Paramedic Science BSc (Hons) with Foundation Year

What makes Paramedic Science with Foundation Year at Worcester special?

This four-year programme will equip you with the fundamental knowledge and skills needed to start your journey towards a successful career as a qualified paramedic.

At Worcester you will learn through hands-on experience, developing biomedical knowledge and problem-solving skills. The course promotes technical excellence alongside nurturing the key values that shape patient-centred care, meaning you will enter the workforce as a well-rounded, caring, and compassionate healthcare professional.

You will learn from our team of experienced, award-winning, and innovative staff and, in the final three years of the course, our practice partners, including West Midlands Ambulance University NHS Foundation Trust (WMAS) and a range of specialist guest speakers.

You will be taught alongside other Foundation Year students with an interest in other Allied Health specialisms such as Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, Nursing, Radiography and Dietetics for the first year of the course before joining the other Paramedic Science BSc students for the remaining three years.

Overview

Key features

Strong emphasis on inter-professional learning and teaching, with healthcare professional staff
Experienced and award-winning staff team and a diverse range of specialist guest speakers
Close partnership with West Midlands Ambulance University NHS Foundation Trust (WMAS) in years 2, 3 and 4 of the course
From the second year onwards, varied alternative placements within a range of healthcare settings that involve working as part of a multi-disciplinary team and learning from and about other healthcare professionals
Eligibility to apply for professional registration as a paramedic with the Health and Care Professionals Council (HCPC) upon completion of the course

Entry requirements

UCAS tariff points

Academic entry requirements

32 UCAS tariff points

You should be at least 18 years old and normally have GCSE English and Maths at grade c/4 or above (please note that Functional Skills Level 2 Maths and English are not accepted), and 1 A Level (or equivalent Level 3 qualification).

However, all applicants will be judged on their individual merits and we may take other skills, qualifications and life experience into account. We welcome mature students without the usual formal qualifications and will consider your application based on your suitability and preparedness to complete the Foundation Year.

The Paramedic Science BSc with Foundation Year course is aimed at individuals who may have few or no relevant formal qualifications but who can demonstrate a clear commitment to pursuing a career in Paramedic Science. Personal, professional and educational experiences will be considered to determine motivation and ability to progress onto the degree course.

Applicants are particularly encouraged from:

Low participation neighbourhoods
People from ethnic minority backgrounds
First in family to study Higher Education
Care leavers.

Starting with a year's foundation is a way to build your knowledge of health topics, science and research, so that you can then progress onto the degree programme and take your career forward.

All applicants are required to complete:

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Check*
Occupational Health Checks*

*All information will be treated in confidence and only taken into account when absolutely necessary.

If you meet the subject requirements for Paramedic Science BSc without foundation year we are unable to consider you for the course with Foundation Year.

English Language Requirements

Applicants whose first language is not English and who are required to provide a language test certificate as evidence of their proficiency must ensure that it is, or is comparable to, IELTS level 7.0 with no element below 6.5. (HCPC 2017)

Additional information

No offers will be made without Interview. Meeting the minimum entry requirements does not guarantee an interview, or a place on the course. For full details please see the UCAS website.

All offers are subject to satisfactory Health Clearance and Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service checks.

Students will also be required to sign a Code of Conduct and Fitness to Practice disclosure on commencement of the course.

NHS constitutional values

Recruitment for this course considers not only the values of the specific profession you are wishing to join, but also the values of the wider NHS. You can expect to be shortlisted and interviewed based upon these values as well as course and profession specific requirements.

More information about these areas to support your application can be found in The NHS Constitution for England Guidance.

Course content

Our BSc (Hons) Paramedic Science course is informed by research and current developments in the health and social care environment and feedback from students, external examiners and employers. The course does therefore change periodically in the interests of keeping the course relevant and reflecting best practice.

Our BSc Paramedic Science course reflects the changing health and social care environment. We maintain our patient focused philosophy and deliver a programme which contains practical experience supported by the theory which underpins it. The curriculum places emphasis on the application of theory through simulation activities in a safe environment before students enter practice placements.

We have always adopted the principles of holistic care, treating the individual as much more than a biological system, but we are now making this much more explicit. We have refreshed our approach to assessment and have devised ways in which you can demonstrate your competence in a way that closely aligns to the role you will undertake. Our programme aims to produce skilled, well rounded paramedics who are fit for their role as a healthcare professional. This aim has continued from previous programmes, but we are making explicit the changing needs of our key stakeholders and in particular the patients who seek the care of a paramedic. The result is an excellent, contemporary, innovative and fit for purpose course.

