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Perioperative Medicine MSc

London, Bloomsbury

Become a specialist in perioperative medicine on this highly innovative, online master's in perioperative medicine. You can study with us for between one and five years, without having to attend UCL in person. You will be equipped to lead services both in the UK and abroad, study a PhD, or go into a senior position in healthcare management.

UK students International students
Study mode
Flexible
UK tuition fees (2024/25)
£15,100
Programme only available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Overseas tuition fees (2024/25)
£31,100
Programme only available on a modular (flexible) basis.
Duration
Not applicable
5 calendar years
Programme starts
September 2024
Applications accepted
All applicants: 16 Oct 2023 – 30 Aug 2024

Applications closed

Find similar courses still open

Entry requirements

A minimum of a second-class UK Bachelor’s degree in biomedical science or nursing or a medical degree, or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

The English language level for this programme is: Level 3

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


Perioperative medicine is a new and exciting specialty where few high-quality learning opportunities currently exist. Practitioners at the forefront of this fast-evolving field will be in a strong position to provide best-evidence care to surgical patients, to improve their outcomes and experiences. 

This online master's is designed around an exciting international syllabus, giving you the advanced knowledge and understanding to treat patients who are contemplating, undergoing or recovering from surgery. View a sample from our modules.

You will learn by walking the patient journey, from diagnosis to discharge, delve into specific patient needs, and become highly adept at-risk assessment and analysing patient outcomes. We include modules designed to support those who work exclusively in the Operating Theatre Department, looking to develop as Surgical First Assistants or Anaesthetic workers or as Recovery practitioners.

UCL is home to the Centre for Perioperative Medicine which benefits from collaboration with a wide range of professional groups within the university, international experts, and similarly progressive units throughout the worldwide surgical community. This wealth of knowledge and expertise has enabled the development of a high-quality programme delivered directly by experts to students.

The programme is relevant to an international community of learners, who will benefit from growing their network and expertise through shared online education.

Who this course is for

This MSc programme attracts doctors, including anaesthetists, surgeons, physicians, as well as specialist nurses, pharmacists, ODPs, and many other professionals engaged in the management of patients in the perioperative period. Each is committed to developing expertise in perioperative care through active participation in this innovative education forum.

The course also offers an additional route of study exclusively for operating theatre practitioners, who work as surgical or anaesthetic workers or as recovery room nurses. All these students will be following a professional training programme in their own place of work.

Read about what it takes to study for a Master's at UCL

What this course will give you

This programme offers you the following benefits and opportunities.

  • Access to material written and/or reviewed by more than 40 international expert authors from over 25 international institutions to provide a state-of-the-art, evidence-based course of the highest academic quality.
  • Excellent collaborative links with similarly progressive units throughout the worldwide surgical community.
  • Engagement with some of the key opinion leaders in perioperative medicine, including health services researchers, statisticians, health economists, social anthropologists, and many other professionals.
  • Academic confidence and experience with quality improvement strategies and systematic reviews.
  • An introduction to the concepts associated with managing change in practice, aspects of quality, safety and leadership, and common pathologies including ageing, cardiovascular disease and the epidemiology of surgical morbidity and mortality.
  • Theatre practitioners benefit from optional modules that will equip them to work across all areas of immediate perioperative, intraoperative and postoperative care, including with high-risk surgical patients.
Read about what you'll get out of a graduate programme

The foundation of your career

This is a higher degree with real value in the workplace as it prepares graduates for senior positions in the field. Alumni have gone on to lead services both in the UK and abroad, studied PhDs in the field and taken senior positions in healthcare management.

The course is delivered online. We have students across all continents, and they really do get a flavour of the UCL experience.

David Walker

David Walker, UCL Professor of Perioperative Medicine Education

Perioperative Medicine, MSc

Hear more from David

Employability

UCL's Perioperative Medicine MSc provides an internationally recognised academic qualification with real value in the workplace, as it prepares graduates for senior leadership positions in the field.

You will develop a deep understanding of the evidence base and be able to act on your understanding to bring about changes in perioperative processes and outcomes.

You not only enhance your individual clinical knowledge, skills, and attitudes, you also equip yourself to influence service development and to teach and train the next generation of healthcare workers.

