The University of Edinburgh – College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine
Surgical Writing and Evidence Based Practice (Online Learning) PgCert, PgProfDev
Online
Postgraduate Certificate
DURATION
2 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
21 Aug 2026
EARLIEST START DATE
14 Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
GBP 5,070 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
Distance Learning
* estimated tuition for surgical writing and evidence based practice PgCert/PgProfDev
Key Summary
The Postgraduate Certificate of Surgical Writing and Evidence-Based Practice is offered in partnership with the BJS Foundation. The programme aims to support surgeons, clinicians and others to earn an academic qualification that recognises knowledge and skills in writing for:
- clinical practice
- editing
- evidence-based practice
Why Edinburgh?
The University of Edinburgh has a strong historical and trusted reputation in academic surgery and online surgical education. The BJS Foundation has a unique international reputation in surgical editing and publishing. This programme leverages the strong synergies between both parties, ensuring that teaching insights and materials are contemporary and at the cutting edge of academic and clinical practice.
This part-time, online learning programme builds on the global reach of the University’s existing successful online postgraduate programmes. You will enjoy a rich learning experience with a global student population from various academic and professional backgrounds.
Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD)
Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD) is aimed at working professionals who want to advance their knowledge through a postgraduate-level course(s), without the time or financial commitment of a full Postgraduate Certificate.
You may take a maximum of 50 credits worth of courses over two years through our PPD scheme. These lead to a University of Edinburgh postgraduate award of academic credit. Alternatively, after one year of taking courses you can choose to transfer your credits and continue on to studying towards a Postgraduate Certificate.
Although PPD courses have various start dates throughout a year you may only start a Postgraduate Certificate programme in the month of September.
Any time spent studying PPD will be deducted from the amount of time you will have left to complete a Postgraduate Certificate programme.
Please contact the programme team for more information about available courses and course start dates.
The programme is designed for people who want to gain a formal qualification to improve their professional and academic development in writing manuscripts for publication and evidence based practice, without needing to be based in Edinburgh.
The programme’s learning outcomes have been mapped onto the SCQF11-level characteristics.
This programme aims to equip you with evidence-based tools to be able to write in a scientific academic style, and undertake critical appraisal/peer review, editing and literature reviews to understand evidence-based practice.
On graduating from this programme, you will be able to write a manuscript for publication.
Many students on the programme will be in full-time employment, looking to enhance their professional and academic development.
This programme can enhance careers by equipping you with evidence-based tools to write a manuscript for publication. Knowledge and skills in research and academic writing are important for a career in clinical and surgical sciences and provide a solid foundation for future academic work.
Our courses also offer opportunities for continual professional development and optional content for other online masters programmes.
Further study
After completing this programme, you may wish to consider applying for a PhD or other research programme.
The programme consists of two 10-credit courses and two 20-credit courses.
The courses offered are:
- How to Write a Manuscript (10 credits)
- Reviewing the Evidence Base (10 credits)
- Understanding Publication and Peer Review (20 Credits)
- Evidence-Based Practice (20 credits)
- All four courses (60 credits) are required to complete the certificate. Alternatively, you can opt to take individual courses as Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD).
We recommend you set aside 100 hours for every 10 credits of study.
Funding for postgraduate study is different to undergraduate study, and many students need to combine funding sources to pay for their studies.
Most students use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:
- Borrowing money
- Taking out a loan
- Family support
- Personal savings
- Income from work
- Employer sponsorship
Other funding
The University of Edinburgh offers a small number of scholarships to outstanding candidates. These are very competitive. We publish data on the success rate for scholarship applications to help you understand the level of demand.
UK government postgraduate loans
If you live in the UK, you may be eligible for a postgraduate loan for online study from one of the UK’s governments.
If you intend to apply for a UK government loan you should apply for the 3-year Masters option.
Study options
Postgraduate Certificate Qualification
To gain the Postgraduate Certificate Qualification you need to complete all four courses.
How online learning works
This degree programme is taught entirely online. There is no need to come to the city or University campus.
All learning and teaching takes place within our virtual learning environment (VLE). Through the VLE, you can:
- access all your learning materials and study resources, including e-books and library resources
- interact with your tutors and classmates
An online degree from the University of Edinburgh is academically equivalent to an on-campus postgraduate degree and involves the same level of work overall. The qualification you get is of equal value. Your degree certificate will not mention that you studied the programme online.
Our online students not only have access to Edinburgh’s excellent resources but also become part of a supportive online community, bringing together students and tutors from around the world.
Time commitment
This programme is designed to be fully flexible to fit around your schedule. You can study in your own time and access all your learning resources, such as reading lists, discussion forums and slides from anywhere in the world.
If there are live online sessions, you can watch a recording later in the virtual learning environment at a time convenient to you.
Typically, you will need to dedicate around 10 to 20 hours per week to your programme, although managing this is up to you. This may also vary from course to course, and the time commitment may increase when assignments are due.