Healthcare Science (Medical Engineering)

Our BSc (Hons) Healthcare Science (Medical Engineering) gives you the clinical, technical and problem‑solving skills needed for a rewarding career as a medical engineer. You will take on a hands‑on role working with medical devices used across healthcare settings (e.g. for radiotherapy treatment), ensuring that vital equipment is safe, effective and reliable for patient care.

Throughout the degree, you will learn about the full medical equipment lifecycle, from acceptance testing and introducing new devices into service to advising clinicians on correct use, addressing patient safety issues and managing the safe disposal of older equipment. You will combine in-depth academic study with practical clinical and technological experience in specialist healthcare environments.

Medical engineering is an exciting and varied role where you will apply knowledge from electronic and mechanical engineering to assess, maintain, modify and, in some cases, help design medical devices used in patient treatment and diagnosis. It is an exciting, continually developing field that requires a high level of responsibility and technical skill.

This programme combines theoretical learning with practice‑based experience at FHEQ Levels 4, 5 and 6. It has been commissioned and funded by Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW), with clinical placements delivered across health boards (HBs) in Wales.

In Year 1, you will typically study areas including: Professional and Clinical Practice for Clinical Engineering; Anatomy and Physiology for Healthcare Science; Fundamentals of Healthcare Science; Scientific Basis of Engineering, Pathophysiology for Healthcare Science.

In Year 2, you will typically study areas including: Professional Practice 2; Research Methods and Statistics; Instrumentation Signal Processing and Imaging Healthcare Science Work Based Placement 1 (Medical Engineering); Medical Equipment Lifecycle; Fluid Mechanics, Biomechanics and Materials; Innovation and Medical Devices.

In Year 3, you will typically study areas including: Professional Practice 3; Healthcare Science Research Project; Healthcare Science Work Based Placement 2 (Medical Engineering); Medical Engineering in the Clinical Environment; Science and Principles supporting Medical Engineering.

You will be assessed via a variety of methods throughout the three years of study. You will complete written examinations, written assignments, presentations, case-based discussions and assessments of clinical competency. In year three, you will have the chance to complete a research project. The results of this will be presented as part of your dissertation and you will be involved in a peer-assessment scientific poster presentation.

Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.

• Physics and Engineering in Medicine, Institute of