This programme provides a framework for postgraduate study which offers Registered Veterinary Nurses (RVNs) the opportunity to advance their knowledge, improve research skills, and practice evidence based veterinary nursing. The programme is flexible and allows individuals to directly align their studies to areas that are of interest to them, or are directly relevant to their current or future roles. The programme is intended to meet the needs of anyone seeking a flexible and adaptable route to a successful postgraduate degree, or who wish to undertake postgraduate-level study for continual professional development purposes at an advanced level.
The MSc Advanced Practice in Veterinary Nursing comprises three components:
Three core courses (Year 1)
Three optional courses (Year 2)
Dissertation (Year 3)
The programme is delivered fully online using a range of learning and teaching approaches including lectures, seminars, tutorials, work-based learning and project work. You will have the flexibility to tailor the subject of many of your assessments and final dissertation to disciplines or specialisms that are relevant and of interest to you and/or your future career.
The online and part-time nature of this programme, and the flexibility this route offers, makes it ideally suited to individuals in full-time employment.
This programme meets the demand for the preparation of both specialised and extended role practitioners and will develop students’ knowledge, skills and confidence in order for them to pursue a career related to Advanced Practice in Veterinary Nursing such as referral nurse, head nurse, practice manager, educator or researcher.
The programme also provides a platform for students to move into the field of research, with the potential for individuals to continue studying towards a doctorate.
The Graduate Diploma in Professional and Clinical Veterinary Nursing is a unique distance-learning, advanced veterinary nursing qualification for practicing registered veterinary nurses.
If you are employed in clinical practice and looking to study part-time from home, the diploma will help you develop valuable knowledge and skills to take you to the next level of your career.
The Graduate Diploma is managed and taught by leading veterinary professionals who are recognised by employers both within the UK and internationally. The course focuses on developing critical thinking, using both theory and its practical application, enabling you to become better equipped to care for your patients.
Our learners come from a wide range of veterinary practices around the world. Whether you work in a first-opinion practice, a charity clinic or a large specialist referral practice, you will share an ambition to excel in the veterinary field and a desire to improve animal health and welfare.
The Graduate Diploma in Professional and Clinical Veterinary Nursing can lead to more recognition and responsibility in your field. The flexible award is designed to be completed over a period of 29 months (part-time) and is delivered almost entirely online via the RVC’s online Virtual Learning Environment.
During the programme you will:
In addition, your practice will benefit from your motivation and ability to make an enhanced contribution to the workplace.
The Graduate Diploma is delivered through flexible online learning via the RVC’s Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) – ‘Learn’ and is predominately an online distance-learning course. We aim to keep attendance days to a minimum because we appreciate the challenges of taking time off work and family commitments.
There are some compulsory attendance days at our Hawkshead Campus during the course:
Year One: Orientation Week (normally in June), one exam day at the end of two of the core modules (normally in April)
Year Two: one exam day at the end of your studies (normally in early September)
There are also some optional days throughout the course where you may book into our small animal teaching hospital for clinical enhancement days and two optional exam practice days. As a student of the RVC, you are also welcome to spend time in the library or clinical skills centre.
Our introductory Orientation Week (compulsory attendance days, usually in early June) will help ensure that you are confident in using modern learning technologies throughout the programme, and is an essential part of the first pre-requisite bridging short-course, Contemporary Study Skills.
This is a part-time programme and modules split into credit-rated units. The credit-rated units relate to an average number of hours that you are expected to spend on each module. For each 15 credits, you will have spent, on average, 150 hours. This means in a typical week you will need to commit approximately 12-15 hours to your studies. Your time should be spent on reading the weekly course materials, additional reading, partaking in discussion forum activities, and preparing for all of your assessment activities.
Each module has a subject specialist assigned as module leader. They act as your personal tutor, helping you navigate through the module and setting a series of collaborative tasks, assignments and online discussion activities. The programme is led by:
Perdi Welsh BSc (Hons), DipAVN (Surg), CertEd, RVN
Course Director for Graduate Diploma in Professional and Clinical Veterinary Nursing, and Lecturer in Veterinary Nursing
Hayley Carne BSc (Hons) GradDipVN, PGCertVetEd, FHEA, RVN
Deputy Course Director for Graduate Diploma in Professional and Clinical Veterinary Nursing, and Lecturer in Veterinary Nursing
You will be assessed throughout your course by online assignments. The estimated breakdown of assessment for your final grade is:
There are no work placements for this course, but you must be employed in, or have agreed access to placement in a suitable veterinary clinical environment.
