Develop your expertise in educational leadership
The MSc in Medical Education, delivered in partnership by the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and University College London (UCL), is a flexible, part-time postgraduate programme designed for clinicians who want to play a significant role in medical education.
Whatever your grade, from resident to consultant (or SAS equivalent), this medical education masters equips you with the skills to lead, innovate, and inspire in clinical education settings.
Applications for the 2025/26 intake are open. We advise you to apply early as applications may close before the closing date if all places are offered. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.
Why choose this programme?
- RCP and UCL both have outstanding reputations for delivering world-class education programmes
- Boost your CV and facilitate career progression
- Study flexibly while continuing your clinical work
- Receive tailored 1-to-1 academic support
- Access the Library services at RCP and UCL
- Network with a diverse cohort of medical educators
- Exit with a Postgraduate Certificate, Diploma, or full MSc qualification.
What you will learn
Through a blend of theory and practice, you will:
- Apply educational and assessment theories to your own teaching
- Undertake research into an area of medical education that interests you
- Develop critical thinking and academic writing skills
- Design learner-centred teaching sessions with clear objectives
- Develop skills in appraising residents and peers
- Enhance your ability to lead and innovate in clinical education.
Programme structure
- Postgraduate Certificate: 4 core modules (60 credits)
- Postgraduate Diploma: 7 core modules and 1 optional module (120 credits)
- MSc: 8 modules (120 credits) + research project (60 credits)
- Duration: 3–5 years (part-time, modular format).
Details of modules
4 x core 15 credit modules (60 credits total)
The year-long Certificate programme is designed to equip clinicians who are actively involved in both undergraduate and postgraduate training with effective teaching strategies, underpinned by educational theory and best practice, to enhance the way you support learning. It is ideally suited to you if you are looking to take on educational, assessment and supervision roles within your workplace.
Module 1: Teaching and learning in Medicine 1 (including Educational Literature and Educational Research; Structuring a Teaching Session, Objective Setting; Creating a Positive Learning Environment).
Module 2: Teaching and learning in Medicine 2 (including Evaluating Teaching, Differential Attainment, Small and Large Group Teaching; Collecting and Analysing Data).
Module 3: Educational supervision and clinical practice (including Teaching Clinical Reasoning; Clinical Communication; Teamworking and Team-based learning; Technology-enhanced learning and AI).
Module 4: Clinical teaching and principles of assessment (including Assessment within curricula; Workplace-based assessments; Clinical assessment; Setting appropriate pass marks (Angoff method).
After completion of the 4 core Certificate modules, 3 x core 15 credit modules, 1 x optional 15 credit module (120 credits in total)
The Diploma year of the programme is ideally suited for those wishing to take a deeper dive into medical education. It will enable you to build on your learning from the Certificate year, developing your expertise as a clinical educator and your ability to critically engage with educational theory and scholarship. This year of study will help you if you are interested in taking on an educational leadership role such as an MBBS year lead or Training Programme Director.
Module 5: Research Methods in Medical Education (including Research Principles and Methods; Quantitative and Qualitative Research)
Module 6: Advanced Teaching Skills (including Learning Theories; Feedback; Observation; Team-Based Learning)
Module 7*: Advanced Clinical Education (including Professionalism, Medical Ethics, Clinical Reasoning)
Module 8*: Course and Curriculum Design in Medical Education (including Principles and Theories of Curriculum Design; Assessing Doctors; Neurodiversity in the Curriculum)
*Modules 7 and 8 are optional modules. You may choose to replace ONE of these modules with another appropriate UCL module (students have previously chosen to follow modules on, for example, Simulation, Medical Leadership, Ethics).
After completing 120 credits from the Certificate and Diploma programme, you may choose to study for a Masters degree. This is a one year, one module (60 credit) programme in which you undertake a supervised research project on a medical education topic of your own choosing. You may elect to either undertake desk-bound research (report) or collect and analyse primary data (research dissertation). Your research is then written up as a 12000 word assignment.
This year will suit you if you are a highly-motivated learner with a passionate interest in an aspect of medical education that you wish to research in detail. You may be interested in developing an academic role in medical education, whether as a teacher or a researcher.
Titles of previous Masters assignments include:
- Becoming the medical registrar: a transformative learning experience
- Exploring the educational effectiveness of Schwartz rounds: a qualitative evidence synthesis
- What are educator and learner perspectives on the opportunities and challenges presented by generative AI in postgraduate Health Professions Education assessments?
- What are the experiences of students from ‘First-in-Family’ backgrounds at medical school, and how can educationalists support them? A narrative review.
Programme overview
The MSc is a flexible, part-time, modular programme that can be completed over 3 to 5 years. If you wish you may choose to exit with a Postgraduate Certificate or Diploma.
The programme is designed to enable you to apply your learning to your educational practice from the outset. You will learn effective teaching strategies and how to support learning in a variety of clinical and academic settings, underpinned by educational theories and recent scholarship.
You’ll be taught by an expert faculty that includes experienced medical educationalists from the RCP and senior academics from UCL. The faculty bring the curriculum to life by sharing practical insights and real-world examples from their own teaching and supervisory experience.
This is a valuable opportunity to learn from professionals who are not only experts in educational theory but also actively involved in multidisciplinary education.
UCL is consistently ranked among the world’s top universities, known for its research excellence and commitment to innovation in education. Combined with the RCP’s deep understanding of clinical practice and service development, this partnership ensures a postgraduate medical education programme that is both academically robust and practically relevant.
Entry requirements and application process
Applicants for entry in Autumn 2025 should be qualified doctors with an active role in medical education and must have completed at least the first year of foundation training.
