Key information
Duration: or 3 years part time
Institution code: R72
Campus: Central London
UK fees*: £9,000
International/EU fees**: £19,100
The course
Advanced Practice (MSc)
Built upon long-standing partnerships with employment agencies and service user groups, the MSc in Advanced Practice offers post-qualifying education to individuals working in social care or health services. The course provides professionally and academically rigorous postgraduate Social Work training that enables you to critically evaluate theory and utilise research findings in relation to advanced practice and leadership.
We recognise the time pressures that affect social workers and allied professions so this course is delivered via a part-time, modular format, offering flexibility to suit your needs – allowing you to continue to work while learning. You are able to exit at different stages throughout of the course, tailoring the qualification to your own professional need and commitments, gaining a Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma or MSc in Advanced Practice.
There are four optional pathways through the course, allowing you to specialise in an area of your own experience or interests:
- Children & Families
- Adults
- Leadership & Management
- Professional Education
Academics in our department undertake commissioned work in a wide variety of areas, underpinning our taught courses with the latest research. We are dedicated to supporting learners to become research-literate practitioners and policy/practice literate researchers – breaking down the barriers between research and practice.
From time to time, we make changes to our courses to improve the student and learning experience. If we make a significant change to your chosen course, we’ll let you know as soon as possible.
Course structure
Core Modules
- Conducting Research and Writing for Publication
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The module will aim to enable students to continue to develop their knowledge and skills in supporting and assessing social workers undertaking post-qualifying professional development and learning through a flexible distance learning route, and to enable students to evidence their ability to support and assess CPD in line with relevant professional requirements.
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This module will describe the key principles of academic integrity, focusing on university assignments. Plagiarism, collusion and commissioning will be described as activities that undermine academic integrity, and the possible consequences of engaging in such activities will be described. Activities, with feedback, will provide you with opportunities to reflect and develop your understanding of academic integrity principles.
Optional Modules
There are a number of optional course modules available during your degree studies. The following is a selection of optional course modules that are likely to be available. Please note that although the College will keep changes to a minimum, new modules may be offered or existing modules may be withdrawn, for example, in response to a change in staff. Applicants will be informed if any significant changes need to be made.
- Advanced Practice in Child Protection and Family Support
- Work with Children and Young People with Sexually Harmful Behaviours
- Practice Educator Standards (PEPS) 2
- Supervision of Professional Practice
- Inter-professional Working: Power, Identity and Organisational Culture
- Understanding Personality Disorders: Implications for Parents, Parenting and Child Development
- Working with Domestic Violence: A Skills Based Course for Advanced Practitioners
- Values and Ethics for Advanced Practitioners, Leaders and Managers
- Risk and Decision-Making
- Work Based Learning: Advanced Practice and Leadership
- Leading and Managing in Systems
- Advanced Practice - Safeguarding Adults at Risk
- Advanced Practice - Putting Personalisation into Practice
- Systemic Practice with Families & Organisations: Course 1
- Systemic Practice with Families & Organisations: Course 2
- Systemic Practice with Families & Organisations: Course 3
- Practice Educator Professional Standards Stage 1 (PEPS 1)
Teaching & assessment
Teaching and assessment on this course is by a variety of methods (depending on modules chosen) including:
- Direct observation
- Recording
- Critical evaluation
- Presentation
- Written assignments
- Portfolios of practice evidence
- Dissertation
Entry requirements
Social work or other professional qualification in a relevant discipline at degree or Masters level.
Applicants will also be considered with a DipHE (e.g. DipSW) and at least two years practice experience.
Applicants must be currently involved in practice or management work in a social care or health setting.
International & EU requirements
English language requirements
MSc Advanced Practice requires:
- IELTS: 7.0 overall. No other subscore lower than 5.5.
- Pearson Test of English: 69 overall. No other subscore lower than 51.
- Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE): ISE IV.
- Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) grade C.
- TOEFL iBT: 97 overall, with Reading 18 Listening 17 Speaking 20 Writing 17.
- Duolingo: 120 overall, 100 in literacy, 110 in comprehension and 100 in conversation and production.
Your future career
For experienced professionals, postgraduate study will assist you in thinking critically and more deeply about your work, its setting and the role that you take within it.
This programme will give you knowledge and skills that are transferable to a wide variety of employment opportunities in advanced practice, leadership and management in social care and health services. This provides a boost to your career and leadership potential as well as a firm foundation for further postgraduate study and research,
Our department runs a Doctorate in Professional Studies (Health and Social Care Practice) in collaboration with St George's and Kingston University, which students who wish to pursue further study are encouraged to participate in. In addition, our department offers a more traditional PhD option for further study.
Fees, funding & scholarships
Home (UK) students tuition fee per year*: £9,000
EU and international students tuition fee per year**: £19,100
Other essential costs***:
20 credit modules: £595
40 credit modules: £970
40 credit work-based learning modules: £765
20 credit modules for students in qualifying placements: £150
How do I pay for it? Find out more about funding options, including loans, grants, scholarships and bursaries.
* and ** These tuition fees apply to students enrolled on a full-time basis in the academic year 2024/25. Students studying on the standard part-time course structure over two years are charged 50% of the full-time applicable fee for each study year.
Royal Holloway reserves the right to increase all postgraduate tuition fees annually, based on the UK’s Retail Price Index (RPI). Please therefore be aware that tuition fees can rise during your degree (if longer than one year’s duration), and that this also means that the overall cost of studying the course part-time will be slightly higher than studying it full-time in one year. For further information, please see our terms and conditions.
** This figure is the fee for EU and international students starting a degree in the academic year 2024/25. Find out more
*** These estimated costs relate to studying this particular degree at Royal Holloway during the 2024/25 academic year, and are included as a guide. Costs, such as accommodation, food, books and other learning materials and printing, have not been included.
