Is this course for me?
This course provides a broad understanding of infectious diseases and is of particular relevance to in-service health professionals such as doctors or laboratory staff. You will develop strategies for the control and treatment of infectious diseases, acquiring new knowledge and updating your current expertise.
Course aims
The course aims to provide:
-
a comprehensive understanding of the role of biology of infective agents and hosts on the outcome of infection
-
the use of this knowledge, in combination with epidemiological and public health approaches, to develop rational strategies for the control and treatment of infection.
Course summary
|
Programme |
You study |
Study period |
Cost (2013-2014) |
|
MSc |
12 modules OR 9 modules plus a project report |
2-5 years |
£11,650 |
|
Postgraduate Diploma |
8 modules |
2-5 years |
£9,200 |
|
Postgraduate Certificate |
4 modules |
1-5 years |
£6,775 |
|
Individual modules |
Studying individual modules is an ideal option if you wish to update your professional knowledge or sample the programme. The fee is £1,695 per module. |
Prestige
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is the leading postgraduate medical institution in Europe in the subjects of public health and tropical medicine.
Excellent support
Comprehensive study materials include paper-based readings and exercises, and CD-ROMs (for some modules). There is email tutorial support and group discussions through web-based and email conferencing facilities.
Summary of key dates
|
Application deadline |
30 June |
|
Registration deadline |
31 August |
|
Course starts |
October |
|
Examinations take place |
June |
MSc: EITHER 12 modules (4 compulsory core plus and 8 elective) OR 9 modules (4 compulsory plus five elective) plus project report
Postgraduate Diploma: 8 modules (4 compulsory core plus 4 elective modules)
Postgraduate Certificate: 4 modules (4 compulsory core modules)
Core modules
Plus 4 elective modules (Postgraduate Diploma only)
At least three must be taken from selection groups IDM2, IDM3, IDM5 or IDM6. The fourth
module can be chosen from the selection groups listed below, or from ‘blended learning’ study modules. A maximum of two in-house modules can be chosen in total.
Plus elective modules (MSc only)
EITHER eight elective modules, at least six of which must be taken from selection groups IDM2, IDM3, IDM5 or IDM6. The remaining modules can be selected from IDM2, IDM3, IDM5, IDM6 or PHM2 or from ‘blended learning’ study modules. A maximum of two in-house modules can be chosen in total.
OR five elective modules, at least three of which must be chosen from the IDM2, IDM3, IDM5 or IDM6 selection groups plus a Project report IDM600. The remaining modules can be selected from IDM2, IDM3, IDM5, IDM6 or PHM2.
Selection groups
Notes:
•All IDM modules successfully completed will be assigned 15 credits each; the project report will be assigned 45 credits.
•For Postgraduate Diploma/MSc students, credit for one or two modules studied at LSHTM (blended learning study) may be allowed in place of one or two of the above elective modules, subject to module restrictions. An additional fee will be payable.
•At the discretion of the examiners, students who have been examined in and have passed three IDM1 modules may be permitted
to proceed to elective module studies.
•Note that restrictions and prerequisites may apply to some of the modules.
How you study
You study independently, at a time and pace that suits you (subject to some course-specific deadlines) using the comprehensive study materials provided, with support available from academic staff. Once registered, you will be sent the learning materials for the module(s) you have chosen to study. The module materials will take you through a programme of directed self-study, and indicate how and where you can obtain supplementary study materials and access tutorial support to enhance your studies.
Tutors are allocated to each module and are available to answer queries and promote discussion during the study year, through the online Virtual Learning Environment.
We know that if you have a full-time job, family or other commitments, and wish to study at a distance, you will have many calls on your time. We therefore allow you between 1-5 years in which to complete the Postgraduate Certificate, and between 2-5 years in which to complete the Postgraduate Diploma or the MSc.
The study year runs from the beginning of October through to the June exams, during which time tutorial support is available. Students carrying out projects are assigned personal supervisors to support their project work throughout the summer.
The support you receive
-
The support you receive’ with the following: a web-based virtual learning environment (including web conferencing, allowing you to pose questions and engage in academic discussions with tutors and fellow students)
-
teaching staff provide written, personalised feedback and advice on assignments
-
you can communicate with other distance learning students, either individually or by setting up your own learning support groups.
Study materials
You receive your study materials after you register. Study materials may include Subject guides, Readers, Textbooks, CD-ROMs/additional computer software, Past examination papers and Examiners’ reports, and Handbooks. You also have access to the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine’s online library resources.
Fees
The fees below refer to the 2013-2014 academic year only and are effective from 1 March 2013 until 30 November 2013. Fees are subject to annual review.
| 2013-2014 | |
|---|
| Registration fee | £ 1,075 | |
| Fee per core module | £ 1,425 | |
| Fee per elective module | £ 615 | |
| Fee for final project | £ 1,845 | |
| Total Postgraduate Certificate | £ 6,775 | |
| Total Postgraduate Diploma | £ 9,200 | |
| Total MSc | £ 11,650 | |
| Total fee per individual module (taken on a stand-alone basis) | £ 1,695 | |
| | |
Disclaimer: the currency conversion tool is
provided to you for convenience only and does not constitute an endorsement
or approval by the University of London; the exchange rates are provided
dynamically via a third-party source, consequently, the University of London
International Programmes is not responsible for their accuracy.
When to pay
Fees may be paid in one of two ways:
Either, pay the total fee on registration by making a single payment. This covers the registration fee and all module fees;
Or, if you prefer to spread out your payments, pay the registration fee plus the fee for each module you want to take in the first year, and then in subsequent years pay the fee for each new module you take.
How to pay
All University fees must be paid in pounds sterling (GBP). The University accepts:
· Western Union - Quick Pay
· Credit/debit card (Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, Electron, JCB)
· Sterling banker's draft/cheque
· International money/postal order
Further details are given in payment methods.
