Health and Clinical Research Delivery
Provided by University of Sheffield Medical School
About the course
Course description
This part-time, fully online programme is designed for practitioners such as doctors, nurses, midwives, pharmacists, healthcare scientists, and allied health professionals who want to excel in clinical research delivery. Whether you are new to research or already involved, this course prepares you with essential skills to improve future healthcare for your patients.
Our curriculum focuses on the practical aspects of delivering clinical research. You'll explore ways to enhance participant recruitment and consider the challenges and impacts of conducting research. The ‘ Research Practice Experience’ module will let you apply what you learn by participating directly and reflecting on real-world research delivery activities. By the end of the course, you'll have the skills and confidence to lead health-related or clinical research that improves people’s health and well-being and health and social care services.
Flexible study
Our program offers maximum flexibility to fit your work and personal commitments. You'll study part-time online, allowing you to progress at your own pace and integrate learning into your professional practice from any location.
You can tailor your study duration to your goals: complete a PG Certificate in one year, a PG Diploma in two years, or a full master's in three years. We offer flexibility to adjust your study timeline as needed, with support throughout.
To succeed, you should
- dedicate about 20 hours per week to coursework
- spend approximately 3 hours per week on practical and research activities
- identify a work-based supervisor for the Research Practice module
- secure organisational support and approval from your line manager
- if employed outside England, work for an organisation involved in health, care or clinical research with access to local research delivery training
Applying for Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)
You can apply to use previous study or experiential learning to count towards your Health & Clinical Research Delivery qualification.
For more information on RPL read the University of Sheffield's Recognition of Prior Learning policy .
To make an application you must complete the RPL application form and email it to population-health-clinres@sheffield.ac.uk .
If you are applying for RPL based on experiential learning, you should refer to the HCRD RPL Guidance carefully to ensure that you include all of the relevant information.
You will also need to submit a postgraduate online application form to be considered for entry. Approval of your RPL application does not guarantee you a place on the course.
Clinical Research vs Health and Clinical Research Delivery
We offer two different courses in the field of health research: the MSc in Health and Clinical Research Delivery (HCRD), which is delivered remotely, and a Masters in Clinical Research (MClinRes), delivered on campus. If you're not sure which course to take, use the table below to help you.
Which course should I take?
| Consideration | MClinRes (Campus) | HCRD (online) |
|---|---|---|
| I want to study part-time. | Yes | Yes |
| I want to study full-time. | Yes | No |
| I want to study remotely with maximum flexibility around my working commitments. | No | Yes |
| I want in-person contact with tutors and other students. | Yes | No |
| I want to be involved in delivering NIHR portfolio studies (recruiting to studies I did not design, engaging service users, and involvement in site set-up roles like R&D) | Yes | Yes |
| I want to be a local principal investigator (responsible for study delivery) in my NHS trust, health or care organisation. | Yes | Yes |
| I want to design my own research and lead national funding applications. | Yes | No |
| I want to be a co-applicant on national research funding applications or lead local funding bids. | Yes | Yes |
| I am interested in leading the embedding of research into my local NHS trust, health or care organisation and increasing its research activity. | Yes | Yes |
| I am interested in becoming an independent academic/clinical academic and wish to pursue PhD study. | Yes | Yes |
| I want to follow a standardised masters programme. | No | Yes |
| I want to tailor my masters programme by selecting modules most relevant to my learning needs and research interests. | Yes | No |
| I would like the opportunity to observe how research is delivered in practice through a placement | No | Yes |
Use the link below to view the Masters in Clinical Research (MClinRes) course:
Clinical Research MSc PG Certificate PG Diploma
- September 2025 start
- 1 year 2 years 3 years Full-time Part-time
Our Clinical Research course prepares students with the skills to critically evaluate research and handle the practical and regulatory challenges of designing and conducting clinical and health research projects.
Do you have a question? Talk to us
Book a 15-minute online meeting with our school postgraduate taught courses director to find out more information and ask further questions.
Book a chat with Deputy Programme Director Claire Beecroft
Accreditation
All our HCRD qualifications are accredited by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC).
This programme has been developed in line with the new NIHR-AoMRC Clinician Researcher Credentials Framework . This framework was designed by both the NIHR and the AoMRC to bridge the research skills gap within the NHS and other healthcare services. We work with partner organisations from the healthcare sector to develop the course and tailor it to your needs.
Enquire
| Start date | Venue | |
|---|---|---|
| 01 Sep 2025 | Distance learning | Book now |