Year 1 (foundation year)	Essential skills for learning in healthcare Science for healthcare Health and wellbeing in today’s society Becoming a healthcare professional
Year 2	Biosciences and Pathophysiology 1 Professionalism Patient assessment Skills and simulation 1 Skills and simulation 2 Practice 1
Year 3	Biosciences and Pathophysiology 2 Patient assessment and clinical interventions Research methods Skills and simulation 3 Practice 2 Practice 3
Year 4	Leadership Reasoning Dissertation Skills and simulation 4 Practice 4 Practice 5

Teaching and assessment

The University places emphasis on enabling students to develop the independent learning capabilities that will equip you for lifelong learning and future employment, as well as academic achievement. A mixture of independent study, teaching and academic support through the personal academic tutoring system enables you to reflect on progress and build up a profile of skills, achievements and experiences that will enable you to flourish and be successful.

Teaching

You will be taught through a combination of interactive workshops, lectures, seminars and e-learning. Throughout the Course, you benefit from an integration of both innovative and traditional teaching methods. Large group lectures and cutting-edge research seminars delivered by academics as well as external speakers will complement your studies. Lectures may contain students from a variety of different courses for which the lecture content is also relevant.

A variety of stimulating, cutting-edge resources are also available to support your learning. Your learning will be supported by the University’s virtual learning environment. You will have individual access to electronic journals, content-rich study guides, and interactive online learning materials covering various science disciplines, formative online assessments and group discussion forums.

In tutor-led seminar groups of 8-12 students you will investigate key concepts and systems that includes case studies. These small group sessions will also develop your critical thinking, problem design and solving, teamwork, presentation and lifelong learning skills which are essential for your career development.

In addition, meetings with personal academic tutors are scheduled on at least four occasions in the first year and three occasions in each of the other years of a course. Throughout your degree you will have the opportunity to apply your developing knowledge and build on the depth of your understanding.

Contact time

A typical week in year 1 (level 3) is likely to be a minimum of 12 hours per week. Typically contact time will be structured around:

2 hours of interactive workshops
2 hours of (large group) lectures
6 hours of seminars in groups of around 12 students
2 hours of personal development.

From year 2 (level 4) onwards University based weeks are alternated with placement weeks throughout the year, with the university teaching delivered by a combination of face-to-face lectures, seminars and workshops, online learning and practical sessions. So, while there are similarities between weeks, the exact mix of learning opportunities varies according to the subject material and module.

The university and practice placement weeks are based on 37.5-hour per week. During a typical theory week students will have around 8-16 hours of contact time constructed around a combination of, up to 6-8 hours of campus-based teaching, up to 4-6 hours synchronous online delivery and up to 4 hours of campus-based simulation teaching. The specific blend of campus based, and online teaching will vary across the modules.

During placement weeks students will undertake between 20 and 30 hours of practice learning, typically 2-3 12-hour shifts per week. Students will achieve 240 hours or 20 shifts over the semester.

Students are provided with detailed semester planners which provides students with a day by day, week by week, breakdown of their placements and university contact time for that semester.

Independent self-study

In addition to the contact time, you are expected to undertake around 25 hours of personal self-study per week. Typically, this will involve completing online activities, reading journal articles and books, working on individual and group projects, undertaking research in the library and online, preparing coursework assignments and presentations, and preparing for examinations.

Independent learning is supported by a range of excellent learning facilities, including The Hive and library resources, the virtual learning environment, and extensive electronic learning resources.

Duration

The Course is full time and will be delivered over 4 years. There is a placement requirement in Years 2, 3 and 4 but no placement in year 1.

Assessment

The course provides opportunities to test understanding and learning informally through the completion of practice or ‘formative’ assignments.

Each module has one or more formal or ‘summative’ assessments which are graded and count towards the overall module grade. Assessment methods include written examinations and a range of coursework assessments such as essays, reports, portfolios, presentations.

The precise assessment requirements for an individual student in an academic year will vary according to the mandatory and optional modules taken, but a typical formal summative assessment pattern for each year of the course is:

The course provides opportunities to test understanding and learning informally through the completion of practice or ‘formative’ assignments.

Year 1 (Foundation Year)

1 learning development plan
2 essays
1 reflective portfolio
1 presentation
1 seen exam

See the Paramedic Science BSc course page for details of the assessment pattern in the remaining three years of the course.

Feedback

You will receive feedback on practice assessments and on formal assessments undertaken by coursework. Feedback on examination performance is available upon request from the module leader. Feedback is intended to support learning and you are encouraged to discuss it with personal academic tutors and module tutors as appropriate.

