Public Health and Health Promotion

The Public Health and Health Promotion MSc is intended for all those interested in promoting health and well-being.

The Public Health and Health Promotion MSc can be done in two ways. First there is the full-time course where the taught component and the Dissertation need to be completed within 1 year. The second option is to study part-time where the taught component is run over 2 years and the Dissertation is completed by the end of year 3.

Intended programme outcomes

The Public Health and Health Promotion MSc provides opportunities for students to achieve and demonstrate the following learning outcomes.

Knowledge and understanding

Students will gain knowledge and understanding of:

• Social and behavioural sciences: the social, psychological, political and cultural influences affecting health promotion and public health policy and practice.
• Health economics: the key concepts of scarcity, choice and opportunity cost in health economics.
• Research: quantitative and qualitative research, their approaches to scientific inquiry, their methodologies and related methods.
• Epidemiology: epidemiological principles and research to inform public health and health promotion.
• Principles and practice of public health promotion: the theory and practice of health promotion within the new public health agenda.

Subject Specific Skills

Students will have opportunities to:

• Develop surveillance and assessment skills relating to the population's health and well-being.
• Critically understand the skills needed for promoting and protecting the population's health and well-being.
• Develop strategic qualities to improve health and well-being.
• Develop skills in working with, and for, communities to improve health and well-being.
• Promote people's equality, diversity and rights.
• Ethically manage self, people and resources to improve health and well-being.
• Conduct and/or interpret health promotion and public health research.

Cognitive (thinking) Skills

Students will have the ability to:

• Recognise, critically analyse, and apply theories, paradigms, concepts and principles of public health and health promotion.
• Critically understand research and development.
• Analyse, synthesise, and apply information logically and critically.
• Reflect and utilise reflection to enhance self-awareness, knowledge and skills.

Key Skills

Students will be able to:

• Critically analyse knowledge from relevant sources to develop and present coherent arguments.
• Communicate clearly, concisely, and confidently in spoken and written formats.
• Plan, perform and report on public health and health promotion data with due regard to ethical issues.
• Use and interpret evidence critically.
• Develop the capacity for independent learning and effective utilisation of available resources.
• Use IT skills, effectively utilising computing and word processing facilities, electronic databases and Blackboard.

Qualification

MSc/Pg Diploma/Pg Certificate

Duration

Full-time: where the taught component and the Dissertation are completed within 1 year.

Part-time: where the taught component is run over 2 years and the Dissertation is completed by the end of year 3.

Compulsory modules:

The 80 credits of taught core modules (which are compulsory) are:

• Social and Behavioural Sciences (10 credits)
• Principles and Practices of Public Health and Health Promotion (20 credits)
• Health Economics (20 credits)
• Research Methods (20 credits)
• Epidemiology (10 credits)

Optional modules:

40 credits are also chosen from a selection of optional modules which include:

• Public Health Nutrition (20 credits)
• Accountability in Health & Social Care (20 credits)
• Leadership, Quality, Innovation & Change (20 credits)
• Work-Based Learning (20 credits)
• Promoting Mental Health and Well-Being (20 credits)

If you wish to achieve your MSc you will also need to successfully complete a Research Dissertation (60 credits).

Programme philosophy

As the Public Health and Health Promotion MSc is intended for those interested in promoting health and well-being, it has been developed in collaboration with practitioners and specialists in the field of public health and health promotion in the UK. The programme is aimed at multi-agency, multi-disciplinary and multi-professional UK and international students. This programme provides opportunity for students of public health and health promotion to develop their skills to manage change, lead public health programmes, and to work with individuals, groups and communities. The programme aims to develop people who:

• Have Public Health and Health Promotion knowledge and skills
• Understand the inter-relationships between the factors that influence health
• Can critically analyse and reflect on public health and health promotion theory, research and practice
• Can present evidence on the basis of underpinning theory and understanding
• Have the necessary skills, motivation and commitment to engage in lifelong learning and continuing professional development.

Postgraduate students are recognised as individuals possessing substantial knowledge and experience; their contributions are of value, and can enhance the learning experiences of the other students.

For entry on to this Public Health and Health Promotion MSc an undergraduate degree in a relevant subject (at upper Second/2:1), or professional qualifications and relevant work experience is required. Exemptions may be made for mature students without these qualifications. All applications are considered on their merits so we recommend that prospective students provide as much detail as possible on application forms.For International students, we ask for an IELTS score of 6.5 with no element less than 6.5, or equivalent. This webpage for international students may be useful if you are applying from outside of the UK and there is a link to accommodation information on the left of the page. English Language Requirements IELTS band: 6.5 IMPORTANT NOTE: Since April 2014 the ETS tests (including TOEFL and TOEIC) are no longer accepted for Tier 4 visa applications to the United Kingdom. The university might still accept these tests to admit you to the university, but if you require a Tier 4 visa to enter the UK and begin your degree programme, these tests will not be sufficient to obtain your Visa. The IELTS test is most widely accepted by universities and is also accepted for Tier 4 visas to the UK- learn more.