Health and Society, MA, University College Cork (UCC)

About Health and Society, MA - at University College Cork (UCC)

Overview

Health and wellbeing are critical issues in society. The M.A. in Health and Society is a new and innovative programme which addresses health and its determinants from a rich interdisciplinary perspective. It is aimed at graduates from a broad range of disciplines in the sciences and humanities and is designed to provide a unique and critical analysis of contemporary discourses and issues from an individual, societal and global perspective.

Course Details

This course is about health, and not exclusively healthcare. Health is both a medical and a social issue. Students taking this course will explore health from a variety of different angles. The unique nature of this course is its interdisciplinary approach, as it brings together experts on issues of health from a vast range of disciplines and colleges, including medicine, epidemiology, philosophy, ethics, sociology, social policy and law. The M.A. in Health and Society is aimed at graduating students in Philosophy, Epidemiology and Public Health, Sociology, Geography and related disciplines and at graduates with continuing education needs, for example managerial staff working in the Health sector.

The M.A. in Health and Society aims to support the development of a set of advanced skills necessary in the practice and management of health and healthcare: practice skills, research skills, critical appraisal skills and clinical reasoning skills.

Students will take three core modules on the following topics: Principles and Practice of Public Health (10 Credits); Critical Public Health (10 Credits); Philosophy and Health (10 credits). They will then choose from a range of modules offered by different disciplines, including law, sociology, social policy, applied psychology, epidemiology and public health, and philosophy. Finally, students will be asked to submit a minor dissertation, of approximately 10,000 words.

By the end of the course, students will be expected to demonstrate in-depth expertise in relation to philosophical, epidemiological sociological and psychological factors which contribute to health and well-being. This MA will open new career options in the health sector, as well as research opportunities in the humanities and social sciences.

Students take90credits as follows:

Core modules(60 credits)

EH6025Principles and Practice of Public Health (10 Credits)
PH6047Philosophy and Health (10 credits)
SS6019Critical Public Health (10 credits)

Students select one of the following research modules:

PH6020Dissertation in Philosophy (30 credits)
EH6040Dissertation in Public Health and Epidemiology (30 credits)

Elective Modules

Students select 30 credits from the following postgraduate and undergraduate modules (max. 10 credits for undergraduate modules are allowed):

Postgraduate Modules

AP6129Health Psychology (5 credits)
EH6026Applied Research for Public Health (10 credits)
LW6531EU Health Law and Policy (5 credits)
LW6576The Rights of Persons with Disabilities in International Law (10 credits)
LW6592Mental Capacity Law (5 credits)
LW6609Mental Health Law (5 credits)
PH6012Human Rights 1 (10 credits)
PH6048The Philosophy of Death and Dying (10 credits)

Undergraduate Modules

Student may select a maximum of 10 credits from the following undergraduate modules
EH4005Health Services (5 credits)
PH2002Reasoning and Argument (5 credits)
PH2019Philosophy of Science (5 credits)
PH2028Applied Ethics (5 credits)
SC1011Sociology of Health, Public Health and Health Promotion (5 credits)
SC3023Sociology of Health and Illness : New Directions and Current Debates (5 credits)
SC3025Health and Scientific Deviance (5 credits)

Postgraduate Certificate in Health and Society(NFQ Level 9, Minor Award)

Students who pass taught modules to the value of at least 30 credits (but less than 60 credits) may exit the programme and be conferred with a Postgraduate Certificate in Health and Society.

Postgraduate Diploma in Health and Society (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)

Students who pass taught modules to the value of 60 credits may exit the programme and be conferred with a Postgraduate Diploma in Health and Society.

Fact File

Course Code: CKD10 Full-time; CKD11 Part-time

Course Title: Health and Society

College: Arts, Celtic Studies and Social Sciences

Duration: 1 year Full-time; 2 years Part-time

Teaching Mode: Full-time, Part-Time

The part-time option will be taught during weekday working hours over 2 years.

Qualifications: MA

NFQ Level: Level 9

Costs: 2017/2018 Irish/EU fees: EUR 6,000 full-time; EUR 3,000 per year part-time

2016 Entry Requirements: Applicants should hold a 2.1 degree (or equivalent) in either the disciplines of Philosophy, Public Health, Sociology, Social Science, Geography, Government, Politics, Law, Medicine, Nursing and other health professional programmes. Candidates who hold a 2.2 level may also be considered, based on the information provided in a supplementary statement and/or interview acceptable to the Department selection committee.

Closing Date: See details in application procedure section below

Next Intake: 11 September 2017

Course Practicalities

There will be approximately 9 hours of lectures/seminars per week. Students will be expected to conduct on average 20 hours of reading per week, on top of the time spent in class.

Assessment

Each module will be assessed by continuous assessment, end-of-semester examination or a combination of both. The continuous assessment element will take the form of essays and assignments including class presentations. There will also be a final year dissertation ofapproximately 10,000 words.

Application Procedure

Application for this programme is on-line at www.pac.ie/ucc. Places on this programme are offered in rounds. The closing dates for each round can be found here. For full details of the application procedure click How to Apply.

All required documentation must be either uploaded to your online application, or sent in hard copy to The Postgraduate Applications Centre, 1, Courthouse Square, Galway, immediately after an application is made.

Please note that you will also be asked to fill in a special supplementary information form as part of the applications process for this programme. A copy of this form is available to view here: CKD10AdditionalQuestions (116kB)

Notes about fees for this course

Costs: 2017/2018 Irish/EU fees: EUR 6,000 full-time; EUR 3,000 per year part-time

2016 Entry Requirements: Applicants should hold a 2.1 degree (or equivalent) in either the disciplines of Philosophy, Public Health, Sociology, Social Science, Geography, Government, Politics, Law, Medicine, Nursing and other health professional programmes. Candidates who hold a 2.2 level may also be considered, based on the information provided in a supplementary statement and/or interview acceptable to the Department selection committee.

Closing Date: See details in application procedure section below

Next Intake: 11 September 2017

Entry requirements for this course

Contact University College Cork (UCC) to find course entry requirements.

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