Advancing Practice Framework - Postgraduate study for healthcare practitioners
What is it?
The Advancing Practice Framework provides relevant, stimulating and flexible learning to support the work of a wide range of healthcare practitioners. If you want to advance your role in clinical practice and service improvement, our Advancing Practice Framework will help to develop and enhance the knowledge and skills you need for the real challenges you encounter on a day-to-day basis. The Advancing Practice Framework offers both a general route and a range of specialist routes, all taught at postgraduate level.
Who is it for?
Any registered healthcare professional who has experience of practice and can demonstrate the ability to study at postgraduate level. A first degree is normally required but applicants who can provide evidence of degree level study, for example having successfully completed degree level courses, will be considered. Previous students have included Acute Care staff nurses, Community Matrons, Modern Matrons, Operating Department Practitioners, Dieticians, Practice Nurses, and Specialist Practitioners.
What qualification would I get?
The qualification achieved will depend of which route you take and the point you reach within the Framework. On completion of 60 credits, you´d be awarded a postgraduate certificate. If you achieve 120 credits, you´d get a postgraduate diploma, and 180 credits achieves the degree of Master of Medical Science (MMedSci). The full title of the award will depend on the route taken; for example "MMedSci in Advancing Practice (Long Term Conditions)"
Who delivers the programme?
The taught units are delivered and supported by an academic and clinical partnership. Acknowledged academic expertise in the relevant fields is complemented by practising clinicians, service managers, and service users.
The Framework
On the next page you´ll find a diagram showing the Advancing Practice Framework. You can start along either the Advancing Practice general route or one of the specialist routes. When you´ve completed units to the value of 60 credits, you´ll receive a postgraduate certificate. If you choose a specialist route and decide to continue your studies, you´d then take the Research Methods unit (30 credits) plus one additional 30 credit unit from the following list:
- Leadership
- Service improvement
- Autonomous practice or
- Independent prescribing.
On the general route, a postgraduate certificate includes Research Methods, so for a diploma you´d take the Leadership unit and either Service improvement or Autonomous practice (please see diagram).
At this point you could leave the programme with a postgraduate diploma or progress to the MMedSci degree which you´d achieve by writing a dissertation.
Flexibility is built into the Framework in a number of ways:
- you’ll have up to five years of part-time study to complete your award
- you can take units from a number of specialist pathways to gain a postgraduate certificate
- some elements of the Framework are delivered completely online allowing you to study in your own time
- previous learning can count towards your qualification through the process of Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL).
Fees and Funding
If you work with the NHS in Yorkshire and the Humber or East Midlands, you may be eligible for funding. Please visit our website for more details:
How to apply
Applications are now all online. Please visit our website for more details:
Contact
For further information, please contact:
Michael Macintosh
Programme Leader
School of Nursing and Midwifery
Samuel Fox House
Northern General Hospital
Herries Road
Sheffield S5 7AU
0114 222 2054
email : m.j.macintosh@sheffield.ac.uk