University home > Unit and programme catalogues in 2022/23 > Programme catalogue > Faculty of Health Sciences > Bristol Medical School > Bioethics (BSc) > Specification
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Programme code | 8MDYF010U |
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Programme type | Single Honours |
Programme director(s) |
Zuzana Deans
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Faculty | Faculty of Health Sciences |
School/department | Bristol Medical School |
Teaching institution | University of Bristol |
Awarding institution | University of Bristol |
Mode of study | Full Time |
Programme length | 1 years (full time) |
This section sets out why studying this programme is important, both in terms of inspiring you as an individual and in considering the challenges we face. It describes how this degree programme contributes to:
This degree is offered to students (usually from Medicine, Dentistry or Veterinary Science) as an intercalating award, taken after no less than 2 years of study. The programme aims to develop the student's interest in, and knowledge and understanding of, ethics in the biosciences, and specifically in health care. The assessment methods (the majority of which involves coursework) will enable students to gain skills and knowledge in philosophy, law and ethics and to chose and undertake a relevant research topic in this interdisciplinary field. Learning outcomes include knowledge of the literature of bioethics and the related disciplines of law and philosophy, ability to analyse critically a range of ethical issues in health care, ability to lead oral presentations on the subjects studied, ability to chose, plan and complete a research project in a topic relevant to health care practice, and improved skills in incorporating ethical awareness in (clinical) practice.
The learning outcome statements shown below for your programme have been developed with reference to relevant national subject benchmarks (where they exist), national qualification descriptors (see the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications) and professional body requirements.
Teaching, learning and assessment strategies are listed to show how you will be able to achieve and demonstrate the learning outcomes.
This programme provides opportunities for you to develop and demonstrate knowledge and understanding, qualities, skills and other attributes in the following areas:
Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning/teaching methods and strategies |
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Staff-led seminars Student-led presentations in seminars Lectures Tutorials |
Methods of assessment (formative and summative) | |
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Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning/teaching methods and strategies |
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Intellectual skills and acquisition of knowledge are tested and developed through the aforementioned methods and strategies. The assessment methods (below) enable the students to progress over the period of study, concluding with a dissertation. Written and verbal feedback from staff members both present at student presentations and acting as individual project advisors further facilitate student learning. |
Methods of assessment (formative and summative) | |
•Formative seminar exercises, including groupwork and student-led presentations •Formative plans and literature reviews •Formative and summative essays •Summative team portfolios •Summative reflective essays •Summative dissertation •Summative examination |
Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning/teaching methods and strategies |
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Undertaking and successfully completing the dissertation will facilitate progression to Masters or doctoral studies in the field (ability 1). All the units will enable the students to better understand the field and communicate this knowledge (abilities 2 & 3). The (in-house) units in particular will enhance verbal communication skills, as they comprise oral presentations (ability 3). |
Methods of assessment (formative and summative) | |
•Formative seminar exercises, including groupwork and student-led presentations •Formative plans and literature reviews •Formative and summative essays •Summative team portfolios •Summative reflective essays •Summative dissertation •Summative examination |
This section describes what is expected from you at each level of your programme. This illustrates increasing intellectual standards as you progress through the programme. These levels are mapped against the national level descriptors published by the Quality Assurance Agency.
Level H/6 - Honours |
These students will be intercalating, usually after two years of study on their originating programme (which is usually the MBChB Medicine). They will typically bring with them some knowledge of bioethics and medical law, drawn from units studied during the first and second years. The BSc (Hons) in Bioethics builds on these foundations. Students will be able, by the end of this year, to critically evaluate and apply what they have learnt on the programme. The specific expectations and stages of learning are: First semester:
Second semester:
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For information on the admissions requirements for this programme please see details in the undergraduate prospectus at http://www.bristol.ac.uk/prospectus/undergraduate/ or contact the relevant academic department.
UG Workload Statement
Success as an undergraduate student depends on you being able to make the transition to self-motivated, independent learning. Programmes are designed to assist you in this development, in many cases by starting with units in which timetabled teaching, such as lectures and practical classes, provides the foundations of knowledge and skills in a subject, moving on to individual research-based work. Over time you will be expected to take increasing responsibility for your own learning, guided by the feedback on your work that you will receive. At the heart of your studies at every level there must be regular and disciplined individual reading, reflection and writing and it is this skill of independent studies, above all others, that will serve you best when you leave the University.
