Studying with us in 2021/22
It is possible that the 2021/22 academic year may be affected by the ongoing disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Any arrangements put in place by the University for the 2021/22 academic year will be in accordance with the latest government public health advice, pandemic-related/health and safety legislation, and the terms and conditions of the student contract.
The Foundation Year option gives you extra time and support to help you build your knowledge, skills and confidence before starting a full degree. It is designed to prepare you for a range of health courses, not one particular BSc degree, so you will study a broad range of subjects to prepare you to continue on to successful BSc level study. You'll develop a range of practical and analytical skills that will prepare you for a challenging and rewarding career in healthcare.
Upon completion of your Foundation Year, if your chosen course is regulated by a professional body such as the HCPC, you will be required to successfully complete the University’s selection process for the specific programme which will include an interview in order to proceed onto year one of the full degree programme. Entry onto year one of the degree programme will also be subject to a satisfactory DBS and Occupational Health Assessment.
When you successfully complete your Foundation Year, you will be able to progress onto a range of Undergraduate courses at the School of Health Sciences. These include:
By studying a foundation year in Health Sciences, your first year will be spent learning a wide range of broad subject areas which then open up opportunities for you to specialise further in your next year – which would be the first year of a full degree programme.
You will study very broad subjects in your foundation year, which is designed to prepare you for a range of courses and not just one particular BSc degree.
So although you are studying a BSc in a specific course – BSc Operating Department Practice – the foundation year sets you up for a number of other possible degrees starting the following year. It may be that you don’t end up doing a degree in precisely the same subject as your foundation year.
This flexibility is one of the great things about the foundation year category - Health Sciences, allowing you to find out more about your interests and talents before focusing on a three year degree. The foundation year also helps us at BCU to make sure we help to match you to the degree that fits you best.
The course combines theoretical and practical skills, complemented with clinical placements in a range of specialities and settings. Our approach to learning means that you will leave with clinical competence and the ability to apply best knowledge to direct patient care in contemporary healthcare settings.
Your work will be assessed using a mix of methods including text based submissions, written examinations, oral examinations, presentations and clinical skills assessment both in placement and within simulated learning environments on campus. You will be encouraged to develop and demonstrate a range of skills to prepare you for a successful career as an Operating Department Practitioner, including confidence in care delivery, the ability to research, appraise and evaluate evidence.
Our students have gone on to work in places such as:
We accept a range of qualifications, the most popular of which are detailed below.
88 UCAS tariff points from A/AS Level |
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Level 2 Qualifications | ||
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UK Qualification | Requirements 2021/22 | |
GCSE |
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BTEC Level 2 Diploma |
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BTEC Level 2 Extended Certificate |
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City and Guilds Level 2 Certificates in Adult Numeracy/ Adult Literacy |
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Functional Skills/ Essential Skills level 2 |
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Key Skills level 2 |
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Irish Leaving Certificate (Ordinary Level) |
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Scottish Intermediate 2 |
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Scottish Credit Standard Grade |
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Scottish National 5 |
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IELTS |
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Level 3 (and above) Qualifications | ||
UK Qualification | Requirements 2021/22 | |
A level and Advanced VCE |
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Access to HE Diploma |
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NCFE CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma for Children’s Care, Learning and Development (Wales and Northern Ireland) |
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NCFE CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma for the Children and Young People’s Workforce |
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City and Guilds Level 3 Advanced Technical Extended Diploma (1080) |
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International Baccalaureate Diploma |
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Irish Leaving Certificate (Highers) |
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OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma |
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OCR Cambridge Technical Diploma |
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Open University courses |
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Scottish Advanced Higher |
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T-Levels |
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Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate - Skills Challenge Certificate (first teaching September 2015) |
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Welsh Baccalaureate Advanced Diploma – Core (awarded until 2016) ESW/KS Combined component |
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Other qualifications | ||
If you have a qualification that is not listed in the table please refer to our full entry requirements on UCAS. Recent relevant study to GCE A-level standard or above must have been completed within five years of the course intake date the applicant is applying for. Further guidance on tariff points can be found on the UCAS website. Upon completion of your Foundation Year, you will be required to successfully complete the University’s selection process for the specific programme which will include an interview in order to proceed onto year one of the full degree programme. Entry onto year one of the degree programme will also be subject to a satisfactory DBS and Occupational Health Assessment. |
88
tariff points needed for this foundation year
Award: BSc (Hons)
Starting: Sep 2021
Sorry, this course is not available to International students.
