MSc Digital Health

• Research Methods for Health & Social Care: This unit will provide an overview of different research methods used to address clinical research questions. It will cover aspects of research design and how they apply to the question being asked whether the approach is quantitative, qualitative or mixed methods.
• Foundations of Health Information Systems: This unit aims to help you learn the fundamentals of health information systems by introducing the key concepts, principles, processes and related issues, and carrying out relevant activities in the analysis and design of health information systems. Besides, the unit will cover health data generation, compilation, analysis, synthesis, communication and analytics. You will develop an understanding of the legal and ethical issues surrounding the implementation of health information systems and the use of electronic health data.
• Integrated Digital Healthcare Project: It is essential to build a digital health workforce to bridge the knowledge gap between healthcare and computing and address today’s and tomorrow’s design challenges in developing digital health solutions. This unit aims to equip you with knowledge and skills in the areas of development of healthcare systems and services, with a specific focus on practical case studies. You will undertake a digital healthcare project by applying a software, system and/or project development life cycle.
• Human-Centred Design: Computer-based interactive systems refers to as a spectrum of digital products, services and solutions interact with human users in business, social and global contexts. The primary success factor in implementing such systems is to involve the human perspective in all steps of the problem-solving process. You will learn how to design and develop such systems by applying human centred design principles and techniques and carrying out relevant activities in the planning and management to satisfy both business needs and its user requirements. It will also help you develop an understanding of interaction design process and best practices through the exposure to usability, user experience and other related fields.
• Individual Master's Project: You will develop an understanding of the characteristics and implications inherent in the solution of a complex, real-world problem within the context of a substantial, independently-conducted piece of work. 

Option units (choose one semester 1)

• Data Management: The unit aims to explore modern data management applications and technologies. In particular, the unit aims to develop an understanding of data modelling and the design, implementation of data management solutions, evaluate current trends in data management and give introduction to data analytics techniques.
• Blockchain & Digital Futures: The objective of this unit is to develop your skills and knowledge about the Blockchain technology and its usage. This includes defining the Blockchain technology, its business aspect, issues, objectives, and challenges, covering Blockchain horizontal and vertical scaling, key basics of cryptography required for understanding the Blockchain technology concepts, different cryptocurrencies, and their issues, challenges, and networks. 

Option units (choose one semester 2)

• Accessibility & Assistive Technology: The aim of this unit is to provide you with an introduction to understanding diverse user needs, focusing on challenges caused by temporary, situational or lifelong disabilities. 
• Persuasive Technology & Behaviour Change: You will cover mainstream psychological theories of persuasion, influence, decision making and behaviour change besides their application on a wide range of domains including health, business and e-learning. We will also discuss the risks and ethical consideration of persuasion and essentials for informed decision making.
• Smart Systems: This unit introduces various facets of smart systems technology and how they apply to different environments. A selected set of innovative applications will be discussed to provide a practical insight.

You have the option to undertake a 30-week placement at the end of the course, providing an opportunity to apply your acquired knowledge and skills in the workplace. You are required to find your own placement; however, our Careers & Employability Service and your faculty placements office are on hand to support you.

Programme specifications provide definitive records of the University's taught degrees in line with Quality Assurance Agency requirements. Every taught course leading to a BU Award has a programme specification which describes its aims, structure, content and learning outcomes, plus the teaching, learning and assessment methods used.

Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the programme specification, the information is liable to change to take advantage of exciting new approaches to teaching and learning as well as developments in industry. If you have been unable to locate the programme specification for the course you are interested in, it will be available as soon as the latest version is ready. Alternatively please contact us for assistance.

We provide a lot of support for you to help you find work, including a block of seminars, covering topics such as writing a CV and a covering letter, completing an application form, performing well in interviews, and we also provide language support to assist you with the written elements of your applications.

However, it is ultimately your responsibility to find work. The university does not guarantee that you will find a place.

During your time on placement you will be supported by a unit tutor and a placement development advisor who will visit you on placement and keep in touch by phone and email.