Other costs
In addition to the fees payable to the University, you should also budget for the fee charged by your local examination centre to cover its costs; this fee will vary.
Note
The University reserves the right to amend previously announced fees, if necessary. For a full list fees that may be applicable, please see the fee schedule.
Assessment
Assessment varies from module to module but will include a combination of unseen written papers and written assignments. Details are given in the module specifications.
Examinations take place once a year in June (please note: it is not possible to hold examinations at other times of year). These are normally held in a student’s country of residence. We have examination centres in over 190 countries worldwide (for details please visit our Assessment and examinations section.
They are arranged mainly through Ministries of Education or the British Council. Students taking examinations will need to pay a fee to their local examination centre. Please note that if you fail an examination at the first entry you will be allowed one further attempt.
Academic Requirements
A second class honours degree or the equivalent, from a university or other institution acceptable to the University of London, in a scientific subject (e.g. biology, medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary science, pharmacy) or in another scientific discipline which has, in the opinion of the University, included suitable preliminary training. Applicants with an appropriate technical qualification and work experience will be considered.
Language Requirements
For awards at FHEQ level 7, students must provide satisfactory evidence showing that they have passed within the previous three years a test of proficiency in English at the following minimum level:
-
IELTS with an overall average of at least 7 with a minimum of 7 in written sub-test, or
-
TOEFL score of 600 (or 250 in the computerised test) and a minimum of 5 in the TWE, or
-
a British Council (IELTS) overall score of 7 or over with a minimum of 7 in the written sub-test, or
-
TOEFL iBT with a minimum overall score of 100 including a minimum score of 24 in the test of written English taken within the last 3 years.
Where an applicant does not meet the prescribed English language proficiency requirements but believes that they can demonstrate the requisite proficiency for admission the University may, at its discretion, consider the application.
Computer Requirements
All students must have regular access to a computer and the internet. This may be for accessing the Student Portal, downloading course materials from the virtual learning environment or accessing resources from the Online Library.
You will also need suitable hardware capacity on your computer for document storage as well as basic software such as a PDF reader.
We recommend that you use the latest version of Internet Explorer, Firefox or Chrome and that your screen resolution is 1024 x 768 or greater. JavaScript and cookies must be enabled to access particular online services such as the Student Portal.
Some programmes have courses or modules that use additional software. Where this is the case, information is given with the relevant course descriptions.
LSHTM - Faculty of Infectious & Tropical Diseases (ITD)
The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is the University of London's major resource for postgraduate teaching and research in public health and tropical medicine, as well as the leading postgraduate medical institution in these subjects in Europe. It has an international standing with a staff that has unique multidisciplinary and international experience.
This course has been designed by staff within the Faculty of Infectious & Tropical Diseases (ITD) which encompasses all of the laboratory-based research in the School as well as that on the clinical and epidemiological aspects of infectious and tropical diseases. The range of disciplines represented in the Faculty is very broad and interdisciplinary research is a feature of much of its activity. The spectrum of diseases studied is wide and there are major research groups focused on malaria, tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS and sexually transmitted diseases, vaccine development and evaluation, and vector biology and disease control.
Academic leaders
Sara Atkinson - BSc, PhD.
Course Director
Sara is a lecturer within the Infectious and Tropical Diseases Faculty at LSHTM. She read Genetics at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. After working at AIIMS, New Delhi on a project identifying the genes involved in thalassaemia she joined LSHTM in 1987.
Her PhD focused on linkage studies of genes involved in the susceptibility of infection to intracellular infections, particularly tuberculosis and leprosy in Pakistan. After her PhD, she continued her research at LSHTM on cellular aspects of BCG immunology.
Later she returned to her interest in leprosy immunology and studied inflammatory cytokine expression in leprosy patients in Hyderabad, India. More recently, her research work has involved microarray techniques for studying differential gene expression within patients with leprosy undergoing different drug treatments.
Her teaching interests are in immunology and intracellular infections. Sara was Deputy Course Organiser of the distance learning Infectious Diseases course in 2005-2006, taking over from John Ackers as Course Director in 2006-2007.
Patricia Gorak-Stolinska - BSc, PhD.
Deputy Course Director
Patricia is a lecturer in the Immunology Department at LSHTM. After reading Parasitology at Kings College London and studying for an MPhil in Parasite Immunology at Imperial College, she joined the School in 1994 to work on costimulatory molecules and marginal zone macrophages in a model for Leishmania donvani. After this she moved to the Dept. of Immunology Kings College London to work on human CD4 and CD8 T cell subsets. In 2002 after completing her PhD thesis on T cell Apoptosis at Guy’s Kings and St. Thomas’ School of Medicine, she returned to LSHTM to work on immunity to mycobacteria particularly the immune response to BCG vaccination in which she has a continuing research interest. Her teaching interests are in parasitology and immunology.
Jackie Cliff - BA, MSc, PhD.
Course Content Director
Jackie is a lecturer in the Department of Immunology and Infection, within the Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases at LSHTM. Jackie first came to LSHTM as a student in 1993 to study the MSc in Infectious Diseases, and then went to the National Institute for Medical Research, where she conducted her PhD looking at the role of cytokine production by B cells. She returned to LSHTM in 1999, and has been investigating immune responses to tuberculosis since then. Primarily, her research is directed at identifying host biomarkers which can be used to determine when a TB patient has been successfully cured – such markers will be useful in clinical trials of new drugs and eventually in clinical management of TB cases. Jackie enjoys teaching immunology and infection, especially tuberculosis, and she is the Course Content Director for the distance learning Infectious Diseases programme.
For further information about the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine please refer to the LSHTM website [external link].
Profile on: Dr Mika Kawano