Food Safety and Control MSc

Program Overview

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Food Safety and Control MSc

Course Overview

Food safety and control plays a vital role in the evolving food supply landscape. The safety, hygiene and authenticity of food are of paramount importance. This course is designed to provide a route for science graduates and food industry professionals.

What You'll Study

• Food Hazards, Risks and Controls – 30 credits
  • Consider the hazards and risks that pose a threat to public health from both common and emerging microbiological foodborne pathogens (such as bacteria and viruses) and how they can be identified, measured, enumerated and controlled.
  • Explore how microorganisms can create food and the emerging food processing technologies that will form the basis of food of, and for, the future and how shelf life is determined for a range of foodstuffs.
• Food Law and Food Standards – 30 credits
  • This module covers the key legislation, guidance, and codes of practice associated with delivering official food controls in the UK, with comparisons to international systems.
  • It begins with an understanding of how law is made, the hierarchy of legislative instruments, and how law is enforced, including how court processes are involved in food law enforcement.
  • Alongside the legal framework, the module considers the wider food landscape, other agencies involved in food control, and the opportunities and challenges relating to food control.
• Food Incidents, Interventions and Investigations – 30 credits
  • Dealing with food incidents and alerts is an integral part of food regulation.
  • From outbreaks of foodborne illness to food crime and food fraud, this module guides you through the investigative process of a foodstuff or food premises and the different mechanisms available to secure timely legal compliance in the event of non-compliance being discovered during the investigation.
  • Explore the systems available to food businesses to prevent food fraud and food crime as well as the reporting channels of all kinds of food incidents to the appropriate organisations.
• Food Safety and Quality Management Systems – 30 credits
  • Food safety and quality management systems are integral to food safety and all UK and European food businesses must comply with this legal requirement, taking into account the flexibility provided for in the law.
  • Explore these systems from the importance of pre-requisite systems of design, maintenance, cleaning and disinfection and pest control.
  • Consider the use of such systems in providing ‘recognised assurance’ and their potential to impact the frequency of inspection regimes in businesses that have earned recognition under such assurance schemes.
  • The module aims to equip you with the ability to design, implement and assess the adequacy of systems such as Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP).
• Master’s with professional placement
  • If you successfully secure a placement in industry within your first semester, this master’s with professional placement option allows you to extend your 12-month master’s course up to an additional year to complete the placement before starting your final 60-credit module.
  • Gain valuable industry insights and skills as you apply your academic knowledge and skills to a professional placement.
  • The placement must be sourced and secured by you during your first semester. Our careers and employability team are available to support you with the sourcing process.
  • Start your professional placement after completing the first 120 credits of your course.
  • The professional placement will be integrated into your course learning and outcomes. This will take the form of a reflective diary demonstrating your learning and engagement with the placement experience.
  • The professional placement option is subject to additional fees, living costs, visa requirements, availability, competitive application and university approval of the placement.
• Project – 60 credits
  • Carry out an extended investigative or research project, from which you will need to present your findings in a scientific thesis.
  • Demonstrate critical analysis of the literature, authentic data collection and recording, appropriate data analysis and its presentation and critical evaluation with reference to published literature.
  • Supported and guided by your supervisor, you are expected to work independently with limited supervision, dealing with complexity and uncertainty and identifying and troubleshooting problems.

How You'll Learn

Teaching and learning methods may include:

• Lectures
• Seminars
• Tutorials
• Presentations
• Group projects
• Workshops

Teaching Contact Hours

As a full-time postgraduate student, you will study modules totalling 180 credits each academic year. A typical 30-credit module requires a total of 300 hours of study. Study hours are made up of teaching contact hours, and guided and independent study.

Teaching Hours

Teaching hours may vary, depending on where you are in your studies, but on average you will have between 8 and 12 teaching and learning hours each week. You will also have the opportunity to attend optional sessions including time with a Success Coach or to meet with staff for advice and feedback.