The University reserves the right to increase fees in line with inflation based on the Retail Prices Index or to reflect changes in Government funding policies or changes agreed by Parliament up to a maximum of five per cent.
For September 2021 entry we will be operating a ‘gathered field’ approach to applications. This is often used where the number of applications far exceeds the number of places available to make the admissions process more manageable – and to ensure places are offered to applicants on merit.
As a result, we will be working to the following timetable:
UK and EU students applying for most undergraduate degree courses in the UK will need to apply through UCAS.
The Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) is a UK organisation responsible for managing applications to university and college.
We offer a wide range of professionally accredited and vocational courses that require the purchase of, among other things, uniforms, equipment, subscriptions, professional body memberships and DBS checks, and may require you to pay to attend conferences or participate in placements.
The link below provides our estimate of the possible costs associated with key activities on specific courses. Please bear in mind that these are only estimates of costs based on past student experience and feedback. The actual costs to you could vary considerably (either greater or lower than these estimates) depending on your choices as you progress through the course. We set out where we can, based on experience, where these indicative costs are for activities that are optional or compulsory.
All our students are provided with 100 free pages of printing each year to a maximum total value of £15.
Find additional costs for your course
The cost of accommodation and other living costs are not included within your course fees. More information on the cost of accommodation can be found in our accommodation pages.
In order to complete this course a student must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits).
In order to complete this course, you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits).
In order to complete this course, you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits).
In order to complete this course, you must successfully complete all the following CORE modules (totalling 120 credits).
You have the flexibility to transfer to a standard undergraduate programme from the School of Health Sciences or the School of Nursing and Midwifery upon successfully completing your Foundation Year subject to DBS, Occupational Therapy Assessments and space available on the degree programmes, including:
Your programme is delivered using a modular approach and divides the content of the programme into manageable elements of study and practice learning opportunities.
From structured lectures to personal use of our multimedia facilities, the focus for learning in the classroom is to help you to:
The knowledge and skills in relation to the 3 main areas of perioperative practice; anaesthesia, surgery and post-operative care are introduced, developed and enhanced over the 3 year duration of the course.
The module delivery is arranged in blocks to allow you to apply your new knowledge in the clinical setting.
You will experience a mixture of teaching, self-directed study and practice-based clinical placements, spending 60% of your time each year on placement.
Successful completion of this programme gives eligibility to apply to the Health and Care Professions Council for registration as an Operating Department Practitioner.
If you are dyslexic, have a specific learning difference or a disability, we have a Disability Tutor who can help and support you.
Successful students can apply for registration with the Health and Care Professions Council.
You can specialise post-registration or move into management or teaching.
A comprehensive portfolio of post-registration short courses that focuses on Continuing Professional Development (CPD) is available, along with other postgraduate schemes.
Many are taught as part-time flexible modules to fit around your work and domestic commitments.
Advice is available on an individual basis on request, with reference to appropriate subjects, levels and routes of access.
To prepare students to meet the requirements for eligibility to apply for entry onto the Health and Care Professions Council register as Registered Operating Department Practitioners.
Combines theory with clinical placement to enhance awareness of different specialities in preparation for employment in operating theatre departments.
Develops transferable skills for working in a range of health care settings and recognising the need for life-long learning.
You will be required to travel for your clinical placements to engage in a broad range of specialities and practice areas. These placements will be with both NHS and independent health providers across the West Midlands.
