Postgraduate General Information
Why Choose RGU?
Studying for a qualification is a big decision. Before you choose, you have to be very confident that the learning experience and the university are all right for you, and right for your career.
We excel in the delivery of practical, professional courses and have strong links with healthcare practice sites and the professions. We offer an impressive number of courses across a broad range of subjects and we are also involved in a range of research activity. At RGU, we are not only proud of the quality of our teaching staff, but in the numbers who have practical experience in their specialist areas.
The School of Pharmacy
The School of Pharmacy was established over 160 years ago in 1839 when teaching began with the Society of Apothecaries, Chemists and Druggists (later called the Aberdeen Pharmaceutical Association). The School's programme is at the forefront of curricular development and emphasises the science, the practice and the interpersonal skills required of the modern pharmacist.
At postgraduate level the School of Pharmacy offers the MSc Clinical Pharmacy and the MSc Prescribing Sciences as well as a short course on Supplementary Prescribing.
Visiting practitioners from community, hospital and industrial pharmacy, together with teacher-practitioners, are involved with the teaching thereby enhancing the quality and clinical perspective of the courses.
Facilities are available within the School for studies leading to the degrees of Master of Philosophy and Doctor of Philosophy on a full-time or part-time basis.
Students come from throughout Britain, Ireland, continental Europe and many other parts of the world including sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle and Far East and the West Indies. This provides a diversity of personalities and cultural backgrounds. Links with the British Pharmaceutical Students Association (BPSA) are strong within the School both at a regional and national level. Professional activities are further supported by the encouragement given to students to attend meetings of the local branch of the society.
Facilities at the School of Pharmacy
The accommodation for the School of Pharmacy is situated at the City Centre Campus although some teaching on shared learning initiatives occurs at the recently completed Faculty of Health and Social Care building at the Garthdee Campus. Recently, a major programme of laboratory refurbishment has been undertaken and in addition to this, a multi-purpose Pharmaceutical Care Centre was opened in 2000. This remains a cutting edge initiative within UK Pharmacy Schools.
Part Time Learning
More and more people are choosing part time study and those who do find that they improve not only their qualifications and job prospects but they also gain confidence, experience a sense of achievement and, not least, make many new professional contacts through shared learning
Investing in education is probably the best investment you can ever make - it lasts all your life.
In some cases, part time study may be the only practical alternative to studying full time. However, there are in fact many reasons why you may decide to study part time. For example:
Online Learning via the RGU:CampusMoodle
RGU:CampusMoodle is an e-learning community providing a flexible, virtual learning environment (VLE) that meets the demands of modern living with innovative new methods of distance and on-campus learning.
RGU:CampusMoodle aims to widen access to higher education for a wide range of people, including students not able to attend campus, overseas learners and corporate learners. In addition, the Campus provides an array of supplementary learning materials and interactive tools for students studying on-campus, greatly enhancing the RGU learning experience.
RGU:CampusMoodle offers all the facilities of a traditional academic campus with access to expert advice from tutors and subject librarians. Learning materials are provided in a wide range of formats from straightforward Word documents and pdf files, which can be downloaded/printed for study offline, to richer forms of media such as audio and video.
RGU:CampusMoodle connects its learners in an innovative learning environment, providing access to a wide range of formal and informal teamwork areas. Asynchronous discussion forums and synchronous chat rooms enable students to interact, collaborate and support each other, sharing their individual experiences as they progress through their studies.
RGU:CampusMoodle was the UK's first e-learning provider to be accredited with the British Association for Open Learning (BAOL) Quality Mark. This award recognises both the quality of the courses we offer and our commitment to learner support.
Who will be teaching me?
Students benefit from the up-to-date knowledge and experience offered by the teacher-practitioners, who are integral members of academic staff, whilst continuing in their roles as practicing pharmacists in the community or hospital settings. Academic staff at the School are active in research programmes that influence and support curricular development and ensure the delivery of relevant and up-to-date material throughout the degree.
All staff, academic and support, regularly undertake appropriate staff development related to identified needs; induction, in-service training, secondments, consultancy, research and other scholarly activities. Funding for staff development is excellent and is provided at both institutional and School levels.
Postgraduate Courses and Continuing Professional Development - Flexible Learning
The Postgraduate Team at the School of Pharmacy is aware that while you might want to update your skills and knowledge, it is not always feasible to commit to an award bearing part or full-time course. We have therefore increased the flexibility of our course delivery, offering study through one or more of the following routes:
- Stand Alone Learning - enrol on one or more modules of the Schools postgraduate portfolio. There are different sizes of modules available to suit your needs. These can be accumulated at a pace that suits you to eventually gain a postgraduate degree.
- Short courses - The School currently offers a short course in Pharmacist Independent Prescribing (PIP), this will run twice each year and more information is available on the separate webpage.
- Named Awards - The School offer two award bearing courses in Prescribing Sciences and Clinical Pharmacy. Again further details are available on separate web pages.
For any of the above options attendance is normally not required, so you can study at home or at work. Support will always be available online in the form of personal tutors and library facilities.