Guided and Independent Study

Throughout your studies, you will be expected to spend time in guided and independent study to make up the required study hours per module. You will be digging deeper into topics, reviewing what you’ve learnt and completing assignments. This can be completed around your personal commitments. As you progress to the end of your studies, you’ll spend more time on independent learning.

Online Learning

As an innovative university, we use different teaching methods, including online tools and emerging technologies. So, some of your teaching hours and assessments may be delivered online.

Assessment

This course will be assessed using a variety of methods which could vary depending on the module. Assessment methods may include:

• Reports
• Coursework
• Presentations
• Group projects
• Portfolios

The Coventry University assessment strategy aims to ensure that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.

Entry Requirements

Typical entry requirements:

• UK
• International

An honours degree 2:2 or above (or international equivalent) in a general science, food science or food discipline.

We recognise a breadth of qualifications; speak to one of our advisers today to find out how we can help you.

Select your region to find detailed information about entry requirements:

Africa

Americas

Central Asia

East Asia

Europe

Middle East

South Asia

South East Asia

English Language Requirements

IELTS: 6.5 overall, with no component lower than 6.0.

If you don't meet the English language requirements, you can achieve the level you need by successfully completing a pre-sessional English programme before you start your course.

Fees and Funding

Student | Full-time | Part-time
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UK, Ireland*, Channel Islands or Isle of Man | £11,200 per year
£1,500 professional placement fee (if placement secured) per year | Not available
EU | £11,200 per year with EU Support Bursary**
£1,500 professional placement fee (if placement secured) per year with EU Support Bursary**
£18,600 per year without EU Support Bursary**
£1,800 professional placement fee (if placement secured) per year without EU Support Bursary** | Not available
International | £18,600 per year
£1,800 professional placement fee (if placement secured) per year | Not available

Facilities

The Alison Gingell Building is home to industry-standard facilities allowing you to work in a replicated, dynamic, professional environment from day one.

The Super Lab can hold up to 250 students, making it one of the largest educational laboratories in the UK. It is well-equipped with the latest industry-standard equipment including facilities for biochemistry, immunology, microbiology, haematology and cell and molecular biology.

The Analytical Chemistry Suite is a dedicated space for chemistry-based teaching. Students can complete ‘wet’ chemistry and preparatory work, complemented by a comprehensive suite of analytical equipment which includes ICP-OES, uHPLC, HPLC, Fluorescence Spectrometers, UV Spectrometers, GC, and GC-MS.

The kitchens are used for a variety of tasks to develop understanding of food processing relevant to industry and local authority food inspection, including how risks are controlled, investigating gas analysis of modified atmosphere packed products, and conducting a mock kitchen inspection.

Careers and Opportunities

The course is aligned to the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health’s (CIEH) new APC-Food syllabus, and therefore ideal if you wish to complete the academic requirement of the Higher Certificate in Food Control (HCFC) to become an authorised Food Safety Practitioner as set out in the Food Law Code of Practice.

On successful completion of this course, you could pursue roles in the areas below.

• Food industry
  • Food safety manager: oversees food safety programmes, conducts audits and ensures compliance with regulations.
  • Quality assurance manager: implements quality control measures, manages product inspections, and ensures product quality.
• Government and public health
  • Food inspector: conducts inspections of food facilities to ensure compliance with food safety regulations.
  • Public health officer: promotes public health and the prevention of foodborne illnesses.
  • Risk assessor: evaluates food safety risks and develops strategies to mitigate them.
• Academic and research
  • Food safety researcher: researches food safety issues and develops new methods and technologies.
  • University lecturer: teaches food safety courses and conducts research.
• Other potential roles
  • Food safety auditor: conducts audits of food facilities to assess their compliance with food safety standards.
  • Food safety trainer: provides training on food safety practices to food industry professionals.
  • Food safety writer: creates content related to food safety, such as articles, blogs and reports.