Surgical Writing and Evidence Based Practice (Online Learning) PgCert, PgProfDev

Level: Postgraduate taught

Subject: Medicine

Year of entry: 2026

Study options

Mode of study

Online learning

Part-time intermittent study
  • PgProfDev | 2 years | Start date: multiple dates
Part-time
  • PgCert | 1 year | Start date: September 2026

Key facts

School

Edinburgh Medical School

College

College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine

Programme website
Accreditation

Not available

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Dive into an extensive selection of programme-specific session recordings hosted by our Academic and Professional Services staff.


About the degree programme

The Postgraduate Certificate of Surgical Writing and Evidence Based Practice is offered in partnership with the BJS Foundation. The programme aims to support surgeons, clinicians and others to earn an academic qualification that recognises knowledge and skills in writing for:

  • clinical practice
  • editing
  • evidence based practice

Why Edinburgh?

The University of Edinburgh has a strong historic and trusted reputation in academic surgery and online surgical education. The BJS Foundation has a unique international reputation in surgical editing and publishing. This programme leverages the strong synergies between both parties, ensuring that teaching insights and materials are contemporary and at the cutting edge of academic and clinical practice.

This part-time, online learning programme builds on the global reach of the University’s existing successful online postgraduate programmes. You will enjoy a rich learning experience with a global student population from various academic and professional backgrounds.

Who this programme is for

The programme is designed for people who want to gain a formal qualification to improve their professional and academic development in writing manuscripts for publication and evidence based practice, without needing to be based in Edinburgh.

Study options

Postgraduate Certificate Qualification

To gain the Postgraduate Certificate Qualification you need to complete all four courses.

Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD)

Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD) is aimed at working professionals who want to advance their knowledge through a postgraduate-level course(s), without the time or financial commitment of a full Postgraduate Certificate.

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 Postgraduate Certificate.

Although PPD courses have various start dates throughout a year you may only start a Postgraduate Certificate programme in the month of September.

Any time spent studying PPD will be deducted from the amount of time you will have left to complete a Postgraduate Certificate programme.

Please contact the programme team for more information about available courses and course start dates.

For those who are interested in academic surgery, this programme comes highly recommended. It gives you literally the building blocks you need to build a career in academic writing. It was an interactive programme. The faculty were very helpful through the webinars they organised and behind the scenes support they gave throughout the length of the programme. 

I’m in my final year of my residency training as a neurosurgeon and one of the things I'm supposed to do is to write a dissertation. For me, the course couldn't have come at a better time and was instrumental in helping me finish up my dissertation in good time.

Dickson Bandoh Writing in Surgery Graduate 2022

Tuition fees

Tuition fees by award and duration

Tuition fees for full-time and part-time options are listed for one academic year.

Part-time intermittent study
Part-time

Graduate discount

If you are a University of Edinburgh graduate, you will be eligible for a 10% discount on your tuition fees for this programme. You may also be eligible if you were a visiting undergraduate student.

Find out how to receive your graduate discount

Deposit

You do not have to pay a deposit to secure your place on this programme.

Funding opportunities

Funding for postgraduate study is different to undergraduate study, and many students need to combine funding sources to pay for their studies.

Most students use a combination of the following funding to pay their tuition fees and living costs:

  • borrowing money
    • taking out a loan
    • family support
  • personal savings
  • income from work
  • employer sponsorship
  • scholarships

Explore sources of funding for postgraduate study

Other funding

The University of Edinburgh offers a small number of scholarships to outstanding candidates. These are very competitive. We publish data on the success rate for scholarship applications to help you understand the level of demand.

Scholarship applications - success rate data

If you live in the UK, you may be eligible for a postgraduate loan for online study from one of the UK’s governments.

If you intend to apply for a UK government loan you should apply for the 3-year Masters option.

View details: UK government loans

Search for other funding opportunities

You can find scholarships, bursaries and other funding you might be eligible for on our Scholarships and Student Funding site.

Postgraduate funding opportunities

These entry requirements are for the 2026-27 academic year and requirements for future academic years may differ. Entry requirements for the 2027-28 academic year will be published on 1 Oct 2026.