Most programmes use credits and a 20 credit unit broadly equates to about 200 hours of student input. This includes all activities related to the teaching, learning and assessment of taught units.
A component of this is the time that you spend in class, in contact with the teaching staff, which includes activities such as lectures, laboratories, tutorials and fieldwork. Some of this activity may be online and could consist of activity that is synchronous (using real-time environments such as Blackboard Collaborate) or asynchronous (using tools such as tutor moderated discussion forums, blogs or wikis).
In some programmes there are field courses and/or placements that will take place in concentrated periods of time.
Outside scheduled activities you are expected to pursue your own independent learning to build your knowledge and understanding of the subjects you are studying. Such independent activities include, reviewing lecture material, reading textbooks, working on examples sheets, completing coursework, writing up laboratory notes, preparing for in-class progress tests and revising for examinations.
We recognise that many students undertake paid employment. To achieve a sensible balance between work and study, you are advised to undertake paid work for no more than 15 hours per week in term-time.
Professional Programmes
Many undergraduates in the Faculty of Health Sciences will be following the professional programmes of:
For these professional programmes, full time attendance is compulsory unless absence is formally approved. Academic activities are timetabled throughout the 5-day week and student workload is around 40 hours per week on average. Where possible, students in the early years are permitted Wednesday afternoons for sport and extra-curriculum activities. This may not be available in later years of professional programmes as when a student progresses through the curricula there is an increasing exposure to clinical and professional activities. Students in clinic or on placements may need to stay later than core times of 08.00 – 18.00 or even overnight to observe out-of-hours activities. This increasing exposure to clinical activities means that students on these professional programmes often have longer term dates than the University standard. Individual years within programmes are likely to vary in length (for example because of the timings of placements) and further information on this will be found in individual programme regulations. Another important point to note is that many of the assessments sit outside of the standard University examination timetable and are likely to be more frequent meaning that students will more oftentimes be engaged in revision activities and self-directed learning.
Faculty of Health Sciences
Faculty Assessment and Feedback Statement for Undergraduate Students. University of Bristol access only.
Centre for Ethics in Medicine web-site: http://www.bris.ac.uk/ethicsinmedicine/
This degree is offered to students (usually from Medicine, Dentistry, or Veterinary Science) as an intercalating award, normally taken after 2 or 3 years of study.
Unit Name | Unit Code | Credit Points | Status | |
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Ethics | PHIL20011 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-2 |
Introduction to Bioethics | SSCM30001 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Introduction to Medical Law | SSCM30002 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Medicine and Law | LAWD30004 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Select 40cp from: | ||||
Dissertation | MEDI30004 | 40 | Optional | AYEAR |
Bioethics (BSc) | 120 |
Unit Pass Mark for Undergraduate Programmes:
For details on the weightings for classifying undergraduate degrees, please see the Agreed Weightings, by Faculty, to be applied for the Purposes of Calculating the Final Programme Mark and Degree Classification in Undergraduate Programmes.
For detailed rules on progression please see the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes and the relevant faculty handbook.
Please refer to the specific progression/award requirements for programmes with a preliminary year of study, the Gateway programmes and International Foundation programmes.
All undergraduate degree programmes allow the opportunity for a student to exit from a programme with a Diploma or Certificate of Higher Education.
Integrated Master's degrees may also allow the opportunity for a student to exit from the programme with an equivalent Bachelor's degree where a student has achieved 360 credit points, of which 90 must be at level 6, and has successfully met any additional criteria as described in the programme specification.
The opportunities for a student to exit from one of the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine, and Dentistry with an Award is outlined in the relevant Programme Regulations (which are available as an annex in the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes).
An Ordinary degree can be awarded if a student has successfully completed at least 300 credits with a minimum of 60 credits at Level 6.
The pass mark for the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine and Dentistry is 50 out of 100. The classification of a degree in the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine, and Dentistry is provided in the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
Please note: This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of the programme and the learning outcomes that a typical student might reasonably be expected to achieve and demonstrate if he/she takes full advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided.
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