Employment prospects are now truly international and BU encourages students to consider an international work placement or volunteering experience during their degree.

One way could be through the EU funded Erasmus mobility programme which supports placements or study exchanges in Europe.

Students can also participate in international placements outside of Europe. There are opportunities to engage with summer schools and volunteering projects. These experiences help students to enhance their global employability skills.

This course selects candidates by looking at their applications. There are no interviews or additional selection activities and therefore we suggest that you make your application stand out from the crowd. For more information take a look at our how to apply pages.

There is no application deadline for this course. However, if you will need a visa to come to the UK to study, think carefully about the length of time it will take for your visa application to be processed and make sure your visa will be ready in time for the beginning of your course. 

December and January is one of our busiest application periods and therefore it may take us a little longer to process incoming applications. For courses with a January start date, we recommend submitting your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Click the green ‘Apply now’ button to submit your application free of charge online through myHub, our application portal. You will create your own myHub account so that you can track the progress of your application. Don’t forget to save your application as you go; you can return to it at as many times as you want before you submit it. For more information visit our How to apply section.

The normal requirements for embarking upon a postgraduate taught degree are:

• A Bachelors Honours degree with 2:2 in a required subject, or equivalent.
• Required subject: Computer Science/IT, Engineering, Design, Health and Social Care, Medical Science, Psychology, Business, Law, Forensic Science or MSc in any subject, or similar

If you are in doubt if you lack the formal academic qualifications needed to enter a postgraduate or post-experience degree, please get in touch with the Future Students Enquiry team.

You can find details of the international qualifications we accept, and what level of study they apply to, on our entry requirements for non-UK students' page.

Please see below some examples of the qualifications for entry:

• India: Bachelor’s degree (4 years) from a recognised HE institution with a minimum overall result of 55%
• Nigeria:  Bachelor's degree from a recognised institution with a minimum classification of 2:2
• Thailand:  Thai Bachelor's (Honours) degree from a recognised higher education institution with a minimum GPA of 2.5/4.0
• Turkey: Bachelor’s degree (Lisans Diplomasi - four years) with a minimum overall GPA of 2.3/4.0
• Vietnam:  Bachelor's degree/Bang tot nghiep dai hoc with an average score of 6.5/10, or a Master’s degree/Thac si.

All applications will be subject to a minimum grade and your degree may need to be in a relevant subject area.

English language requirements

If English is not your first language, you will need to provide evidence that you understand English to a satisfactory level. English language requirements for this course are normally:

IELTS (Academic) 6.0 with minimum 5.5 in each component, or equivalent.

View further information about our English language requirements.

Bournemouth University International College offers a number of pre-sessional English and preparatory programmes to prepare international students for postgraduate study at BU. Admission to the degree is guaranteed on successful completion of your course to the required level. 

Having completed the course, students are expected to become competitive in digital health market and consider the following roles:

• Health Systems and Service Designers responsible for designing health and care systems
• Data Analyst specialised in health and care decision making
• Application and System Developer in digital health
• Information Governance Manager responsible for managing data in health information systems
• User Experience consultants/practitioners specialised in designing digital health solutions
• Clinical Information Manager responsible for creating health systems to support clinical decision making
• Planning & Performance Manager responsible for understanding the business performance and challenges for the healthcare sector

Example employers:

• NHS
• Apple
• Accenture
• Microsoft
• Google

If you want to continue your studies after achieving your Master’s, you can look into our range of doctoral programmes.

What’s included in your tuition fee?

Your tuition fee covers expenses associated with your course including tuition materials, access to facilities, mandatory field trips and the following:

• Materials for laboratory and mandatory field-based teaching activity.
• Support for finding placements (UK or abroad) and fieldwork, and non-financial support whilst on placement if this is part of your course of study.
• A range of student services – advisors, help desks, counsellors, placement support and careers service.
• The Library – access to a wide range of electronic resources (databases, e-journals and e-books), print and multimedia collections, subject librarians and study spaces.
• Access to Brightspace, our virtual learning environment, which offers a responsive and personalised learning experience with powerful learning analytics 
• IT labs (some open 24/7), wireless network, AV equipment to borrow.
• Disability and additional learning support, according to individual circumstances.
• The BU Language Centre to help you develop/improve foreign or English language skills.
• 24 hours a day, 365 days a year security team.

