section.

Irish Nationals living in the UK or ROI are treated as Home students for Tuition Fee Purposes.

Your course will involve additional costs not covered by your tuition fees. This may include books, printing, photocopying, educational stationery and related materials, specialist clothing, travel to placements, optional field trips and software. Compulsory field trips are covered by your tuition fees. 

The University of Chester supports fair access for students who may need additional support through a range of bursaries and scholarships. 

Full details, as well as terms and conditions for all bursaries and scholarships can be found on the Fees and Finance section of our website.

Your future Career

Job prospects

The course is aimed at Health Professionals working in the sector who are looking to develop wider management skills to help with their career development. The course aims to develop appropriate skills which will enable graduating students to fast-track their career in the sector. 

Careers service

The University has an award-winning Careers and Employability service which provides a variety of employability-enhancing experiences; through the curriculum, through employer contact, tailored group sessions, individual information, advice and guidance.

Careers and Employability aims to deliver a service which is inclusive, impartial, welcoming, informed and tailored to your personal goals and aspirations, to enable you to develop as an individual and contribute to the business and community in which you will live and work.

We are here to help you plan your future, make the most of your time at University and to enhance your employability. We provide access to part-time jobs, extra-curricular employability-enhancing workshops and offer practical one-to-one help with career planning, including help with CVs, applications and mock interviews. We also deliver group sessions on career planning within each course and we have a wide range of extensive information covering graduate jobs .