Clinical Pharmacy, International Practice and Policy MSc

London, Bloomsbury

Build the expert skillset you need to optimise care and help shape pharmacy practice in your country and context, on this advanced-level MSc developed by the UCL School of Pharmacy and several top London hospitals. Join us on this one-year master’s, to build the clinical pharmacy expertise and leadership skills you need to take an active role in influencing safe, effective, evidence-informed pharmacy services in your home country.

UK students International students
Study mode
Full-time
UK tuition fees (2025/26)
£20,500
Overseas tuition fees (2025/26)
£39,800
Duration
1 calendar year
Programme starts
September 2025
Applications accepted
Applicants who require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 27 Jun 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Applicants who do not require a visa: 14 Oct 2024 – 29 Aug 2025
Applications close at 5pm UK time

Applications open

Entry requirements

A minimum of a second-class Bachelor's degree in pharmacy from a UK university or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard, and registration as a pharmacist. At least one year’s relevant work experience in a clinical setting is normally required. Applicants must be familiar with standard software packages including Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 2

UCL Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses are for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level.

Further information can be found on our English language requirements page.

Equivalent qualifications

Country-specific information, including details of when UCL representatives are visiting your part of the world, can be obtained from the International Students website.

International applicants can find out the equivalent qualification for their country by selecting from the list below. Please note that the equivalency will correspond to the broad UK degree classification stated on this page (e.g. upper second-class). Where a specific overall percentage is required in the UK qualification, the international equivalency will be higher than that stated below. Please contact Graduate Admissions should you require further advice.

About this degree

Co-delivered by expert academics from the UCL School of Pharmacy and specialists at leading London hospitals, this MSc will equip you with enhanced clinical and research skills – by encouraging you to take an inquisitive approach to practice and pharmaceutical care.

You will delve deep into how healthcare systems work around the world and explore the distinct health needs of different populations – drawing on the different theories and concepts that feed into delivering evidence-based pharmacy services.

The programme is centred on the health priorities of the World Health Organisation, which include diabetes, cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

Alongside extensive subject expertise, you will build valuable critical thinking and leadership skills relevant to the needs of your own country, develop your own learning style, and experience the many personal and professional benefits of a focused year of self development. 

Who this course is for

This master’s programme is designed for practising pharmacists who wish to develop specialist clinical pharmacy and leadership skills. It is particularly relevant if you aspire to contribute to the enhancement of pharmacy policy and practice in your country.

What this course will give you

This master’s is for practising pharmacists who want to equip themselves with specialist clinical pharmacy and leadership skills. It is particularly relevant if you want to play your part in improving pharmacy policy and practice in your country.

What you will gain from this course:

  • Study at the UCL School of Pharmacy, working with UCL’s renowned academics from across pharmacoepidemiology and medicines safety, behavioural medicine, pharmacy practice and policy, among others. UCL is ranked 4th in the world for pharmacology and pharmacy (QS Rankings 2024) and 2nd in the world for pharmacy and pharmaceutical sciences (Shanghai Rankings 2023).
  • Gain first-hand insight into globally significant research underway in this field in areas like medicines safety.
  • Spend half the course on taught modules, learning about pharmacy practice and policy, leadership healthcare and innovation, and building your research and critical thinking skills.
  • Spend the other half of the programme gaining hands-on clinical and research experience at top hospitals in London (such as Guy's & St Thomas', University College London Hospital (UCLH), Royal Free and King’s College Hospital), under the tutelage of world-renowned clinical pharmacy specialists.
  • Absorb the key theories influencing pharmacy care delivery globally and develop the insights and confidence that will help you shape safe, cost-effective, patient-centred pharmacy services in hospitals, government, industry or the community.
  • Build the programme around the aspects of clinical pharmacy that most interest you.
  • Benefit from studying within UCL’s diverse postgraduate community. Students from over 50 countries have completed this master’s.
  • Leave well equipped to pursue a PhD, or to take up senior leadership roles in government ministries, hospitals or universities. 

You can find further information in our Frequently Asked Questions page here.

The foundation of your career

You could take your expertise into community work, hospitals, industry or continue in academia. Many graduates of this programme return to their home countries to take up senior and prominent leadership roles in government ministries, hospitals and universities. Others use the master’s as a springboard to pursuing a PhD in the UK or overseas.

Graduates of this course have gone on to work with the Ministry of Health, the NHS, Athens Medical Group, the University of Hong Kong, Vienna General Hospital, Hanusch Hospital and Carlos Van Buren Hospital.* 

*Graduate Outcomes survey carried out by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), looking at the destinations of UK and EU graduates in the 2019-20, 2020-21 cohorts

Employability

With placement opportunities at top London hospitals, and the chance to learn alongside academics influencing pharmacy practice globally, this master’s will give you the preparation you need to build a successful career as a clinical pharmacy specialist. 