As a guide, suitable clinical environments are veterinary practices which can demonstrate meeting the minimum General Practice standards for small animal practices as set in the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme.
It is advised that you spend a minimum of 15 days per 15 credit module working in a suitable clinical environment (e.g. critical care if the Emergency and Critical Care Nursing module is taken).
This exciting course is run in conjunction with the National Association of Veterinary Physiotherapists (NAVP). The programme is designed to develop the skills of the student to support veterinary surgeons in the rehabilitation of a variety of species and will in particular focus on equine and canine patients. It will also focus on supporting equine and canine athletes both during competition and for recovery.
It is designed to enhance competency in existing therapists and to help students with less experience achieve their goal as capable and knowledgeable veterinary physiotherapists. The programme offers successful students the opportunity to become part of the existing para-professional cache of veterinary physiotherapists by developing excellent understanding and knowledge of anatomical structure in relation to function, treatment, rehabilitation of a variety of animals and of course business skills for those who plan to be self-employed.
The programme will be run on a part-time basis over three years, with the majority being delivered at weekends (11 weekends for the 1st year , 19 weekends – including internal placement weekends on site – for the 2nd year). There will be the occasional Friday that requires attendance, such as Academic Induction and examinations. The first year is quite structured and enables us to accurately predict the level of commitment required from each student to pass the modules. In the second clinical year, students differ widely in their ability to pick up and accurately apply the techniques being taught. So the requirement for self-directed practice can be substantial. There is also an increased level of contact in year 2 as students need to undertake placement days alongside the taught element, so weekends become far more frequent than during the first year. By year 3 students will be able to organise their own study time to complete the dissertation.
The first two years will comprise the Postgraduate Diploma in Veterinary Physiotherapy and if successful the student will be invited to become a member of the National Association of Veterinary Physiotherapists and be able to practice. The third year involves the dissertation and on completion the student will have a full MSc Veterinary Physiotherapy.
A successful veterinary physiotherapist will soon find that demand for their services outstrips their availability as there are a limited number of qualified therapists in the industry. Additionally, para-professionals in the veterinary world may soon be limited to those carrying a recognised post graduate qualification.
A successful Veterinary Physiotherapist will soon find that demand for their services outstrips their availability as there are a limited number of qualified therapists in the industry. Additionally, Para-professionals in the veterinary world may soon be limited to those carrying a recognised postgraduate qualification.
In veterinary management of animals, anaesthesia (rendering animals unconscious to permit procedures) and analgesia (reducing the pain an animal is suffering) have vital importance in improving animal welfare, as well as permitting the ongoing developments in medical and surgical advances.
Knowledge and advances in anaesthesia over the last 20 years have been considerable. We can use techniques to block sensation locally or over a region of the body not just total unconsciousness. We have an array of drugs and methods of drug administration available to us in our fight against pain. Anaesthesia has always carried risks, and we have an increasing availability of monitoring equipment to help us monitor the physiological function of the body during anaesthesia with the aim of reducing morbidity and mortality in our animals.
The University of Edinburgh is offering this unique opportunity for an entirely online MSc to study these advances, during which students can gain knowledge and understanding in the equipment, drugs and techniques associated with anaesthesia and analgesia. Our team can provide a wide range of clinical and research experience across many species.
Our award-winning online learning technology is fully interactive and enables you to communicate with our highly qualified teaching staff from the comfort of your own home or workplace. Online students not only have access to Edinburgh’s excellent resources, but also become part of a supportive online community.
Expert tutors will support you through every stage of the programme and you can engage with fellow students in supportive and constructive online networks.
Your progress will be assessed through online presentations, essays, critical reviews of literature, student self- reflection activities, short-answer questions, scientific posters, group wiki events and peer review activities.
The programme is taught part time over 3 years, but its flexible nature will allow you a maximum of 6 years to complete it. There are also options for studying for a certificate (1-2 years) or a diploma (2-4 years).