We aim to provide you with feedback on formal course work assessments within 20 working days of hand-in.

Meet the team

Charlotte Brown

Charlotte started her career in healthcare following the completion of a BSc (Hons) in Adult nursing. Whilst working in a surgical setting she was able to develop her skills and knowledge before specialising in neonatal intensive care. Charlotte joined South Western Ambulance Service after working in neonatal intensive care to enhance her expertise in emergency medicine.

Matthew Collett

Matt began his career in health care in 1990 with Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service progressing to Paramedic Status in 2000. He enjoyed working as part of a crew on frontline ambulances and also as a community paramedic on a rapid response vehicle. While working as a paramedic Matt studied for and achieved BSc(hons) in Health and Social Care, with the intention of improving and broadening his professional practice. This has since led him to his current role as senior lecturer in paramedic science at University of Worcester.

Matt settled quickly into this new role and during his 5 years at University of Worcester he has achieved a Post Graduate Certificate in Learning and teaching in Higher Education and is currently studying for a masters degree in education. Having embraced his role in the education of student paramedics, Matt is also contributing to the development of the new curriculum design here at University of Worcester.

Mark Gillett

Mark joined the Paramedic Science team after several years working as a Clinical Team Mentor within the Ambulance Service. He is currently practicing as an Advanced Clinical Practitioner in Primary Care whilst studying for an MSc in Advanced practice. Prior to becoming a clinician he worked as a Firefighter and is seeking use his connections within the Fire and Rescue Service to enhance student experience at Worcester.

Nathan Caswell Price

Nathan started his career in the field of education before moving into paramedicine and working for the West Midlands Ambulance Service. Nathan joined the Department of Paramedic Science and Physician Associates in 2022 and is excited to combine his passion for Education and Healthcare to help educate and inspire the future generation of Paramedics.

David Woolford

I commenced my position with the University of Worcester in 2014 following a 14-year career with West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Originally qualifying as a Biological Sciences graduate specialising in microbiology, I pursued a career in the Life Sciences industry working on a number of high profile projects to automate the National DNA data base, The Huma Genome Project and a wide variety of clinical screening projects.

In 2000 I left the industry to retrain to as a paramedic following a growing desire to work in a more rewarding and directly impactful role.

The final 2 years of my career within the ambulance service were spent working within the community paramedic scheme, a role developed to promote advanced treatment at home and reduce hospitalisation.

I then joined the University of Worcester in order to fulfil my desire to support the development of future generations of paramedics.

Joseph Hamilton

Prior to working for the West Midlands Ambulance Service Joe worked as an exercise physiologist where he would train and monitoring athletes through the measurement and assessment of physical functions of the different body systems. Through this he would then provide strength and conditioning programmes to adequately prepare athletes for competition.

Joe then moved on to gaining experience in the NHS as a clinical exercise physiologist where he gained experiences in hospital settings, provide advice on health, fitness and exercise prescription for people with a range of chronic diseases, including coronary heart disease, diabetes or respiratory diseases. Joe also gained experience of working within a medium security facility developing a health program for patients with a variety of mental health and learning disabilities.

David Laws

Prior to joining the University of Worcester as a Clinical Skills Lecturer in 2023, David joined the Staffordshire Ambulance Service in 1998 and worked up through various roles including patient transport service and ambulance technician before doing his FdSc in Paramedic Science at the University of Worcester under the West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Whilst working for the ambulance service, David became a five-day mentor for university students on placement, giving them the knowledge and skills on placement to become registered paramedics. Wanting to develop this more lead him to apply for the lecturer role at the University of Worcester where he hopes to carry on developing students to succeed and become future paramedics.

While with West Midlands Ambulance Service, David was also part of the SORT (special operations response team) trained to respond to chemical incidents or mass casualty incidents, and part of the MTFA (Marauding terrorist firearms attack) response team which provided extra training and insight into these types of incidents.

During this time, he also worked for Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service as a retained fire fighter where he was trained in different extraction techniques where attending various incidents gave him greater insights into how the different services work together.

Aaron Collins

Aaron has recently joined the Paramedic Science team at the University of Worcester having previously studied here as a Paramedic Student.

He has an extensive history in Health Care prior to become a Paramedic, having worked with patients within the Brain Injury, Mental Health and Respiratory sectors.

Aaron gained valuable experience working for the ambulance service throughout Covid whilst studying prior to becoming a qualified Paramedic. Whilst working as a qualified clinician, Aaron maintained his ties with the University supporting staff as an associate lecturer prior to joining the University full time.

