MSc Advanced Clinical Practice
- Study Mode: Part Time
- Location: Uxbridge
- Duration: Three Years
- Start Date: September 2024 and January 2025
Our course is designed to equip you with the skills and practical expertise to help you excel as an Advanced Clinical Practitioner (ACP). By choosing our course, you will have access to a team of experienced lecturers who will guide you through your academic journey with hands-on experience.
BNU will help you gain in-depth knowledge in key skills and enhance interprofessional collaboration ensuring you develop strong communication and teamwork skills that are essential for the role of a modern ACP. We’ll help you to build a demonstrable portfolio of work-based assessment to enhance your clinical competence and help give you a competitive edge in the job market.
Application guide
For information on how you can boost your career-prospects and apply for our postgraduate courses, follow our application guide.
Postgraduate Open Days
Join us for a Postgraduate Open Day where you can discuss your options and chosen course with our course leaders.
Why study this subject?
Studying to become an Advanced Clinical Practitioner (ACP) is ideal for non-medical registered health care professionals who want to gain an expanded skillset and knowledge base and is perfect for you If you want to take on more advanced and diverse responsibilities.
Through advanced training and education, ACPs develop expertise covering the four pillars of clinical practice. The enhanced competence enables you to work alongside medical professionals, providing high-quality care and contributing to improved outcomes for patients and their teams.
Advanced clinical practice is vital for transforming service delivery and meeting local health needs effectively. It enhances capacity, capability, productivity, and efficiency within multi-professional teams, as emphasised in the NHS Long-Term Plan.
Why study at Buckinghamshire New University?
Gain experience at BNU, focus on your skillset and learn how to manage the high demands of a role in Advanced Practice. We combine academic theory, simulated patient care and work-based learning to make sure you’re fully prepared to explore all your career opportunities from day one.
Our course includes a range of optional modules, to help you to tailor your education to the role that you wish to pursue on completion. Our major project module provides you with a choice on the type of project you undertake, allowing you to make this as relevant as possible to your professional setting.
As a key provider of healthcare education in London and South East, our campuses are fully equipped to deliver simulated learning in realistic clinical environments. With fantastic links to local NHS trusts in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire we aim to use the latest and best practices and research to prepare you to fill skill shortages and local demands.
What facilities can I use?
As a student on our MSc Advanced Clinical Practice course, you'll have access to our incredible state-of-the-art simulation labs at both the High Wycombe and Uxbridge campuses. Simulation is an important aspect of our healthcare courses. You will regularly spend time in these areas to practice technical skills and use new technologies in a safe and supportive environment.
We use simulation manikins coursed to act like humans, and ‘moulage’ – the process of applying mock, often gorily realistic injuries for training purposes. We also engage service users and professional actors in role-play sessions and during your summative assessments.
What will I study?
Advanced clinical practice and specialist practice are distinct from each other. Specialist practitioners demonstrate expertise in a specific clinical area, such as diabetes, asthma or minor injury management. On the other hand, advanced clinical practitioners (ACPs) possess comprehensive knowledge and skills that enable them to provide holistic care across many different patients.
Our course is designed to complement your role in clinical practice and ensure you have a strong educational foundation, are clinically competent and fit for purpose as an ACP in practice. In addition to university-based assessments, this will be evidenced through a portfolio encompassing work-based assessments covering the four pillars of clinical practice.
Some of the topics you will be able to understand at the end of this course are: Evidence-based practice, Clinical assessment and biomedicine and Medical investigations and diagnostics.
Other topics you can elect to study include:
- Minor Injury and Illness
- Emergency and Critical Care
- Healthcare Management
- Frailty and End-of-life care
- Recognition/Accreditation of Prior learning (APL) or related healthcare modules at level 7
How will I be taught and assessed?
Throughout the course you will be assessed in a variety of ways. Assessments are designed to be informative, positive and a learning experience and reflect real-world practice as much as possible.
Some of the ways you will be assessed include:
- OSCEs
- Exams
- Work-based assessments
- Essays/reports/literature reviews
- VIVAs
- Presentation
- Portfolio
- Formative and summative work-based assessments
- Work based projects
What are the course entry requirements?
The University’s general entry requirements will apply to admission to this programme with the following additions / exceptions:
- You must be a registered healthcare professional (e.g., paramedic, nurse, AHP *Pharmacists may apply but must either be prescriber-ready or complete their non medical prescribing course at another organisation).
- Recommended two years post-qualification experience.
- You should normally have a degree in a relevant subject area.
- You must be employed in a relevant area of clinical practice, with access to a named Consultant supervisor.
During the selection process, you will be expected to demonstrate:
- The appropriateness of the programme for your career aspirations.
- Awareness of Advanced Clinical Practice, and the Four Pillars.
- Awareness of the academic, practice and professional requirements of the programme.
Previous study, professional and / or vocational experiences may be recognised as the equivalent learning experience and permit exemption from studying certain modules in accordance with our accreditation of prior learning (APL) process.
Offers will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check and Occupational Health Assessment.
English language proficiency
- Applicants for whom English is not their first language will be required to hold an IELTs certificate graded 7 or equivalent, with no element below 6.5.
Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exemption Orders 1975)
As these training posts involve or may involve direct contact with people receiving health care they are exempt from the provision of the above Act and you are required to give details of all previous convictions, all cautions, warnings, binding-overs, or detentions by police, including any spent convictions. Failure to disclose is a serious breach of entry requirements. Progression prior to any year of study will be subject to a self-declaration form being completed by the learner relating to the above statement.
Modules
This provides a guide of the modules that make up your course. You can find more information about how your course is structured on our Academic Advice section.
What are the tuition fees
Home
-
Home, Academic Year 2024 - 2025: £3,500 per year
Home Fees for 2024/25 entry:
- Year 1: £3,500
- Year 2: £3,500
- Year 3: £3,550
What are my career prospects?
Pursuing a career as an ACP opens a range of career opportunities. With the growing demand for healthcare services and the need for multidisciplinary teams, ACPs are increasingly valued and sought after in a variety of settings. The role allows non-medical clinicians to apply to leadership positions, collaborate with other healthcare professionals, and play a crucial role in shaping and delivering the future of healthcare.
The increased responsibilities and the ability to work autonomously make the ACP role both challenging and rewarding, offering non-medical clinicians a fulfilling and dynamic career pathway which may include:
- Hospital and community settings
- Senior leadership roles
- Clinical and Higher education roles
- Research participation
- Doctorate/level 9 study
- Healthcare Business Consulting
- Commercial / Industry sector
