University College London (UCL)
Advanced Critical Care Practice MSc
London, United Kingdom
MSc
DURATION
3 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2026
TUITION FEES
STUDY FORMAT
Distance Learning
The MSc Advanced Critical Care Practice equips senior/graduate NHS nurses and Allied Health Professionals with the academic and professional skills to undertake Advanced Clinical Practice roles within Critical Care. Graduates of this programme will satisfy the professional registration requirements for the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine (FICM). We combine online learning with practical skills, and you are taught by experts in critical care, perioperative medicine, advanced practice, and pharmacy.
This new Advanced Critical Care Practice MSc (ACCP) enables nurses and health professionals to pursue a unique career pathway within Critical Care.
Our course is designed and delivered by a multidisciplinary faculty of clinical and education experts in critical care and in advanced practice. Your learning takes place on an engaging and supportive online learning environment. Students from all over the UK will be able to join and train as Advanced Critical Care Practitioners to deliver state-of-the-art care.
Through our online platform, we engage our students with all elements of Advanced Practice. We provide online teaching sessions, coaching and student pastoral support through immersive learning materials and facilitated group work. We are also creating a community of learners for peer-to-peer learning and providing structured educational support to busy NHS departments.
The course includes an integrated PG Cert in independent and supplementary non-medical prescribing with enhanced clinical assessment. Eligible students can graduate either with a master’s or with a PGDip ACCP as non-medical prescribers.
UCL Scholarships
There are a number of scholarships available to postgraduate students, including our UCL Masters Bursary for UK students and our UCL Global Masters Scholarship for international students. You can click the link below to search via the scholarships finder for awards that you might be eligible for. Your academic department will also be able to provide you with more information about funding.
External Scholarships
Online aggregators like Postgraduate Studentships, Scholarship Search, Postgraduate Funding and International Financial Aid and College Scholarship Search contain information on a variety of external schemes.
If you have specific circumstances or ethnic or religious background it is worth searching for scholarships/bursaries/grants that relate to those things. Some schemes are very specific.
Funding for disabled students
Master's students who have a disability may be able to get extra funding for additional costs they incur to study.
Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through distance e-learning, practice learning, tutorial groups, practical skills, and self-directed study. We use Moodle as the main learning environment for interaction and theoretical learning as well as virtual classroom facilities.
Much of your learning will happen during practice learning and one-to-one learning sessions at the patient’s bedside, guided by experienced teachers and intensive care consultants. Throughout the course, you will be expected to adhere to the GMC's Good Medical Practice guidelines and UCL's fitness to practise policy.
Each module has formative and summative assessments. These include:
- maintaining a record of in-training experience
- essays and written case-based discussions
- oral presentations
- contributions to group discussions
- reflective writing
- examinations (written, verbal and practical)
- an annual review of clinical and professional competence in line with FICM requirements (ARCP).
We use a variety of methods to guide your learning and offer a fair and interactive process.
For the first two years, you will be in supernumerary status, working at least 70% of WTE in the trainee-ACCP role. You spend 15-20% of your time in e-lectures, tutorials, and skills training. This equates to around 10 hours per week during term time. You spend at least 50% in the clinical environment, depending on your requirements and those of the clinical department. The rest is independent study. During the third year, you complete 600 hours of learning across clinical practice, independent study, and project work.
Modules
Part-time
You complete seven compulsory modules and a dissertation in a three-year period. The programme is delivered through a combination of synchronous and asynchronous online learning and hands-on practice in clinical assessment.
Students can graduate with a Postgraduate Certificate in Independent and Supplementary Non-medical Prescribing, a Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Critical Care Practice (2 years) or with the Master’s in Advanced Critical Care Practice (3 years).
Compulsory modules
- Introduction to Research and Improvement Science Methods
- Critical Care - Applied Anatomy and Physiology
- Independent and Supplementary Non-Medical Prescribing
- Ethical and Professional Standards of Advanced Practice in Critical Care
- Dissertation
- Clinical Assessment
- Advanced Critical Care Practice - Specialist Care
- Fundamentals of Critical Illness Disease Management
Please note that the list of modules given here is indicative. This information is published a long time in advance of enrolment and module content and availability are subject to change.
Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits. Upon successful completion of 180 credits, you will be awarded an MSc in Advanced Critical Care Practice.
Placement
Practice learning will be provided by selected NHS trusts with a partnership agreement with UCL. Applicants should note that this learning will be in locations within the UK, with the same NHS trust, for the duration of the 2-3-year programme. Please see the NHS jobs website for available trainee ACCP posts.
What this course will give you
This programme offers you the following benefits and opportunities:
- Access to one of very few university programmes that provide the professional qualifications to become an Advanced Clinical Practitioner in Critical Care with an Independent and Supplementary Non-medical Prescribing qualification.
- Expert teaching from world-leading critical care faculty and clinically practicing Consultant Intensivists, qualified Advanced Critical Care Practitioners and Pharmacists.
- A wealth of knowledge and expertise from UCL in collaboration with University College London Hospital. This high-quality programme is delivered directly by experts.
- Benefit from state-of-the-art digital technology connecting students in trusts all over the UK.
- Opportunities to work directly with experienced academics and develop projects that will be clinically applicable to your future career.
- A combination of innovative e-learning methods and practice learning in selected partner NHS trusts for collaborative learning.
The foundation of your career
The UK Advanced Clinical Practice workforce is evolving. Trusts will increasingly employ ACCPs to support safe high-quality care for an increasingly frail and comorbid population in technology-rich clinical environments. There will be options to specialise in numerous critical care skills and for career progression guided by the Advanced Practice and the Faculty of Intensive Care frameworks.
Employability
Our master's programme is among a select few to offer an advanced practice pathway within critical care that is purposefully aligned to Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine (FICM) accreditation. It has a unique focus on critical care pharmacology, on national standards, and meeting the needs of the complex critical care patient.
By completing this course successfully, you will satisfy the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine (FICM) professional registration requirements. You will go on to clinical practice working as a qualified Advanced Critical Care Practitioner and contribute to a dynamic and highly skilled medical workforce in the UK.
Networking
This programme is designed for you to network with a community of learners from across the UK to share experiences. As a UCL student and alum, you can have a central role in building an ACCP Community of Practice.
Accreditation
At UCL we are committed to achieving formal FICM Accreditation and NHS ACP Accreditation, both of which can be granted from 2026. The Advanced Critical Care Practice pathway at UCL fulfils the requirements of FICM for students to achieve membership status on successful completion of both the academic and clinical components to the training. The non-medical prescribing component of the programme is accredited by the NMC and the HCPC.