Carlisle, United Kingdom
DURATION
2 years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 9,250 / per year *
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* UK students
Key Summary
Introduction
Are you wondering how to become an occupational therapist? Do you want to help others achieve their goals and help improve people's lives? Become a champion for the rights and beliefs of people to take part in the occupations that they need and value.
Our innovative occupational therapy degree is accredited by the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) as a professional body and approved by the Health Care Professions Council (HCPC). Our degree is designed to equip you with the skills and professional qualifications required for you to become an occupational therapist.
The MSc Occupational Therapy degree at the University of Cumbria provides you with excellent training to become a highly skilled and knowledgeable occupational therapist. We will support you to gain a wide range of up-to-date professional and practical skills so you can help people to do all the occupations they need and want to do. Our degree will enable you to become a part of a hugely diverse and person-centred profession which transforms people’s lives through occupation.
Our programme offers you varied ways in which to learn with increased practical learning in a range of settings from classrooms, to practical skills rooms such as our mock ward and flat. In our impressive simulation facilities, we will work with you to apply your theoretical learning to simulated real-world scenarios. These will enable you to build your confidence and skills in safe and supportive practice environments, before progressing to real-life cases.
Throughout the two years of your Master's degree, we provide you with at least 1,000 hours of placement in a variety of settings with children, adults, and older adults with physical, social, or mental health challenges. We have extensive practice placement providers and so can offer you a broad range of placements in physical, and mental health, children’s services and learning disabilities. Travel to your placement may be up to 90 minutes each way, for some placements. Your final placement is elective, which means you can choose where your placement takes place within the United Kingdom or the wider world. Further information about what makes an eligible elective placement will be given at the beginning of the programme.
We are regulated by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and our Professional Body is the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT). You will be eligible to apply for registration with the HCPC and apply for membership in RCOT upon graduation. Our graduates have an outstanding reputation making them sought after by a multitude of employers including the NHS, councils, private, voluntary, and independent sector organisations.
Gallery
Admissions
Scholarships and Funding
You may also be eligible for additional funding through the NHS Learning Support Fund.
If you're eligible, you can get access to:
- A Training Grant of £5,000 per academic year
- Parental Support of £2,000, if you have at least one dependent child under 15 years, or under 17 years if registered with special educational needs
- Travel and Dual Accommodation Expenses
- Exceptional Support Fund (Students experiencing financial hardship)
Curriculum
The programme will equip you with all the skills you need to practice whether you choose to work in the NHS or the independent sector. This programme is based on the understanding that people are occupational beings who need to engage in a balanced range of personally meaningful occupations to sustain health and well-being.
You will respond to current local, national and global needs and priorities relevant to individuals and populations. For example, you will explore lifestyle factors affecting health and well-being and the necessity for health-promoting strategies to support positive change both nationally and internationally.
By the end of the programme, you will not only be able to practice safely and effectively but will be able to offer creative solutions to complex issues in practice through engaging with current evidence and reflecting on your practice placement experience. A key element in our programme design has been to create an effective, dynamic learning environment in which you are an active participant in directing your learning and developing your emerging professional identity.
The programme runs for almost two calendar years and offers an integrated timetable with periods of academic work interspersed with practice placements. In addition to the Occupational Therapy-specific modules, you will consider the social and political drivers influencing healthcare. An annual student research conference gives you an opportunity to hear and interact with your peers and also to present your own dissertation research.
Year One
The first year of the programme is designed to give you the key and core skills you need for supported practice. There is an expectation that you will have an existing level of knowledge and understanding of human anatomy and physiology or psychology from your first degree or occupation.
Applied Occupational Therapy
The aim of this module is to integrate theoretical knowledge of life science and human occupation into practice contexts of Occupational Therapy. The focus will be on applying the Occupational Therapy process to deliver best practice.
Fundamentals of Occupation and Occupational Therapy
The aim of this module is for you to develop a detailed knowledge and understanding of the philosophy underpinning Occupational Therapy and the relationship between occupation, health and wellbeing.
Occupational Science, Health and Wellbeing
The aim of this module is to develop your awareness of the transformational potential of occupation. You will develop knowledge of the science of occupation and explore its relevance to understanding humans as occupational beings from national and global perspectives.
Project Design
The aim of this module is to give you an advanced understanding of project design and selected research methods. You will have the opportunity to design and justify a small-scale study, which can contribute to the profession’s evidence base.
Occupational Therapy in Practice 1
The aim of this module is to prepare you for practice and to introduce you to Occupational Therapy within an applied setting. The emphasis is on developing clinical reasoning, activity/occupational analysis and applying practical skills within the context of practice, under supervision.
Occupational Therapy in Practice 2
The aim of this module is to continue to develop your knowledge and understanding of occupational performance and to integrate this into practice contexts. The emphasis is on quality and evidence-based practice. This practice placement consolidates your learning from all previous modules.
Year Two
The Contemporary Occupational Therapist
To develop knowledge and skills to promote sustainability of the OT profession and to respond to cultural, societal and global changes which influence health and wellbeing. The focus of this module will be to encourage you to apply and demonstrate contemporary and professional skills.
Occupational Design
The aim of this module is for you to work in small groups to design, implement and evaluate an Occupational Therapy intervention. This intervention will recognise and include, where appropriate local, national and global needs and priorities.
Independent Exploration of Practice
The aim of this module is to enable you to identify an area of study that permits the development of individual knowledge related to Occupational Therapy and/or occupational science that facilitates personal and professional learning.
Researcher Development
The aim of this module is to enable you to develop a critical awareness of research design by conducting a research project on a topic relevant to your professional practice and evidence of your research skill development.
Occupational Therapy in Practice 3
The aim of this module is to consolidate and further develop your Occupational Therapy practice skills. Emphasis will be placed on the development of occupation-based interventions using best practice, clinical reasoning and reflection.
Occupational Therapy in Practice 4
The aim of this practice placement is to facilitate your transition from student to therapist and for you to demonstrate your ability to practice at the level of a newly qualified Occupational Therapist.
Program Outcome
On This Course You Will...
- Be a member of a close-knit cohort and work in small groups with your peers, with excellent learning support from highly experienced occupational therapists
- Benefit from our practical approach to teaching and learning in our purpose-built mock wards and flats as well as simulation suits
- Be fully supported by our teaching and student support teams, enabling you to learn your way
- Experience and learn from a range of practice placements which you are well prepared for with pre-placement practical skills and simulation learning
- Have a personal tutor who will support you throughout your time on the programme, providing extra academic and pastoral support.