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Programme Outline: Health Sciences (BSc)
Why Health Sciences?
There is a growing demand for more knowledge about, and a better understanding of, human health and well-being. It is now widely accepted that there are a range of factors which determine whether individuals remain healthy, develop illnesses or experience early death. These determinants include individual biology and behaviour, economic, environmental, educational and socio-cultural factors as well as the access individuals have to health services. In addition, new approaches to health care have developed, with an emphasis on multi-professional team-work. Older forms of care are therefore giving way to new, including the moving of care and responsibility for improving population and individual health status, outside hospitals and other institutions. It is against this background that the degree in Health Sciences was instituted - its teaching shared by the Colleges of Life Sciences and Medicine and Arts and Social Sciences. It is mainly concerned with examining the variety of views of what constitutes health (physical, psychological and social), while also providing a basis from which assessments may be made of the relevance of formal and informal health care to patterns of national ill-health. The degree includes options for entrants with different health interests and the opportunity to focus on science and/or arts subjects. It therefore provides a base from which to proceed to a career in a wide range of health-related occupations or research.
Structure of the Degree - see also Prospectus
The BSc Health Sciences degree is organised by the Division of Medical and Dental Education. Students in the first and second years of the degree take a range of compulsory and optional courses across life science and social science subjects along with students on other degree programme. These courses are normally based at the Old Aberdeen site. In third and fourth year most of the courses are specifically designed for the Health Sciences degree and are based at the Medical School, Foresterhill site.
Students can finish their studies with Health Sciences designated degree at the end of third year, or they can proceed to one of five options (Health Promotion, Health Services Research, Health and Nutrition, Health and Society, Health and Sport) for an Honours degree in the fourth year. Health Sciences graduates find it easy to gain employment, and there is around a 95% employment rate in the first year after graduation. Many of our graduates succeed in winning posts in health promotion, health and health care research, health services management, and a range of other jobs in, for example, nutrition or one of the therapies. Some graduates use their degree to gain access to vocational post graduate courses like public health, medicine, nutrition and dietetics and physiotherapy. Other students undertake a PhD or MSc by research.
Overview of Programme
First and second year
Health Science students study a variety of subjects in first and second year which are intended to provide them with a broad understanding of the academic disciplines and knowledge that underpin current understanding related to health and illness. As such, students study psychology, sociology, biology, statistics and the Foundations of Health as compulsory courses. Depending on their honours intentions, students may also take additional core courses in other Life Science or Social Science subjects.
Year |
Generic compulsory subjects |
Optional subjects include |
Biology, Psychology, Foundations of Health |
Chemistry, Sociology, Economics, Philosophy, Management, Anthropology, |
|
Sociology, Statistics |
Anatomy, Biochemistry, Cultural History, Economics, History & Philosophy of Science, Management, Microbiology, Physiology, Psychology, |
Third Year
The general aims of the third year is to support and encourage the acquisition of knowledge and for students to gain an understanding about health and illness, through academic study, project work, problem-solving and personal encounter and to enable students to apply these skills to work or further study. It is also designed to help students identify specific subjects and intended areas of study which will determine their third year option if they have not already done so. An outline of the structure of the fourth year of the Health Science degree is outlined below. Most of third year teaching takes place in the Medical School on the Foresterhill site.
Year |
Generic compulsory subjects |
Optional subjects include |
Community Health Attachment, Epidemiology & Medical Statistics, Health Promotion, Introduction to Research, Social Influences on Health & Illness |
Nutrition, Management Studies, Cultural History, History, psychology. |
Fourth Year
The general aims of fourth year are to develop the skills and knowledge about health and illness acquired in third year to a more comprehensive and detailed understanding of the investigation and management of health care in the UK. Teaching and supervision is provided by staff based in, or related to the School of Medicine and Dentistry.
Part of fourth year study will normally involve students developing a research problem, reviewing the relevant literature and formulating a research strategy, which the student will attempt to solve with the collection and analysis of original data.
Year |
Generic compulsory subjects |
Students Honours year follows one of five specialist streams: |
|
Stream 1: Health Promotion Stream 2: Health Services Research Stream 3: Health and Sport |
These three streams have common courses in the first semester before specialising with a research project in the second semester. First semester: Health Economics, Health Services Research. |
Stream 4: Health and Nutrition |
First semester: Nutrition Metabolism, Dietary Assessment, Assessment of Nutritional Status, Nutritional Epidemiology and Theories of Diet & Disease. The BSc Health Sciences (Health and Nutrition) programme is accredited by the Association for Nutrition who recognise the high standard of training provided. Students who complete the programme are eligible to enter the UK Voluntary Register of Nutritionists (UKVRN) as Associate Nutritionists and be awarded the |
Stream 5: Health and Society |
A total of four options including Ageing and Society, Sociology of the Housing System, Sex and Gender, Poverty and Social Security. There is no dissertation for the Sociology Honours option. |
The BSc Health Sciences usually has an interesting mixture of mature and younger students. We welcome applications from people with an interest in health and health care, and we welcome students with qualifications other than those traditionally acquired on leaving school; these include most mature students.
Further information and contact details
For more information on the BSc Health Sciences degree please contact Programme Coordinator, Fiona Marshall (fiona.marshall@abdn.ac.uk).
The full mailing address is:
Dr Fiona MarshallProgramme Coordinator, BSc Health Sciences/MA Health Studies
School of Medicine & Dentistry
Polwarth Building
Foresterhill
Aberdeen AB25 2ZD
Tel 01224 551276
Dr Fiona Marshall
Programme Coordinator, BSc Health Sciences/MA Health Studies
Tel: +44 (0) 1224 437249
Email: fiona.marshall@abdn.ac.uk