It is important you appreciate that fees for accommodation and/or travel will require personal financial outlay; these may be reimbursable to some extent, the most up-to-date information can be found on the NHS Business Service Authority website and the administrative team can also advise. Additionally there is no guarantee of a placement in a specific hospital or area.
OpportUNIty: Student Jobs on Campus ensures that our students are given a first opportunity to fill many part-time temporary positions within the University. This allows you to work while you study with us, fitting the job around your course commitments. By taking part in the scheme, you will gain valuable experiences and employability skills, enhancing your prospects in the job market.
It will also allow you to become more involved in University life by delivering, leading and supporting many aspects of the learning experience, from administration to research and mentoring roles.
The very nature of the Operating Department Practice course is that it is a professional program leading to eligibility to apply for registration with the HCPC if successful.
The course develops essential skills enabling you to practice safely and effectively as a Registered Operating Department Practitioner and gain employment post qualification. However, we also want to encourage you to think about your potential future career path and help you plan your development to meet your long term expectations. Future career choices and development may lead to roles in the following but not limited to management, education, extended health care role (perioperative care practitioner, surgical first assistant).
We are constantly investing in our estate and are currently in the process of spending £260 million on new learning facilities.
We boast up-to-date, innovative facilities that simulate the real situations that medical staff may come across.
These resources are essential in offering students a hands-on introduction to health and social care practice. Much of our teaching is carried out within our state-of-the-art, £30m Seacole Building, which houses cutting-edge learning facilities.
Take a virtual tour of our skills suites at Seacole
In a sector where new techniques are constantly being discovered, we work hard to ensure that students learn using the most up-to-date equipment available. These include the only mock operating theatre in an English university and a cutting-edge radiography virtual clinical training facility, virtual ward and virtual case creator.
The mock operating theatre is set up in the way that you would it find in a hospital, with all of the machinery, tools and equipment necessary. Operating theatres can be daunting and confusing places on first view but with access to our mock theatre, you will be able to build up confidence and feel comfortable in your working environment.
The SPACE (Skills Practice And Care Enhancement) learning facility lets you further practice the skills taught in class, at your own pace and convenience.
It is fully stocked with the specialist items and equipment needed for procedures such as taking blood pressure, giving an injection, abdominal examination of a pregnant woman and caring for ill babies in an incubator.
The Seacole library, based at City South Campus, is one of the UK's largest specialist health education libraries. The state-of-the art facility offers an extensive range of range of information and reference materials set out in a relaxing environment, conducive to studying. There are comfortable seating areas, group study areas, a silent study area and private study rooms.
The Seacole building houses a large open access IT Suite which comprises of 96 PCs, full colour printers, photocopiers and scanners. Our PCs utilise the latest Intel i5 core technology, all with:
Our PCs are also designed to support students who may have difficulties with reading and writing, featuring specialised software with zooming/magnification and screen reading capabilities, which may also be customised for individual student needs.
The IT Suite offers extended opening hours and is supported by a specialist Open Access Assistant during term time. In addition to the open access PCs within the IT Suite, there are 12 networked student PCs available within Seacole library.
The academic team are dedicated to the development of future caring professionals and have many years of experience delivering perioperative education in the academic and clinical settings. The teams’ experience of delivering perioperative care in the ‘real world’ provides an excellent resource to develop an understanding of the relationship between theory and practice. Additionally, the team are committed to the enhancement of perioperative care more widely through publication and information sharing in the wider healthcare environment.
Mark joined the Professional Development Department (PDD) in 2018 as a Professional Navigator and as a Academic Skills tutor. During this time he has been involved in the development and running of the Faculty of Health Education and Life Sciences Foundation Year as both a course leader and module leader. At current there are two iterations of the Foundation Year catering for intakes in September and January. The Foundation Year allows students to progress onto a variety of HELS undergraduate courses.