Medical Education (PgDip)
The Postgraduate Certificate, Diploma & MSc in Medical Education is an e-learning course, offering build up of study credit via a three-stage, progressive course delivered online.
The Postgraduate Diploma in Medical Education programme is committed to promoting excellence in learning and teaching for health professionals. This distance learning programme is delivered entirely online and has been established since 2008. This innovative programme is for all medical, dental and other health professionals who aim to professionalise the role of the clinician as teacher.
This part-time distance learning programme leads to the award of a Postgraduate Diploma in Medical Education.
It recognises the diverse, complex and challenging contexts of both those new to educator roles and responsibilities and those with considerable years of experience. The overall aim of the course is to develop a community of educators committed to promote improvements in both ‘what’ and ‘how’ we teach future healthcare professionals.
The course is highly practical and aims to model best practice in learning and teaching and draws upon a wide range of innovative approaches to learner support and development. The course is organised into a series of modules that involve interactive activities delivered within an online environment. These activities are conducted within groups, each one being facilitated by an online tutor. This affords an opportunity to explore the module topic through discussion and clarification of understanding and also gives the opportunity and time to apply new learning through the online discussions, tasks, wikis and assignments. Through this there is ample time to reflect on own practise and to share experiences and new insights with colleagues. This is a truly interactive programme.
A comprehensive menu of online modules will allow you to contribute to critical dialogues that promote deeper insights into educational theory and principles applied to clinical practice.
The programme is accredited by the Higher Education Academy, conferring Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy upon successful completion of the first year of the programme (Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education) and evidence of engagement with the UK Professional Standards Framework (UKPSF). The programme is also aligned to the Academy of Medical Educators professional standards enabling you to apply for recognition of the Academy of Medical Educators.
Distinctive features
- Application of theory, concepts and principles to your clinical educational setting.
- Development of future educational leaders.
- Course members from diverse backgrounds to promote understanding and sharing of good practise.
- Higher Education Academy Accreditation providing a direct route to Fellowship of the Academy.
- Academy of Medical Educators Accreditation.
- Support from an academic team of dedicated educationalists, active in professional associations who have a breadth of experience both nationally and internationally.
- Course design and delivery emphasising principles and application through interactive discussion and activities in an online environment.
- A personal tutoring system to help define learning needs and aid reflection.
- Many years of experience of running medical educational courses in the UK and Internationally.
- Positioned within the School of Medicine we are well placed to support the education and training of clinicians and clinical educators.
- Assessment tasks linked to own educational practise.
Key facts
| Next intake | September 2019 |
|---|---|
| Duration | 1 year |
| Qualification | PgDip |
| Mode | Part-time - distance learning |
| Other ways to study this course | |
| Contact |
Admissions criteria
In addition to fulfilling the University entrance requirements for study at postgraduate level; you will need to demonstrate your interest/involvement in learning and teaching in health care contexts.
Successful completion of the Postgraduate Certificate stage of the programme is a prerequisite for the Postgraduate Diploma stage.
The course is suitable for all health professionals who have teaching, assessment and related educational responsibilities, such as teachers, trainers, educational supervisors, course co-ordinators, clinical and college tutors.
Applicants should also hold an initial degree from an approved University, or other qualification/proof of educational ability. If English is not your first language, please provide evidence of your English language qualifications to fulfil the University’s English language requirements.
Applications are closed once the course if full.
Find out more about English language requirements.
Applicants who require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK must present an acceptable English language qualification in order to meet UKVI (UK Visas and Immigration) requirements
The Postgraduate Diploma year (year two) follows on from successful completion of the Postgraduate Certificate year (year one).
You will be required to engage with online learning materials within tutor-facilitated groups throughout the academic year (October to June). There is no requirement to attend, as all teaching will be delivered via e-learning.
The modules shown are an example of the typical curriculum and will be reviewed prior to the 2019/20 academic year. The final modules will be published by September 2019.
All modules in the Postgraduate Certificate Programme form year one of the Postgraduate Diploma Programme. These must be successfully completed before progressing to year two (Postgraduate Diploma year).
| Module title | Module code | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Evaluating Courses | MDT099 | 10 credits |
| Research Skills | MDT100 | 20 credits |
| Contemporary Issues in Medical Education | MDT101 | 10 credits |
| Practical Teaching Portfolio | MDT102 | 20 credits |
How will I be taught?
The course uses a wide range of online approaches to learner support and development. Learning and teaching methods encompass a range of strategies and techniques to promote co-operative, purposeful learning. The teaching takes place online in group settings, which are facilitated by online tutors. There are a variety of tasks in each module where there is the opportunity for discussion, debate, exploration and peer interaction designed to enhance learning in addition to guided and independent study. Online tutors play a key role in the delivery of teaching for each module.