Additional costs

We are committed to offering you value for money and ensuring there are no hidden costs while you are studying with us, therefore we have listed below any additional costs you may incur that are not covered by your tuition fee:

• Laptops, tablets and mobile devices and any software used on personal devices. Access to a personal computer is strongly recommended for your study. If you are experiencing financial difficulty, visit our website for information regarding hardship funds.
• ​Textbooks, general stationery and other supplies. Our award-winning library is stocked with a large range of textbooks and online resources, free of charge. The Students’ Union shops stock a wide range of stationery supplies on both campuses.
• Accommodation and living costs. Please visit our website for more information.
• ​Travel costs for optional field trips, outdoor wear and footwear for mandatory and optional field trips (if applicable).
• Travel costs to and from the University campus. An annual bus pass can be purchased alongside your rent if you are living in halls of residence/Unilet accommodation or may be purchased separately.
• ​Travel costs to and from your placement (both in the UK and overseas) if this is part of your course of study. Placement year funding information can be found on our website.
• Clothing or equipment costs required for your placement if this is part of your course of study. 
• SportBU membership.

While all aspects of the programme, including required field trips, are included in the fee, additional, optional or extra curricula activities may be available for which a student contribution is required.

If you need to repeat one or more units during the course of your studies (with or without attendance) the pricing will be pro-rata of the full time fee.

We offer a range of scholarships to students who are beginning their studies at BU. Our fees and funding pages also provide details on living costs, budgeting and paying your tuition fees.

International (not Rep. of Ireland) students need to pay a non-refundable £3,000 deposit to secure their place on a postgraduate course. You will need to pay your deposit by the date stated in your offer letter. The remainder of your fee will be payable on registration/enrolment. There are two exceptions to the non-refundable rule on the deposit:

• You fail to meet the academic or English requirements of your offer
• You are refused a visa to enter the UK, provided the reason for the refusal is not a fraudulent application.

Dr Benjamin Gorman is the Programme Leader and Lecturer in Computing. His research focus is within Human Computer Interaction, specifically Accessibility where he focuses on developing technology to help people with hearing loss. 

Dr Huseyin Dogan is a Principal Academic in Computing. His research focuses on Human Factors, Assistive Technologies and Systems Engineering. He is the Co-Chair of the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) research group.  

Dr Dogan received his Engineering Doctorate (EngD) in Systems Engineering from Loughborough University, MSc in Human Computer Interaction with Ergonomics from University College London, and BSc in Computer Science from Queen Mary University of London. He was the General Co-Chair for the 30th International British Computer Society Human Computer Interaction Conference (BCS HCI 2016).

Dr Dogan has over 100 publications which include journal papers, conference papers, and technical reports. His research on Assistive Technologies (with Dr Paul Whittington) featured on the BBC South, BBC Radio Solent, The Ergonomist, Auto Express, Bournemouth Echo and The Sunday Times magazine.

Dr Nan Jiang joined BU in 2010 and he is an Associate Professor in Human Computer Interaction and the acting Head of Department. Prior to this, Nan was an Open Distance Learning (ODL) tutor at Queen Mary, University of London, where he also received his PhD in Web Usability and MSc in Advanced Methods.

Deniz Cetinkaya is a Lecturer (Academic) in Computing in the Department of Computing & Informatics at BU. She is the Programme Leader for BIT (Business Information Technology) and ITM (Information Technology Management) courses. 

She has a BSc degree in Computer Science and Engineering and MSc degree in Computer Engineering. She received her PhD degree in Systems Engineering from Delft University of Technology (Technische Universiteit Delft) in the Netherlands. 

Melanie is a Principal Academic and the Deputy Head of the Computing and Informatics Department. She joined Bournemouth University in June 1997 from the University of East London, where she was a lecturer in the Innovation Studies Department.