Networking

There are regular networking opportunities, including events where you can hear from expert speakers. We encourage students to broaden their skills and expand their networks by attending and participating at conferences.

Teaching and learning

You will interact with engaging, online learning materials and use your personal mentor and peer group to discuss and develop ideas. You will be invited to review cases, interact with data and contribute to discussion and debate.

The programme is delivered through distance learning. A wide range of learning styles are catered for within the programme material, including vodcasts, podcasts, formal written text, online seminars, case reviews and graphics.

The examination process will include both summative and formative assessment. Students are examined mainly by short answer questions and reflective practice and by contributing to case-based discussions.

Four of the newly introduced, alternative route modules in 'Operating Theatre Practice' require the development of professional practice portfolios, undertaken in your own clinical department. These are the 'Professional Assistant in Anaesthesia', the 'Professional Surgical First Assistant', the 'Enhanced Recovery Room Care' and the 'Postoperative Care of the High-Risk Patient - PACU'.

We avoid long essay writing. Instead, we focus on developing skills which have a positive advantage in the workplace. Students will develop a short PowerPoint presentation, a professional sales pitch for clinical service improvement and a lay clinical summary of a complex medical case scenario.

As this course is delivered entirely online, you can work flexibly at your own speed and at a time that suits you. As a rough guide, we would suggest that a 15-credit module would take approximately 150 study hours to complete, including the learning material and assessments.

Competency-based modules in the Theatre Practice route require a variable number of hours in supervised practice to complete portfolios of evidence.

A Postgraduate Diploma (120 credits, flexible study, up to five years) is offered. A Postgraduate Certificate (60 credits, flexible study, up to two years) is offered.

Modules

The master's programme is a modular, postgraduate degree consisting of eight taught modules and a dissertation project based on original research, systematic review, or quality improvement activity.

The programme is completely online and can be taken over one to five years. You are encouraged to set your own timeline for programme completion. The flexible nature allows you to fit your learning activities around your other professional and personal activities.

You are assigned to a course mentor and interact with a peer group. With their support, you take modules that are sub-divided into 'chapters', with typically eight per module.

You will be expected to read, make notes, interact with both the summative and formative written questions and engage with peers to explore alternative ideas and solutions to questions posed by the faculty members. There will be audio-visual materials to aid learning and an opportunity to question faculty members on specific issues raised.

When you successfully complete your dissertation, the course team will work with you to get your work published in a peer review journal where appropriate.

Compulsory modules













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 Perioperative Medicine. Upon successful completion of 120 credits, you will be awarded a PG Dip in Perioperative Medicine. Upon successful completion of 60 credits, you will be awarded a PG Cert in Perioperative Medicine.

Accessibility

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

Where you'll study

Medical lamp and equipment

As world leaders in medical and biomedical research, we design innovative courses for clinicians and scientists that meet new patient and industry needs. These are led by some of the greatest scientific minds, so you get a research-based learning experience. Our cutting-edge expertise ensures that you will be taught the latest techniques using the most advanced equipment. Our activities are split across three sites. Our Department of Targeted Intervention is based at Bloomsbury campus in central London. Our Department of Surgical Biotechnology is based at the Royal Free campus in Hampstead. Our Department of Orthopaedics and Musculoskeletal Science is based at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Stanmore, north-west London.

Learn more about Surgery & Interventional Science

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Fees and funding

Fees for this course

UK students International students
Fee description Full-time
Tuition fees (2024/25) £15,100
Tuition fees (2024/25) £31,100

Programme only available on a modular (flexible) basis.

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

There are no anticipated additional costs for this programme.

For more information on additional costs for prospective students please go to our estimated cost of essential expenditure at Accommodation and living costs.

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.

See all the ways you can fund your studies

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 and £115 for paper applications. Further information can be found at Application fees.

When we assess your application we would like to learn:

  • why you want to study Perioperative Medicine at graduate level
  • why you want to study Perioperative Medicine at UCL
  • what particularly attracts you to the chosen programme
  • how your personal, academic and professional background meets the demands of this challenging programme
  • where you would like to go professionally with your degree.

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.

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.

Got questions? Get in touch

Division of Surgery and Interventional Science
Division of Surgery and Interventional Science

periopmed@ucl.ac.uk

UCL is regulated by the Office for Students.