About the course

Overview

The course is run by the School of Medicine in collaboration with the Research Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine.

Teaching takes place at the Guy Hilton Research Centre, a dedicated research facility located on the Royal Stoke University Hospital site, and also at the main University Campus. The School of Medicine is one of the top-ranked in the UK, and the research institute has an international reputation for world-leading research in medical engineering and healthcare technologies.

The School embraces specialists working in Royal Stoke University Hospital, County Hospital in Stafford and specialist Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Oswestry. You therefore have the opportunity to specialise in any of the varied clinical disciplines offered at these hospitals.

The School also runs MSc courses in Biomedical Engineering and in Cell and Tissue Engineering, and an EPSRC and MRC-funded Centre for Doctoral Training, ensuring a stimulating academic environment for students and many opportunities for engaging with further study and research.

Aims of the course

The aim of the MSc in Medical Engineering Design is to turn you into a Medical Device Designer so that you can work in this highly regulated design discipline. Students are able to major in three distinct areas, medical devices design, sustainable devices design and formal, structured design per se. Core modules introduce you, and immerse you in design methodology, design control, international medical devices regulations, auditing, risk management and risk analysis, team working, and medical device specific technical documentation. This enables students to become distinctive through specialism choices whilst maintain academic rigour through the study of formal engineering design.

The course covers mandatory medical devices standards and regulations such as ISO13485, ISO 14971, BS EN 60601, MDD, MDR and FDA CFR21.

The course contains an encouraged internship element that can contribute to a student’s future, professional engineering registration. Because the course develops your creative engineering design skills whilst maintaining the rigour of a highly regulated design environment, you will be able to transfer the skills and knowledge you develop into a range of industries. You could move into engineering design per se, or move into (for example) Intellectual Property protection (a patent lawyer for example); technical sales; consultancy; or corporate finance. It is, in addition, an ideal stepping-stone into research and development activities in either industry or in academia.

The unique aspects of this course are that staff with direct, relevant industrial experience teach the core modules in medical devices design. Furthermore, a field trip is planned* in November of each year to coincide with the World’s largest medical device trade fair, MEDICA (see Additional Costs tab).

Course structure

How the course is taught

The course is taught through lectures and seminar. These are supported by tutorials and practical exercises. Collaborative learning and student-centred learning give widespread opportunity for group work and individual assignments. Students are required to conduct extensive independent study. Online access to literature is supported by full access to the Keele library on campus and the Medical Library on the hospital site. There is a suite of dedicated computers for the exclusive use of MSc students. Students are supported by the guidance of a personal tutor, as well as having access to university-wide support services. English language support is also provided, where appropriate.

A field trip is planned* in November of each year to coincide with the World’s largest medical devise trade fair, MEDICA. Because accommodation can be expensive students should be prepared to allocate about £500.

 *The field trip is an aspiration and will depend on student demand and affordability.

Assessment

Modules will be assessed by a mixture of assessment methods, including lab reports, essays, presentations, and final examinations. In addition to the technical and subject specific knowledge, the course develops a range of transferable employability skills such as team working, time management and planning, written and verbal communication, and numeracy. The project dissertation forms a major component of the student’s assessed work.

Taught Modules

Core:

• Advanced Engineering Applications 30 credits
• Creative Engineering Design 30 credits
• Experimental Research Methodology 15 credits
• Engineering for Medical Applications** 15 credits
• Research Project 60 credits

Optional:

• 2 x option 15 credit modules 

**At the start of the award (preferably before enrolment), students will be invited to appraise their undergraduate experience to determine whether they are eligible for APL of the module Engineering for Medical Applications. Students who require the study of this module will be supplied with a pre-course study pack to prepare them for the conversion element of this award.

Two new CORE engineering design modules (Advanced Engineering Applications and Creative Engineering Design) provide a further 60 credits.

Before undertaking the dissertation project there is an opportunity to study 2 x 15 credit OPTION modules (spread across the first two semesters) derived from existing offerings within Biomedical Engineering and Sustainability.

The final module is an existing CORE module the MSc Project (60 credits).

