A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2. Experience or insight into related work/study/research is usually required. Health and social care professionals with non-traditional academic backgrounds will also be considered.
If English is not your first language you'll need IELTS (Academic) 6.5 with a minimum of 5.5 in each component of writing, speaking, listening and reading.
Why study MSc Health Research at BU?
This course is also available to be taken as individual CPD units.
Research is a fundamental part of providing evidence-based health and social care, ensuring it is based on areas that are of relevance to both clinicians and patients alike.
The course takes you through the research process from formulating a suitable research question to designing the study and collecting appropriate data and reporting the findings.
Create research outputs to contribute to a portfolio of research experience suitable for applications related to future research study or to further your career in a research team.
You’ll learn from and work with academics and clinicians experienced in conducting health and social care research.
With a strong focus on involving members of the public and patient groups in your research, you’ll be given training on involving them throughout the process.
Funding opportunities
If you are interested in pursuing a career that combines research with clinical practice, the HEE/NIHR often offer various awards* to help your academic career and research development. This funding is often suitable for stand-alone units in this course. These opportunities are advertised when available. Before applying, contact the course lead to discuss the options the MSc Health Research can provide.
*This is an external funding source and applications are made directly to NIHR.
This course has been designed to provide you with a wide range of research experience, which comes together to produce a portfolio of your research outputs that can be used to help further your academic career.
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Course content
Exploring Ideas in Health and Social Care Research: Formulating a research question is a crucial first step to any piece of research to be undertaken. This unit will guide you through the process of identifying and clarifying an area to focus your research efforts. You will discover some of the considerations important to the process.
Research Methods for Health and Social Care: This unit will provide an overview of different research methods used to address health and social care research questions. It will cover aspects of research design and how they apply to the question being asked whether the approach is quantitative, qualitative or mixed methods.
Systematic Reviewing to Inform Practice: Having an understanding of the existing research literature allows you to place your research study in context. This unit will help you develop skills in searching for relevant research publications as well as extracting and synthesising data before interpreting and reporting findings in a systematic manner.
Public Involvement in Research: In this unit, you will explore and evaluate a range of models and approaches to public involvement in research from shaping your research agenda and through each stage of the research cycle. You will identify a strategy (what, why and how) that will best fit your proposal allowing you to gain an appreciation of how this collaboration can enhance your research.
Managing Research and Working with Data: This unit will expose you to a variety of quantitative and qualitative data analysis methods appropriate for different types of health and social care research questions. You will also gain an understanding of the importance of managing datasets in line with research governance guidelines.
Developing a Study Proposal: The study proposal is the first stage in bringing together your previous training. In preparing your proposal, you’ll learn how to draw on evidence for identifying and putting together a research question and approaches to investigating it. You’ll also discuss issues related to the enquiry process.
Dissertation Project: You’ll draw on your previous learning and develop independent study and project management skills. The dissertation project will also help you develop specialist knowledge in an area related to your professional interests.
The work you will do as part of this course will provide opportunities for you to create research outputs (e.g. manuscripts for publication) to contribute to a portfolio of research experience suitable for applications related to future research study (e.g. NIHR Clinical Doctoral Fellowship), or to further your career as part of a research team (e.g. research nurse).
OSHC: 624 ($) GBP per year
