Study healthcare abroad

Healthcare is a broad field of study that encompasses many disciplines and specialisms. You’ll develop the knowledge and skills needed to work in a variety of healthcare settings.

You’ll study how healthcare professionals use scientific research and methodology to prevent illness, provide quality care, and develop new treatments. You’ll explore key factors affecting the health of today’s population, and evaluate the effectiveness of current healthcare policies and guidelines.

The healthcare needs of a population vary widely from country to country. By studying abroad, you’ll see how healthcare services operate differently across the world, helping you grasp a more global comprehension of the field. Alongside improving your knowledge and employability, you’ll get to travel the world, make new friends, and create lifelong memories.

There are a range of undergraduate and postgraduate options to choose from when it comes to studying healthcare. Healthcare can be offered as either a BA or BSc over three or four years, depending on your university. A BSc usually requires you to undertake more independent research, but there is very little difference between the two programs overall.

Once you’ve finished your bachelor’s, you might choose to study a master’s over one or two years, followed by a PhD, which takes around five years to complete. You’ll be asked to narrow your focus on these programs and concentrate on specific areas of healthcare, such as management, administration, or public health.

If you decide to study in the US, you’ll probably select healthcare as your major. This means that you’ll take some healthcare-specific modules alongside your general liberal arts education in your first two years, before focusing entirely on your major in your final two years of study.

Healthcare programs are usually taught through a mixture of lectures, seminars, workshops, and tutorials. You could be assessed through multiple methods, ranging from exams and essays to presentations and practical assessments.

Thanks to the diversity of the field, there are plenty of opportunities to choose electives tailored to your specific interests. As such, the content of healthcare programs will vary widely between universities. However, there are some core areas of study you can expect to encounter, including:

• Introduction to healthcare
• Critical issues in health and wellbeing
• Human biology
• Infectious disease
• Public health
• Mental health
• Leadership and management in healthcare
• Healthcare guidelines and policy

Healthcare professionals perform a vital role in the daily functioning of modern society. As such, the skills and knowledge of healthcare graduates are always in huge demand. Your degree will be an excellent springboard into any of the following careers:

• Pharmacy technician
• Nurse
• Doctor
• Dentist
• Care worker
• Health service manager
• Occupational therapist
• Hospital manager

Remember, a degree in healthcare won’t qualify you to practice any kind of medicine. As such, some of the careers listed will require you to complete a more specialized postgraduate program in areas like medicine or dentistry. Your university’s career service will provide professional advice and guidance to help you take the next steps towards employment or postgraduate study.