Program Overview

MSc Occupational Health

The MSc Occupational Health is a part-time blended learning programme offered by the School of Public Health at University College Cork (UCC). This programme is designed to suit the demands of the busy professional, with approximately 70% of the teaching delivered on campus and 30% of content delivered online.

Course Outline

The MSc in Occupational Health will give students the expertise and key skills required to effectively address health and safety issues in all workplaces and promote employees' wellbeing. This multidisciplinary course is delivered by academics, industry experts, and professionals with national and international experience.

The programme incorporates the following subject areas:

• Public Health & Health Promotion
• Psychology
• Risk Assessment and Management
• Ergonomics & Safety Science
• Occupational Medicine and Hygiene
• Law
• Training and Development
• Epidemiology & Environmental Health

Programme Content

The programme comprises 90 credits taken over two years. The course consists of three elements: formal coursework, self-directed learning using case studies, and project work leading to a thesis.

Year 1

• EH6008: Information Retrieval & Interpretation in Occupational Health (5 credits)
• EH6015: Occupational Health and Safety Management in the Workplace (10 credits)
• EH6059: Principles of Psychosocial Epidemiology (5 credits)
• EH6060: Risk Assessment and Management of Psychosocial Work Risks (5 credits)
• EH6061: Applied Research for Occupational Health (5 credits)
• LW6107: Legal Aspects of Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare (5 credits)
• AD6800: Training and Development Issues in Occupational Health (5 credits)

Year 2

• EH6017: Principles, Theory and Practical Application of Risk Assessment in the Workplace (10 credits)
• EH6041: Psychology Applied to Occupational Health and Safety (5 credits)
• EH6062: Workplace Health, Safety and Wellbeing Dissertation (30 credits)
• One elective module from the following, subject to availability:
  • EH6000: Implementation Science in Health (5 credits)
  • EH6130: Critical Appraisal of Publications for Research and Practice (5 credits)
  • EH6140: Environmental Health: Principal Aspects and Burden of Disease (5 credits)
  • EH6159: Health Promotion II (5 credits)

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this MSc programme, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate an awareness of occupational health from a multidisciplinary perspective
• Practise measures to prevent disease and injury, and to protect and promote health and safety in occupational settings
• Perform risk assessments in the workplace, including psychosocial risk factors
• Identify the role of psychology in improving the quality of work-life and develop basic skills to protect and promote the safety, health, and wellbeing of workers
• Employ skills to critically appraise publications and statistics and stay up-to-date with the newest research evidence
• Discuss the wider aspects of health protection
• Apply research evidence into occupational health and safety interventions and health promotion strategies, taking relevant legislation into account
• Design occupational health training and development programmes in line with organisational policy
• Carry out a focused piece of scholarly research and health and safety programme evaluation

Why Choose This Course

This course offers students the opportunity to study 'classical' occupational health and safety issues, together with contemporary approaches that integrate and strategically combine workplace health and safety prevention with health and wellbeing promotion. A particular focus of this course is on the management of psychosocial risks and work stress, which constitutes a growing concern for health, safety, and wellbeing in industry and the private sector.

Requirements

Candidates for the MSc programme in Occupational Health must meet one of the following criteria:

1. A Level 8 honours primary degree (minimum Second Class Honours, Grade 2) in a relevant area, e.g., health-related, engineering, or human resource management, with relevant professional experience.
2. A minimum of a Diploma/Higher Diploma in Occupational Safety, Health and Welfare (minimum Second Class Honours, Grade 1) from UCC, or an equivalent qualification from another institution, with a minimum of two years' relevant professional work experience.
3. Applicants with a minimum of three years' professional work experience in an associated area of Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare may be invited for an interview to satisfy the selection committee of their suitability for the programme, under Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Fees and Costs

See the Postgraduate EU and Non-EU (International) Fee Schedule for the latest information.

How to Apply

1. Check dates: Check the opening and closing dates for the application process.
2. Gather documents: Scanned copies of supporting documents have to be uploaded to the UCC online application portal.
3. Apply online: Apply online, noting that most courses have a non-refundable application fee.

Technical Requirements

To access and interact with the online course content and assignments, students will require access to at least a PC/Laptop running Windows 7 or later and Mac OSX 10.7.4. Common plug-ins such as Microsoft Silverlight, Java, and Flash will also be required. Students must have access to MS Office or an equivalent suite of applications such as Libre Office. They must also have access to a modern standards-compliant web browser. UCC recommends either Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.

Skills and Careers Information

There is a continuous demand for experts trained in the area of occupational health, safety, and wellbeing across all sectors of work, with many career opportunities. The course encourages a proactive approach in assessing and controlling both physical and psychosocial work hazards in an effort to prevent disease, injuries, and accidents at work; to promote health and wellbeing; and to create safe and healthy work cultures and conditions.

After completion of this MSc in Occupational Health, some of the many career options open to graduates include work in the following areas: consulting, Health and Safety Authority, Health Service Executive, human factors-ergonomics, safety engineering, human resources, welfare, managerial responsibilities in industry or public sector, occupational health care specialist responsibilities, academia including research and lecturing.