Networking

You’ll have regular opportunities to connect, collaborate and build professional contacts as part of your master’s.  

  • Attend an annual clinical pharmacy conference to network with practitioners from across the UK.
  • Take part in careers events through UCL Careers during the academic year and enhance your CV writing and interview skills.  
  • Meet alumni to hear about their experiences and how the course has helped them progress in their careers  
  • Interact with UK pharmacy staff during your placement and specialist clinical pharmacists who teach on the programme.
  • Take part in joint sessions with practitioners on UCL’s MSc Advanced Pharmacy Practice.

Teaching and learning

Teaching methods are varied and include lectures, seminars, small group work, problem-based learning (PBL) approaches and individual project work. National experts (pharmacists and other health care professionals) contribute to the programme. Class size varies from six to thirty students depending on the teaching format.

In addition to the taught modules, students are assigned to a clinical placement site at a teaching hospital in the London area. These placements allow access to patients and practices in order to develop skills associated with clinical care, such as identifying pharmaceutical care issues and preparing appropriate care plans to optimise treatment.

A clinical placement tutor is assigned to facilitate learning and demonstrate usual care patterns in the UK.

The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures and workshops, case tutorials and small-group work. Assessment is through written examination, coursework, research projects and oral presentations.

Contact hours are spent with academic/teaching staff and on placement. Students are normally expected to spend the equivalent of 37.5 hours per week in scheduled teaching combined with placement activity and self-directed study.

You will spend approximately two days per week at UCL and two days at the placement but this vary across the terms. Term three lends itself to more self-study and the placement as the focus will be on the research project once the assessments are out of the way.

Modules

This is a twelve month, full-time, taught postgraduate degree programme. You will attend lectures and workshops on campus which will cover a range of different topics to support your learning for the taught modules. 

Throughout the year you will also spend time at your hospital placement, working under the supervision of practising clinical pharmacists. You will experience first-hand how clinical pharmacy services operate and integrate with the care provided by other healthcare professionals. You will also conduct your research skills project at your placement site.    

In terms one and two, you will take four compulsory modules:

  • Clinical Pharmacy Practice and Policy 1; 
  • Clinical Pharmacy Practice and Policy 2; 
  • Clinical Practice at Placement Site;
  • and Leadership and innovation in Clinical Pharmacy Services / International Perspectives on Health).

These will provide you with concrete knowledge about the master degree programme. 

In term three, you will take the compulsory dissertation module.

Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change. Modules that are in use for the current academic year are linked for further information. Where no link is present, further information is not yet available.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Clinical Pharmacy, International Practice and Policy.

Placement

For experiential learning, students will spend two to three days per week throughout the programme at one of our partner hospital sites.

Accessibility

Details of the accessibility of UCL buildings can be obtained from AccessAble. Further information can also be obtained from the UCL Student Support and Wellbeing Services team.

Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time
Tuition fees (2025/26) £20,500
Tuition fees (2025/26) £39,800

The tuition fees shown are for the year indicated above. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary. Where the programme is offered on a flexible/modular basis, fees are charged pro-rata to the appropriate full-time Master's fee taken in an academic session. Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website: ucl.ac.uk/students/fees.

Additional costs

For Full-time and Part-time offer holders a fee deposit will be charged at 10% of the first year fee.

Further information can be found in the Tuition fee deposits section on this page: Tuition fees.

This programme includes experiential learning at a hospital site. Our partner hospitals are located within Travelcard zones 1-6. Students are responsible for travel costs to allocated placement sites throughout the programme of study. 

UCL’s main teaching locations are in zones 1 (Bloomsbury) and zones 2/3 (UCL East). The cost of a monthly 18+ Oyster travel card for zones 1-2 is £114.50. This price was published by TfL in 2024. For more information on additional costs for prospective students and the cost of living in London, please view our estimated cost of essential expenditure at UCL's cost of living guide.

Funding your studies

For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.

Next steps

Students are advised to apply as early as possible due to competition for places. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.

There is an application processing fee for this programme of £90 for online applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • How your academic and professional background meets the demands of Clinical Pharmacy, International Practice and Policy
  • Why you want to study Clinical Pharmacy, International Practice and Policy at graduate level
  • What particularly attracts you to this programme at the UCL School of Pharmacy
  • Where you would like to go professionally with your degree and how this programme meets these needs

Together with essential academic requirements, the personal statement is your opportunity to illustrate whether your reasons for applying to this programme match what the programme will deliver.

Students are required to pass an occupational health check at their placement site. Students will be asked to bring along proof of relevant immunisation status for enrolment.

Students are also required to provide a recent police check from their country of domicile.

Please note that you may submit applications for a maximum of two graduate programmes (or one application for the Law LLM) in any application cycle.

Choose your programme

Please read the Application Guidance before proceeding with your application.

Year of entry: 2025-2026

Got questions? Get in touch

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