Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (Online Learning)
Provided by The University of Edinburgh Medical School
About the course
This three-year Masters programme will provide you with a detailed understanding of infection disciplines. The courses are designed to develop your understanding of the biology and transmission of pathogens, as well as infectious disease diagnosis, treatment and prevention.
Specific topics include:
- immune responses to infection
- science and biology of bacterial, viral, fungal and parasitic pathogens
- modern and emerging diagnostic technologies for infectious diseases
- infection prevention and control and anti-infective therapy
- infections in different contexts such as:
- community- acquired infections
- emerging infectious diseases
- infectious diseases associated with travel
Beyond the fundamental knowledge you will gain, our aim is to enable you to develop and critically assess cutting-edge research questions in clinical microbiology and infectious diseases.
Courses are offered as five-week courses, each worth 10 credits.
Postgraduate Certificate (Part-time 1 year; intermittent study 2 years)
The courses currently on offer in Year 1 are compulsory and include the following.
Introduction to immunology
This course covers the immune response to infection and the role of innate and adaptive immunity.
Science and biology of bacteria
This course will develop your understanding of the basic biology of bacterial pathogens and how they cause disease in humans.
Science and biology of fungi, parasites and prions
This course focuses on major parasitic (protozoan and helminth), fungal and prion diseases of humans.
Science and biology of viruses
This course covers the basic biology of viral pathogens and how they cause disease in humans.
Laboratory practice in microbiology, virology and serology
This course aims to develop your understanding of the clinical laboratory in the investigation, management and prevention of infection.
Anti-infective therapy and resistance
This course will develop your understanding of antimicrobial agents and their rational use in clinical settings based on evidence and existing policies. You will also be encouraged to investigate the evidence that underpins antimicrobial stewardship.
Postgraduate Diploma (Part-time 2 years; intermittent study 4 years)
In Year 2 you will select six elective courses. Year 2 course offerings and availability are subject to annual academic review and demand.
Courses currently on offer during Year 2 comprise the following:
Clinical syndromes and infection
You will develop your understanding of the pathogenesis, laboratory diagnosis, clinical investigation and treatment of a broad range of complex infection syndromes as well as the relationship between co-morbidities and infection.
Community acquired infections and public health
You will develop your understanding of factors contributing to community-acquired infections, learn about diagnosis and review case studies. Furthermore, the course encourages you to investigate principles of public health, disease surveillance, epidemiology and importance of immunisation in preventing infectious diseases.
Emerging infectious diseases
You will develop an understanding of the emergence of infectious diseases, the risk factors of disease emergence and the implications for disease surveillance and control in public health.
HIV-infected and other immune-compromised patients
This course aims to provide you with the ability to understand the causes of, and risk factors leading to, immune deficiency, and the ability to recognise infection in immune-compromised patients. It will also cover management of specific therapies in both HIV-infected and non-HIV immune-compromised patients as well as relevant counselling to patients, carers and relatives.
Infection prevention and control
You will examine the principles of infection prevention and control in order to reduce the risk of acquiring infections and to control their spread.
Molecular diagnostics of infection
This course aims to develop your knowledge of modern and emerging diagnostic technologies for infectious diseases. Our focus will be on rapid pathogen detection, antibiotic resistance determination, point-of-care testing, and high-throughput technologies such as next-generation sequencing and mass spectrometry.
Scientific analysis, review and presentation: Infectious diseases
This course is designed to develop your ability to critically review biomedical publications, to analyse and interpret data and to apply your skills to the design of research studies. Furthermore, you will be encouraged to critically assess the methodologies used in systematic reviews and meta-analysis.
Travel medicine and infectious diseases
This course aims to introduce the challenges of travel medicine, considering the recreational short-term traveller as well as long-term population movement.
Masters (Part-time 3 years; intermittent study 6 years)
In Year 3 you will carry out a dissertation project on a topic of your choice to complete your Masters degree.
Part-time
You can study this programme on a part-time basis. On successful completion of the courses and assessments you can graduate:
- with a postgraduate certificate (after one year; this is worth 60 credits)
- with a postgraduate diploma (after two years; this is worth 120 credits)
- with a Masters (after three years; this is worth 180 credits)
Intermittent study
Intermittent study allows more flexibility in how you choose to study. With this option, you will have up to 2 years to complete the certificate, up to 4 years to complete the diploma, and up to 6 years to complete the MSc.
The standard programme structure is still maintained in terms of the progression requirement for entry into the dissertation year. However, you can tailor your education to fit more closely with commitments in both your private and professional life.
Postgraduate Professional Development
Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD) is aimed at working professionals who want to advance their knowledge through a postgraduate-level course, without the time or financial commitment of a Postgraduate Certificate or Diploma.You may take a maximum of 50 credits worth of courses over two years through our PPD scheme. These lead to a University of Edinburgh postgraduate award of academic credit. Alternatively, after one year of taking courses, you can choose to transfer your credits and continue on to studying towards a higher award on a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma programme.
Although PPD courses have various start dates throughout the year, you may only start a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma programme at the start of the academic year in September. Any time spent studying PPD will be deducted from the amount of time you will have left to complete a Postgraduate Certificate or Postgraduate Diploma programme.
Find out more about compulsory and optional courses
We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.
Find out more about compulsory and optional courses
We link to the latest information available. Please note that this may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.
Enquire
| Start date | Venue | |
|---|---|---|
| 08 Sep 2025 | Distance learning | Book now |