Each year will consist of three 11-week terms, structured into two blocks of five weeks of study, with a week in between for independent study and reflection.
The Postgraduate Certificate year (Year 1) starts with a series of compulsory courses to give a foundation in veterinary anaesthesia and analgesia, then progresses to examine how this may be applied in a variety of species. In the Postgraduate Diploma year (Year 2), you have the choice of selected courses to tailor the programme to your requirements. A dissertation completes the final year, however, this is a very flexible course, which can be tailored to suit you (subject to approval).
Year 1
Compulsory courses:
You will also choose 2 out of 4 species-related courses in dogs and cats, equidae, ruminants, camelids and pigs or small mammals (e.g. rabbits, rats etc).
Year 2
You will choose courses to total 60 credits from the following:
In addition, you could choose to select additional species courses from Year 1.
Year 3
During the written reflective element of the programme you will have the opportunity to further develop your scientific skills and utilise scientific theory. The form of the dissertation may vary to suit individual candidates, subject to approval of a submitted proposal. The dissertation will be a piece of written work 10-15,000 words long, which may take the form of a research study, analysis of techniques used in previous clinical work or an extended literature review. A casebook or portfolio submission may also be permitted.
The MSc Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia is likely to be desirable for veterinary surgeons seeking employment in research environments (e.g. as Named Veterinary Surgeon or other roles) due to the key importance of anaesthesia and the emphasis on this from Home Office regulation of research work in the UK.
The MSc will be a different route for progression for veterinary nurses who have key roles in private veterinary practices with regard to veterinary anaesthesia and analgesia. This may be desirable for practices wishing to show a wide range of expertise amongst their staff and patient support for surgical procedures.
Animal welfare science and ethics is an expanding topic of international concern, which is why the University of Glasgow offer an Animal Welfare MSc programme. It aims to improve our knowledge and understanding of animals’ needs, which is required to provide a high standard of care to the whole range of animals kept in captivity.
The programme provides a strong grounding in scientific writing and communication, statistical analysis, and experimental design. It is designed for flexibility, to enable you to customise a portfolio of courses suited to your particular interests.
You can choose from a range of specialised options that encompass key skills in
A total of 180 credits are required, with 40 flexible credits in the 2nd term. See the accompanying detailed course descriptions found in the IBAHCM Masters Programme Overview. When selecting options, please email the relevant course coordinator as well as registering using MyCampus.
Animal welfare is a very broad and applied field and the programme aims to provide coverage of all the different aspects of the topic which are often treated separately. Science is an essential skill in order to have a good understanding of welfare but we appreciate that applicants may come from diverse backgrounds and therefore the course includes a rigorous training in science communication, experimental design, data analysis and interpretation. The programme also includes teaching by practitioners and visits to organisations with first-hand experience of applied welfare problems. The programme also attempts to cover the entire spectrum of animal welfare, including zoos, farms, laboratory animals and wildlife.
Students are exposed to potential work places and can make valuable contacts with professionals in the welfare community. Where possible this is a two-way exchange in which communities are offered help with any issues they have and for which assistance may be provided in finding a solution (e.g. through independent research projects, supervised by university staff). This is also an option open to other courses and could benefit the students in the long-term as well as give the university valuable connections with the wider community.
This Masters in Advanced Nursing Science is designed for the growing number of graduate nurses wishing to work in clinical leadership or extended roles in clinical practice as nurse practitioners or consultant nurses.
This programme will be delivered via lectures, workshops and seminars. The virtual learning environment and video/digital education resources will be used.
Virtually all of our graduates in our parallel multiprofessional programme Advanced Practice in Health Care, within 1 year of completion, have gained promotion within their specialism. Many remain in clinical practice and become specialists and advanced practitioners in their chosen fields.
Increasingly our graduates are returning for PhD study, to further embrace the evidence based approaches to clinical care.
Many decide that education is their career destination and return to the department to gain further expertise in a teaching role, both undergraduate and postgraduate.
This programme help to prepare clinicians in many disciplines eg. Physios, for the dynamic nature of care delivery.
The University of Edinburgh is recognised globally for its research, development and innovation, and has been providing students with a world-class education for more than 425 years. The suite of pain management programmes offered by the Department of Anaesthesia, Critical care and Pain Medicine, continues this tradition by integrating current clinical research with high-level academic and professional input.