Practical application is a key feature of the course, and you will be encouraged to try out new approaches to teaching and learning throughout the programme. Synthesising your knowledge and applying theory to practice within your own clinical teaching setting will be a central requirement of both formal assessment and formative work.
Opportunities to develop your team working and collaboration skills will be available through your tasks and activities within discussion lists and wikis and general engagement in debate and exploration with tutors and peer groups.
How will I be supported?
You will receive written feedback on all your assignments, in addition, there are many opportunities throughout the course to receive peer and tutor feedback. You will be allocated a personal tutor who will support your progress on the course, monitoring your general progress, discussing relevant issues and providing advice, guidance and support. They will contact you at various points in the course. There are a variety of tasks and activities in each module and you will discuss a range of educational issues through engagement in these with online tutors and peers. Personal tutors will comment on your reflective blog if you wish, and this exchange is an opportunity for you to engage in a dialogue about your educational roles, responsibilities and experiences in your clinical setting. This will also be done through your personal development maps and educational discussion in the discussion forum.
In year one at the start of the course you will complete a practice assignment, designed to help you appreciate the nature of the course requirements and inform your learning/development. In addition, you will receive formative feedback via the online discussions and contact from your personal tutor.
How will I be assessed?
You will be assessed in a variety of ways both to inform learning (formative) and to assess learning (summative) and all assignment tasks are linked to your educational practise. For example, typical assignments may relate to designing a proposal for an educational project in your clinical teaching context, developing a practical teaching portfolio, analysing the evaluation strategy for courses you are involved with.
What skills will I practise and develop?
The overall aims of the course are to help you:
- Critically appraise both your own and others’ practice as clinical educators and educational leaders to enhance learning and teaching relationships with colleagues/trainees.
- Synthesise concepts in order to further enhance knowledge and understanding to initiate educational developments responsive to clinical education needs and challenges.
- Develop an ability to engage with research, scholarship and practice and deal with complexities, contradictions and gaps in the current evidence base.
- Develop the educational skills required to provide constructive feedback to learners.
More specifically the course aims to:
- Develop and formally recognise experience, skills and leadership in clinical education.
- Provide an understanding of educational theories, methods and practice across the clinical professions that inform current educational practice.
- Promote critical self-awareness and reflection on educational practice to inform educational change.
- Develop educational skills as a clinical educator and educational leader.
- Illustrate your understanding of concepts by designing, planning and delivering learner-centred sessions employing a range of educational strategies/principles.
- Achieve an understanding of how to create effective change in healthcare education.
- Provide skills to design, develop and critically analyse educational media and technologies in order to enhance the learning-teaching process.
- Promote a critical evaluation of the purpose, design, application and interpretation of a range of assessment methods available to clinical educators.
- Develop the educational skills required to provide constructive feedback to learners.
- Develop the knowledge and skills needed to be an educational evaluator in clinical contexts.
- Develop the knowledge required to design, implement and evaluate an educational event with coherence, integration and relevance.
- Provide an understanding of the philosophical orientations of educational research and a range of research methodologies to enable the selection and utilisation of appropriate strategies to design and conduct educational research.
Health professionals have joined the course from around the world. Many graduates use the insights gained on the course to introduce innovations to their day to day teaching, whilst others go on to higher level roles and responsibilities to lead and promote excellence in learning and teaching at national and international levels.
Postgraduate Diploma Alumni say…
“The e-learning format is an excellent way to gain the most out of a comprehensive course in a convenient and practical way. I gained a huge amount from the course in terms of developing a greater understanding about how to optimise the learning material and environment during my teaching. Being able to achieve this while fitting around clinical commitments has been ideal”.
Mohammed Ramji
"...I have been given an educational skill set that includes not only knowledge but also an academic mind-set and developed my leadership skills”.
Alan Stone
“The availability of online forums, an online tutor and prompt and very constructive assignment feedback all contributed to a very positive learning environment”.
Anton Saayman
Tuition fees
UK and EU students (2019/20)
| Tuition fee | Deposit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| £3,675 | £1,000 |
More information about tuition fees and deposits, including for part-time and continuing students.
EU students entering in 2019/20 will pay the same tuition fee as UK students for the duration of their course. Please be aware that fees may increase annually in line with inflation. No decisions regarding fees and loans for EU students starting in 2020/21 have been made yet. These will be determined as part of the UK's discussions on its membership of the EU and we will provide further details as soon as we can.
Students from outside the EU (2019/20)
| Tuition fee | Deposit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| £3,675 | £1,000 |
More information about tuition fees and deposits, including for part-time and continuing students.
Will I need any specific equipment to study this course/programme?
You will need to be able to access the internet on a regular basis in order to engage with your programme.