Qualifications

An accredited medical degree (MBChB or equivalent) recognised by the General Medical Council in the UK, or an equivalent national body, or a  UK 2:1 honours degree, or its international equivalent,  in a subject related to healthcare, medical writing or publishing.

We may also consider your application if you have a UK 2:2 honours degree or its international equivalent, in a subject related to healthcare, medical writing or publishing and you have relevant work experience. If your experience is in medical writing or publishing it must total three, or more, years. Please contact the programme team to check before you apply.

International qualifications

To find international equivalent qualifications, select where you studied from the country or region list.

English language requirements

You must prove that your English language abilities are at a high enough level to study this degree programme.

This is the case for all applicants, including UK nationals.

You can meet our English language requirements with one of the following:

  • an English language test
  • a degree that was taught and assessed in English
  • certain professional qualifications

English language tests we accept

We accept any of the following English language tests, at the specified grade or higher:

  • IELTS Academic: total 6.5 with at least 6.0 in each component. We do not accept IELTS One Skill Retake to meet our English language requirements.
  • TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition): total 92 with at least 20 in each component We do not accept TOEFL MyBest Score to meet our English language requirements.
  • C1 Advanced (CAE) / C2 Proficiency (CPE): total 176 with at least 169 in each component.
  • Trinity ISE: ISE II with distinctions in all four components.
  • Oxford ELLT: total 7 with at least 6 in each component.
  • Oxford Test of English Advanced: total 145 with at least 135 in each component.
How old your English language tests can be
Tests no more than two years old

The following English language tests must be no more than two years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts, regardless of your nationality:

  • IELTS Academic
  • TOEFL-iBT (including Home Edition)
  • Trinity ISE
  • Oxford ELLT
  • Oxford Test of English Advanced
Tests no more than three and a half years old

All other English language tests must be no more than three and a half years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts, regardless of your nationality.   

Degrees taught and assessed in English

We accept an undergraduate or postgraduate degree that has been taught and assessed in English in a majority English-speaking country, as defined by UK Visas and Immigration.

UKVI list of majority English speaking countries

We also accept a degree that has been taught and assessed in English from a university on our list of approved universities in non-majority English-speaking countries (non-MESC).

Approved universities in non-MESC

How old your degree can be

If you are not a national of a majority English-speaking country, then your degree must be no more than five years old on the 1st of the month in which your programme starts.

This time limit does not apply to your degree if you are a national of a majority English-speaking country.

Find out more about our English language requirements

Find out about other English language qualifications we accept, including professional qualifications.

English language requirements

What you will study

The programme consists of two 10-credit courses and two 20-credit courses.

The courses offered are:

  • How to Write a Manuscript (10 credits)
  • Reviewing the Evidence Base (10 credits)
  • Understanding Publication and Peer Review (20 Credits)
  • Evidence Based Practice (20 credits)

All four courses (60 credits) are required to complete the certificate. Alternatively, you can opt to take individual courses as Postgraduate Professional Development (PPD).

We recommend you set aside 100 hours for every 10 credits of study.

Find courses for this programme

Find out what courses you can study on this programme and how each of them are taught and assessed.

The courses on offer may change from year to year, but the course information will give you an idea of what to expect on this programme.

Part-time intermittent study
Part-time

We link to the latest information available. This may be for a previous academic year and should be considered indicative.

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

Teaching is delivered entirely online to enable you to study around existing commitments and help you progress your career. Our students often find they can immediately apply what they learn online in their daily profession.

Assessment

You will be assessed using a variety of online formative and summative assessments, including interactions on asynchronous discussion boards and written assignments.

Learning outcomes

The programme’s learning outcomes have been mapped onto the SCQF11-level characteristics.

This programme aims to equip you with evidence-based tools to be able to write in a scientific academic style, and undertake critical appraisal/peer review, editing and literature reviews to understand evidence-based practice.

On graduating from this programme, you will be able to write a manuscript for publication.

How online learning works

This degree programme is taught entirely online. There is no need to come to the city or University campus. 