As a multidimensional phenomenon, it is essential that pain is managed through planned multidisciplinary initiatives and inputs that aim to ease patient suffering and improve quality of life. Through a solid, theoretical understanding of the biological, psychological and social concepts that drive, develop and maintain pain, students will explore the multifaceted nature of pain and its effects. Students will gain an advanced understanding of the specialist area of pain management and will develop the core skills and knowledge required of an advanced pain practitioner.
Each course of the programme is divided into a set of themed sections in which material is presented in a blend of short online lectures, practical case studies, directed readings, podcasts and webinars. This is supplemented by discussion boards that provide directed assessment tasks while input from expert guest lecturers and tutors offer students opportunity for collaborative critical discourse and debate of current issues.
This part-time, fully online programme attracts an international and multi-professional student cohort and offers a unique opportunity to have direct contact with others working in pain management across the world. Within this context, students will gain the knowledge, understanding and evaluative skills to provide advanced clinical care so as to improve outcomes for people living in pain.
This programme is affiliated with the University's Global Health Academy.
By studying at the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, students will join a rich tradition of education – one of the oldest institutions in the UK - but also one of the most progressive and dynamic.
The University of Edinburgh has a growing portfolio of established and highly regarded online distance learning postgraduate programmes, with thousands of students currently taking advantage of this mode of education. As a postgraduate student at the University of Edinburgh, you will become part of a supportive online community, able to take advantage of the University’s strong academic tradition, while studying together students and tutors from across the world.
The University of Edinburgh offers a number of outcome awards from its suite of pain management programmes. For those wishing to complete a short option, there are continuing professional development (CME/CPD) courses and for others, who may wish to pursue a longer programme option, there are University awards of Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert), Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and Master of Science (MSc) – all delivered online using methods that are fully supported by the University’s award-winning online learning environments.
The key differences between the University awards are the number of credits needed to achieve each award:
Postgraduate Certificate - Level 1 (60 credits)
The Postgraduate Certificate level courses allow students to gain a solid, theoretical understanding of the biological, psychological and social concepts that drive, develop and maintain pain.
Through six core courses covering, assessment and measurement of pain, mechanisms of pain, and the pharmacological and non-pharmacological management of pain, students will explore pain's multifaceted and dynamic nature. In the final core course, students will examine selected conditions seen in clinical practice.
Postgraduate Diploma - Level 2 (60 credits)
(not all Level 2 courses will be offered every year) On successful completion of the Postgraduate Certificate courses, the 60 credits at Postgraduate Diploma level allow students to select courses that focus on areas of pain management that are congruent with students' career goals and clinical or personal interests.
Through a number of course options, including, but not limited to, courses in cancer pain, medical pain, acute pain, neuropathic pain and pain in ageing populations, students will gain an advanced understanding of key areas in pain management. At this level, students may opt to begin to take courses in the areas of either headache management or veterinary medicine to gain a named PGDip or MSc award.
Master of Science - Level 3 (60 credits)
On the successful completion of 120 credits, students are able to proceed to the Master of Science level of the programme. There are a number of options at this level:
Degree Awards with a Headache or Veterinary Designation?
We also offer Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) and Master of Science (MSc) awards in the focussed clinical areas of headache management and veterinary medicine.
Alongside the core pain programme content, students have the option to take a number of courses in specific clinical areas to gain the award of PGDip/MSc Clinical Management of Pain (Headache) or PGDip/MSc Clinical Management of Pain (Veterinary). To gain a named award (i.e. a Headache or Veterinary designation), students must complete at least one third of the credits of the award in the focussed area.
Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD)
Postgraduate Professional Development is aimed at working professionals who want to advance their knowledge through a postgraduate-level course, without the time - or financial - commitment of a full Masters degree, Postgraduate Diploma or Postgraduate Certificate. We offer short, focussed, academic credit-bearing courses that provide education on key subjects in pain management.
You may take a maximum of 50 credits worth of courses through our Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD) scheme. These credits are recognised in their own right as postgraduate-level credit, or may be put towards gaining a higher award, such as a Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma or MSc at the University of Edinburgh or another academic institution.
