MSc in Surgical Science and Practice

The course was developed for surgeons and most enrolled students have a surgical specialism.  Recent specialisms represented among our students are vascular surgery, cardiac surgery, ophthalmology, plastic & reconstructive surgery, orthopaedics, oral surgery, ENT, neurosurgery, urology and general surgery. 

Students may be in clinical training programmes or have consultant positions.  Some students have formal or informal leadership positions with responsibility either for a clinical area or a functional area such as education or quality. 

Physicians and other healthcare practitioners seeking to broaden their understanding of modern healthcare provision have also benefited from taking the course.  Recent intakes have included a senior nurse and physicians practicing in Emergency Medicine, Radiology and General Practice. 

Motivations for taking the course include enhancing clinical practice, taking on an educational, quality or safety related responsibility alongside continuing clinical practice, pursuing an academic clinician career path and providing the foundation for clinical leadership responsibilities. 

Alumni of the course have used the MSc as a platform to: 

• Take on new leadership and academic roles, alongside continuing clinical responsibilities or as a new direction in their career 
• Improve quality of care by redesigning care pathways and developing better protocols 
• Introduce innovations in practice, such as use of imagery-based 3D printing of anatomical models for surgical planning 
• Conduct and publish research, including pursuing doctoral research  
• Develop new educational programmes and training methods.  

You can read about how some recent graduates have applied what they learned in the student profiles section of the department's website.  

In summary, the course is for clinicians who are seeking an academically rigorous yet practical grounding in the essential non-clinical skills needed for a successful clinical career.