All learning and teaching takes place within our virtual learning environment (VLE). Through the VLE, you can: 

  • access all your learning materials and study resources, including e-books and library resources
  • interact with your tutors and classmates 

An online degree from the University of Edinburgh is academically equivalent to an on-campus postgraduate degree and involves the same level of work overall. The qualification you get is of equal value. Your degree certificate will not mention that you studied the programme online.

Our online students not only have access to Edinburgh’s excellent resources, but also become part of a supportive online community, bringing together students and tutors from around the world.

Watch our video to see how online learning works.

Time commitment

This programme is designed to be fully flexible to fit around your schedule. You can study in your own time and access all your learning resources, such as reading lists, discussion forms and slides from anywhere in the world.  

If there are live online sessions, you can watch a recording later in the virtual learning environment at a time convenient to you.    

Typically, you will need to dedicate around 10 to 20 hours per week to your programme although managing this is up to you. This may also vary from course to course, and the time commitment may increase when assignments are due.  

See 'Find courses' in Programme details for more information about study time commitment

Equipment and software needs

To study this online programme, you will need access to:   

  • a computer or laptop  
  • the internet  
  • the latest version of a web browser  

As an online student, you will have access to a range of software you can download to help you complete your coursework, including Microsoft Office 365. 

IT support is available if you have technical difficulties.  

IT and computing help

Support for online students

Career opportunities

Many students on the programme will be in full-time employment, looking to enhance their professional and academic development.

This programme can enhance careers by equipping you with evidence-based tools to write a manuscript for publication. Knowledge and skills in research and academic writing are important for a career in clinical and surgical sciences and provide a solid foundation for future academic work.

Our courses also offer opportunities for continual professional development and optional content for other online masters programmes.

Further study

After completing this programme, you may wish to consider applying for a PhD or other research programme.

Applying for research degrees

Moving on to a PhD (advice from the University's Careers Service)

Careers Service

Our Careers Service can help you to fully develop your potential and achieve your future goals. 

The Careers Service supports you not only while you are studying at the University, but also for up to two years after you finish your studies. 

With the Careers Service, you can: 

  • access digital resources to help you understand your skills and strengths
  • try different types of experiences and reflect on how and what you develop
  • get help finding work, including part-time jobs, vacation work, internships and graduate jobs
  • attend careers events and practice interviews
  • get information and advice to help you make informed decisions 

Visit the Careers Service website 

How to apply

You apply online for this programme. After you read the application guidance, select your preferred programme, then choose 'Start your application' to begin.

If you are considering applying to more than one programme, you should be aware that we cannot consider more than 5 applications from the same applicant.

When to apply

Programme start date Application deadline
14 September 2026 21 August 2026

We encourage you to apply as soon as possible so that we have enough time to process your application. This is particularly important if you are also applying for funding. Applications may close earlier than published deadlines if there is exceptionally high demand.

For an application to be reviewed, it must be a complete application by the application deadline with all supporting documentation uploaded, including references and transcripts.

If you already have evidence that you meet the English language entry requirements, such as via an approved English language test, please upload this evidence at the time of your application. If you have not already met your English language requirements, please upload that evidence as soon as you have it.

Application fee

There is no fee to apply to this programme.

What you need to apply

As part of your online application, you will need to provide: 

You will also need to submit some or all of the following supporting documents:

When you start your application, you will be able to see the full list of documents you need to provide.

References

You must submit one reference with your application.

Apply

Select the award, duration and delivery mode you want to study. Then select the start date you want to apply for.

After you apply

Once you have applied for this programme, you will be able to track the progress of your application and accept or decline any offers.

Checking the status of your application

We will notify you by email once we have made a decision. Due to the large number of applications we receive, it might take a while until you hear from us.

Receiving our decision

What to do if you receive an offer:

General enquiries

Contact our enquiry team about eligibility or how to apply.

Contact us

Academic contact

Dr Susan Morrow

Programme Director

  • Edinburgh Medical School
  • College of Medicine & Veterinary Medicine
  • University of Edinburgh

Contact details

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