Key features
What you sudy:
Year one (qualifying year): The marks gained in the qualifying year do not count towards your overall degree classification; the year provides the fundamental basis of the academic concepts and practical skills required for professional practice. Modules include:
- Developing Evidence-Based Practice (research)
- Musculo-skeletal Disorders and Disease
- Neuro-musculoskeletal Studies.
- Patho-physiology
- Personal and Professional Development 1
Year two: This year is divided between academic study, where you will be introduced to a variety of pathological conditions and their physiotherapeutic management, and four four-week blocks of supervised clinical experience. Modules include:
- Neurology and Healthcare of the Elderly
- Personal and Professional Development 2
- Research Methods and Planning
- Respiratory and Cardio-vascular Disorders and Disease
- Therapeutic Studies
Year three: This year has a flexible approach to education. In addition to the compulsory year-long modules, you will be able to choose two optional modules in each semester. This will enable you to design a course of study based on your own interests and preferences. Modules include:
- Dissertation Project
- Personal and Professional Development 3
Option modules (inclusive of): Analysis of Human Movement, Burns and Plastic Surgery, Cardiorespiratory Rehabilitation, Exercise Science and Health, Management of Pain, Neuro-rehabilitation, Paediatric Care, Physical Activity and Health, Physiotherapy in Mental Health, Rheumatology, Spinal Rehabilitation, Sports Medicine and Sports Injuries, Women’s Health
What our students say: “Every day is different, so there’s never a boring moment. The content of the lectures is always interesting and is frequently related to practice, so you’re aware of how the information will fit into your future career as a physiotherapist.” Caroline
How you learn: Years one and two of the course are taught in a similar fashion. Each week starts with lead lectures to the whole group, which will introduce new topics. However, the second half of the week sees students working in smaller groups for tutorials, practical sessions or small-group teaching sessions to reinforce what has already been covered. Here you will look at the material in greater depth, explore related issues, enhance understanding and apply practice to the theory.
Throughout the course, you will work on the development of strong personal and interpersonal skills that are vital to any person seeking to work in a public-facing environment. You will be encouraged, through a variety of supportive learning experiences, to manage your own learning within both the academic and clinical fields. You will learn to evaluate current beliefs and practice, and synthesise the results in order to formulate and apply the best possible programme of physiotherapy suited to the needs of the individual patient.
How you are assessed: Each module within the course is assessed and must be passed in order to progress to the next year, or graduate. Our philosophy on assessment recognises that students benefit from a wide range of different methods, and that traditional written exams may not be the most effective way of assessing the wide range of modules contained within the course.
As a result, we consider each module separately in order to select the most fair and appropriate method of evaluation for the material.
Assessments are therefore varied to include essays, coursework, multiple-choice questions, viva voce examinations, anatomy pro-section assessments, verbal and poster presentations, laboratory reports and assessment of practical skills.
Further Information - Clinical Experience
All core clinical placements are arranged for students by our experienced team of Clinical Link Tutors. Placements occur in years two and three. We feel that students are better prepared and more confident to undertake placements in year two, once the first year has been successfully completed, and key year two modules have commenced. In year one, students complete a number of days observing physiotherapists working in clinical practice.
There is also a three-week elective which forms the ninth and final clinical placement of the course and takes place at the end of year three. You will organise this placement, which can be in any specialisation in any country in the world, with the sole proviso that you find a supervisor who has a recognised qualification as a physiotherapist or who would be eligible for registration with the Health and Care Professions Council.
What our students say: “The placements were excellent, with most of them being near to Nottingham, and the teaching prepared me well for my first junior physio job. It's a forward-thinking department with friendly and approachable staff.” Thomas