Postgraduate Taught

This exciting, contemporary and new Faculty-based flexible programme focuses on higher academic study underpinning a higher level of professional practice in healthcare. It is designed to provide the health and social care practitioner a stimulating and rigorous analysis of health care practice. It will have an interdisciplinary and interprofessional focus and aim to prepare practitioners to lead and manage change in a global health care environment.

It will combine conceptual, theoretical and practical workbased learning approaches to the study of health and social care practice and provide the opportunity for the practitioner to develop skills and expertise to an advanced level. The student will be able to map out a series of learning outcomes based on learning opportunities available in the workplace which represents an exploration of work focused and work related issues complemented by taught modules.

Broad educational aims of the programme are to:

• Demonstrate the capacity for critical enquiry, analysis, and application of knowledge in their practice and to support innovations in health and social care
• Demonstrate effective selfmanagement and leadership skills to effect change in health and social care
• Engage within a workbased learning programme consolidating and extending theoretical knowledge and practice skills relevant to their own discipline, facilitating academic and professional development to enhance the delivery of quality care
• Promote and enhance their skills in critical reflection, evaluation, professional decision making and leadership to inform best practice
• Promote effective collaboration, interdisciplinary and interagency working practices
• Engage with work-based learning to support the development and implementation of evidence-based practice; establish and lead projects in their practice setting

Potential/prospective students will normally:

Hold current first level Professional Registration with a relevant regulatory body e.g. Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC); Health
Professional Council (HPC); General Social Care Council (GSCC).

Have an identified work-based facilitator within their practice area, who will support and guide their development throughout the phases of the programme.

Be working in clinical practice. Some potential/prospective student’s maybe managers/ educators within the Healthcare arena.

Hold an undergraduate degree ideally 2.2 or higher in a related subject with a period of two years time in professional practice.

Practitioners with extensive practice experience and no formal undergraduate degree will be considered by evidence presented
within their professional portfolio and discussion at interview.

Accreditation of Prior Certificated Learning (APCL)/Prior Experiential Learning (APEL)

In some cases the student may be allowed to apply for accreditation of prior learning, undertaken either at Keele or at another higher education institution. These credits must have been gained within five years previous to their joining the current programme of study.

The most important value which informs this programme is workbased learning which will be incorporated as a stimulating and challenging approach to programme delivery. This programme is distinctive because it will centre on the application of learning in the workplace and evidencebased assessment of practice and achievement, in order to relate the programme of study to the individual’s role of the practitioner.