Entry Requirements

Academic entry requirements

This is a “conversion” course and therefore you need not have an engineering degree to apply. You must have a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) based degree, but that could be anything from Biomedical Science, through Forensic Science, to Computer Science. Of course, if you have an engineering degree you can still apply.

We welcome applications with a first or second-class degree (or equivalent) in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline. We also welcome enquiries from people with other professional qualifications acceptable to the University. 

We recommend applicants discuss their first degree with the course tutor before applying to ensure that this course meets personal aspirations.

English Language Entry Requirement for International Students

For international applicants, an English language IELTS score of 6.5 is required.

Fees and scholarships

Course tuition fees for 2019/20 academic year

UK/EU students £XXXX per year
International students: £XXXX per year

Some travel costs may be incurred if an external project or placement is undertaken; any such costs will be discussed with the student before the project is confirmed. It will be possible for the student to select an internal project and that would not incur any additional travel costs. There may be additional costs for textbooks and inter-library loans.

Living costs

Keele University is located on a beautiful campus and has all the facilities of a small town. Student accommodation, shops, restaurants and cafes are all within walking distance of the teaching buildings. This is a very cost effective way to live and to reduce your living costs.

Scholarships and Funding

The University is committed to rewarding excellence and potential. Each year we offer a range of prestigious scholarships;

UK/EU students - more information on scholarships and funding

International students - more information on scholarships and funding

Our expertise

This course is led by Professor Peter Ogrodnik, to find out more about him click here.

Professor Ogrodnik is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer, a Member of the Institution of Engineering Designers and a Fellow (regional) of the Royal Society of Medicine, an Honorary Consultant at the Royal Stoke University Hospital. For over 20 years he has conducted research into optimising the treatment of tibial fractures. Using this research base he has enhanced the application of engineering design principles to the solution of medical devices, his book Medical Devices Design is a core text in core R&D departments.

He has founded two medical devices companies (one manufactures and sells medical devices to the NHS and beyond) and is named inventor on numerous patents and a founder of two medical device companies.

He was a founding director of the University spinout Intelligent Orthopaedics Ltd, and is a founding partner of Metaphysis LLP. Through this corporate involvement Professor Ogrodnik has an understanding of the realities of applied research for industry; for example he was a member of the AWM Healthcare Technologies cluster opportunity group.

The course is also supported by staff from within the research centre and from across the university as a whole: for example

Dr J Herman: Engineering for Medical Applications and Biomechanics

Dr S George: Sustainability option modules

Prof N Forsyth: Research Methods and Bioreactor Design

Prof Y Yang: Biomaterials

Examples of innovative medical engineering designs

Here are some innovations that are now in commonplace use in the healthcare environment. Keele has been fortunate to have been at the forefront of many innovative developments and works closely with our healthcare partners (the Royal Stoke University Hospital (RSUH) for example, is one of the larger trauma hospitals in the country) to ensure that they are both useful and effective.

STORM

The Staffordshire Orthopaedic Reduction Machine was designed by staff teaching on this MSc. It is now being sold across the EU and in the USA. To date it has been used to treat thousands of broken legs and bring them back to near perfect alignment.

IOS

IOS is an innovative external fixator system that was designed and developed by staff teaching on this MSc. Again it is on the market across the EU and the USA. To date it has treated over 400 broken legs in Stoke on Trent alone, the shortest healing time being 8.5 weeks.

HARTSHILL HORSESHOE

The Hartshill Horseshoe was designed and developed at the old North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary (now RSUH).  This is an example of a device that is now in widespread use for spinal surgery across the world. 

Careers

The aim of the MSc in Medical Engineering Design is to convert you into a Medical Engineering Designer so that you can work in this highly regulated design discipline. Students are able to major in three distinct areas, medical devices design, sustainable devices design and formal, structured design per se, because the course develops your creative engineering design skills you will be able to transfer the skills and knowledge you develop into a range of industries.

Career areas include, engineering design or Intellectual Property protection (a patent lawyer for example), technical sales, consultancy or corporate finance, as well as progressing into research and development within an industry or in academia environment.