Due to competition for places on the programme, it is important that your application includes details of your roles, responsibilities and interest in medical education.
English language requirements
The English language level required for this programme is: Good.
UCL deliver Pre-Master's and Pre-sessional English courses for international students who are aiming to study for a postgraduate degree at UCL. The courses will develop your academic English and academic skills required to succeed at postgraduate level. International Preparation Courses.
Further information can be found on the UCL English language requirements page.
Application process
Applications are open until 31 August 2025, you can apply on the UCL website.
Contact postgraduate@rcp.ac.uk if you have any queries.
Apply nowProgramme fees
Programme fees are paid to UCL, who offer students flexible arrangements to make payments in instalments.
Tuition fees (2025/26)
The fee for UK students per 15 credit module is: £1,441.67:
- PG Certificate (60 credits)
- PG Diploma (120 credits)
- MSc (180 credits).
If you are an international student, please visit the UCL website for more information on fees.
The tuition fees shown are for the 2025-2026 academic year. Fees for subsequent years may increase or otherwise vary.
Further information on fee status, fee increases and the fee schedule can be viewed on the UCL Students website.
Module details
Frequently asked questions
The Postgraduate Certificate, Diploma and Masters in Medical Education are designed to meet the needs of those wishing to develop their roles as educators. The programmes attracts participants from the full range of specialties, including surgeons, general practitioners, psychiatrists and radiologists as well as physicians. Participants are mainly speciality registrars, consultants or other career-grade doctors. This is a postgraduate programme; if enquirers have not completed their undergraduate studies they will not be considered for the programme.
UCL regulations require that students maintain a 70% attendance rate for each module. Students must provide extenuating circumstances where they are unable to attend. FY1 and FY2 doctors with limited study leave, please ensure that you have secured sufficient leave prior to applying to the course.
This is a flexible, modular masters programme and are taken sequentially. Starting with the Postgraduate Certificate in year one, progressing to the Diploma in the second year, and finally the masters in Medical Education. The full masters may be taken over a maximum of five years.
In the Certificate level of the course there are a total of 12 compulsory contact days. These are made up of four 3-day modules.
In the Diploma level of the course there are a total of 12 compulsory contact days. These are made up of four 3-day modules.
In the MSc level there are five compulsory contact days. Students will be assigned a personal tutor whilst completing and a project/report.
You are able to defer your place on the course. Flexible/modular students have five years to complete a Masters from initial registration on the Programme; five years to complete a Diploma from initial registration on the programme, and two years to complete a certificate from initial registration on the Programme.
No. This is a cumulative programme. You are able to exit after the Certificate level of the course, the Diploma level of the course or after MSc level of the course.
No. The teaching days are compulsory. However, these teaching days are supported via an online learning environment (called Moodle), where readings are uploaded and you can discuss projects in student forums.
For a comprehensive list of the funding opportunities available at UCL, including funding relevant to your nationality, please visit the Scholarships and Funding website.
Yes. All fees are paid directly to UCL, who offer students flexible arrangements to make payments in instalments. Further information can be found at UCL Students website.
Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. We advise you to apply early as applications may close before the closing date if all places are offered. Those applying for scholarship funding (particularly overseas applicants) should take note of application deadlines.
UCL regulations state that a student can apply to transfer (RPL – Recognition of Prior Learning) a maximum of 90 credits from a similar programme at another institution at a fee of £100. In order to apply for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), you will be required to demonstrate that you have successfully completed all learning objectives of the module you are claiming RPL for. You will not be permitted to attend only part of a module based on prior learning. A document outlining the objectives for each module can be found at the bottom of the FAQ section.
More information can be found at UCL: Academic Manual.
Please contact the postgraduate team at the RCP if you would like to request RPL.
Though a formal role in medical education is not required, applicants need to demonstrate a passion for medical education and will need to have access to medical students or trainees during their time on the course. This is important because much discussion during the course draws on participants’ current experiences of teaching and the first assignment involves participants reviewing a teaching session that they have designed and delivered.
Students wishing to progress to the diploma will be required to compile a portfolio evidencing their ongoing development as a medical educator and, therefore, need to be involved in teaching and facilitating learning. In addition, it is beneficial that you have some involvement in course or curriculum design and supervising trainees.
As the course is only offered with a part-time mode of study it is not possible to study on a Tier 4 visa. However, some international students who have the right to live and work in the UK on a working visa may be eligible to apply as overseas applicants.
Written assignments follow each module at certificate level. The diploma level is assessed by written assignments, and the Master's level is assessed by a dissertation.
Each level of the programme carries 60 masters-level credits, which equate to a notional 600 hours of study time. This includes attendance at face-to-face teaching days, self-directed study and research, and completion of assignments. This is an approximation only, and the hours required may vary according to individuals’ prior experience of the subject. This is in line with all other masters-level programmes in the UK.
Yes. The RCP CPD diary scheme allows you to claim one credit for every one hour of learning. Credits obtained from the MSc programme can be entered under the ‘self-certified’ tab in the CPD diary. Please be aware that a maximum of 12 credits will be counted as external per annum. The remaining MSc credits will be counted as personal. If you are registered with another CPD scheme please contact your scheme coordinator to confirm how to apply for credits.
Each module has a module tutor – a member of staff from the RCP who is responsible for the bulk of the teaching. The students are given the contact details for this tutor and should refer all subject-related queries to them.
All students will have full access to the Jerwood Medical Education Resource Centre (MERC) at the RCP. Specialist collections of books and journals are available. As well as remote access to a wide range of electronic materials and databases.