Operating Department Practice with Foundation Year

100% of our Operating Department Practice students were in employment or further study 15 months after finishing their course
(Graduate Outcomes Survey 2025)

Study a health foundation year and learn the key concepts and principles in health and social care to complete a full Honours degree. You'll be able to begin this qualification without meeting the level 3 entry requirements, gaining the essential skills required to succeed in degree-level education.

You can then start your healthcare career as an Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) at Canterbury Christ Church University, playing a vital role in patient care before, during, and after surgery. Accredited by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), this degree will prepare you to apply for professional registration and work confidently in operating theatres across the UK.

What you'll learn

• Deliver safe and effective care across all stages of surgery.

• Develop advanced practical skills in simulated operating theatre environments.

• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to enhance patient outcomes.

• Gain additional clinical skills which have previously only been available through post qualification courses.

• Prepare for registration with the HCPC and a rewarding career in perioperative healthcare.

You’ll learn in state-of-the-art simulation suites, including fully equipped operating theatres and scrub rooms, ensuring you gain safe, realistic, and immersive training. What's more, you will undertake a placement in a critical care area outside the theatre department to help you develop interdisciplinary working.

From day one, you’ll work alongside experienced academics and healthcare professionals who will guide your development and support your career progression. You will also gain additional clinical skills not typically taught as part of an undergraduate degree. Among these is learning surgical competences enabling them to practice in a specialist role in surgery known as the Surgical First Assistant (SFA).

By combining practical experience with academic learning, you’ll graduate as a confident, competent, and employable ODP ready for the fast-paced world of perioperative practice.

Professional accreditation

The course meets the requirements of the College of Operating Department Practitioners curriculum and is approved by the Health and Care Professions Council.

On completion of the course and in preparation for registration, the Course Director must be satisfied that you meet the relevant statutory regulatory body fitness to practise criteria. You will be required to sign an annual declaration of ongoing fitness to practise at regular intervals during the course.

Specialist facilities

As a healthcare student, you will have access to our specialist, industry-relevant, simulation facilities at our Medway Campus. You will develop your practical skills in our state-of-the-art simulation suites, which come fully equipped with a simulated operating theatre and scrub room.

https://www.canterbury.ac.uk/study-here/courses/operating-department-practice-foundation-year?year=september-2027&modeRef=0#courseModules