Ruth Jones OBE

Ruth is a Principal Lecturer of Paramedic Science and Physician Associates in the School of Allied Health and Community. She leads a staff team who are passionate about Paramedic Science and teaching, learning and research in relation to it. Ruth’s specialisms are gender-based violence and abuse, emotional / psychological trauma, gender and gender equality, and she works locally, nationally and internationally for statutory agencies, voluntary organisations, educational establishments and the corporate sector on behalf of the University of Worcester and independently.

Ruth’s work has been recognised with a number of awards including Worcestershire Woman of the Year (2011) and Woman Inspiring Europe (2012) and she was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2014 for services to victims of domestic and sexual violence. She accepted that award on behalf of all who have experienced gender-based violence and those who work to support them.

Careers

Upon completion of our BSc (Hons) Paramedic Science degree, you will be eligible to apply for professional registration with the Health and Care Professionals Council (HCPC). Upon registration, you will be able to apply for work with a range of employers including but not exhaustive of, Ambulance Trusts, primary care, private health and care organisations / agencies and specialist services.

Costs

Fees and funding

Full-time tuition fees	UK and EU students The Government has announced that it will increase tuition fees and maintenance loans by 3.1% from the 2025/26 academic cycle. Subject to approval, the University intends to increase our tuition fees in line with this and as per our terms and conditions. This means that from September 2025 the standard fee for full-time home and EU undergraduate students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees will be £9,535 per year. For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.	International students The standard tuition fee for full-time international students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees in the 2025/26 academic year is £16,700 per year. For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.
Funding for Paramedic Science students	The Government has announced that, from September 2020, eligible UK students on Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and Paramedic Science courses may receive a payment of at least £5,000 a year, which they will not need to pay back. This payment is not available on the Foundation Year element of this course (year 1). Find out more about this payment.
Additional costs	Every course has day-to-day costs for basic books, stationery, printing and photocopying. The amounts vary between courses. There might be cost associated for travel on this course. Students will be required to pay for an enhanced DBS check. A full set of uniform will be provided by the university at the beginning of year 2 of the course including shirts, trousers, high-visibility clothing, helmet and steel toe capped boots. Additional uniform may need to be purchased by the student. Visit our Money Advice pages for information on how much you should budget for your course.
Accommodation	Finding the right accommodation is paramount to your university experience. Our halls of residence are home to friendly student communities, making them great places to live and study. We have over 1,000 rooms across our range of student halls. With rooms to suit every budget and need, from our 'Traditional Halls' at £131 per week to 'Ensuite Premium Halls' at £228 per week (2025/26 prices). For full details visit our accommodation page.

Full-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

The Government has announced that it will increase tuition fees and maintenance loans by 3.1% from the 2025/26 academic cycle. Subject to approval, the University intends to increase our tuition fees in line with this and as per our terms and conditions. This means that from September 2025 the standard fee for full-time home and EU undergraduate students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees will be £9,535 per year.

For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.

International students

The standard tuition fee for full-time international students enrolling on BA/BSc/LLB degrees and FdA/FdSc degrees in the 2025/26 academic year is £16,700 per year.

For more details on course fees, please visit our course fees page.

Funding for Paramedic Science students

The Government has announced that, from September 2020, eligible UK students on Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and Paramedic Science courses may receive a payment of at least £5,000 a year, which they will not need to pay back.

This payment is not available on the Foundation Year element of this course (year 1).

Find out more about this payment.

Additional costs

Every course has day-to-day costs for basic books, stationery, printing and photocopying. The amounts vary between courses. There might be cost associated for travel on this course.

Students will be required to pay for an enhanced DBS check.

A full set of uniform will be provided by the university at the beginning of year 2 of the course including shirts, trousers, high-visibility clothing, helmet and steel toe capped boots. Additional uniform may need to be purchased by the student.

Visit our Money Advice pages for information on how much you should budget for your course.

Accommodation

Finding the right accommodation is paramount to your university experience. Our halls of residence are home to friendly student communities, making them great places to live and study.

We have over 1,000 rooms across our range of student halls. With rooms to suit every budget and need, from our 'Traditional Halls' at £131 per week to 'Ensuite Premium Halls' at £228 per week (2025/26 prices).

For full details visit our accommodation page.

How to apply

Applying through UCAS

Paramedic Science BSc with Foundation Year - B951

UCAS is the central organisation through which applications are processed for entry onto full-time undergraduate courses in Higher Education in the UK.

Read our How to apply pages for more information on applying and to find out what happens to your application.

UCAS Code

B951

Apply Via UCAS

Get in touch

If you have any questions, please get in touch. We're here to help you every step of the way.

Admissions Office

admissions@worc.ac.uk

01905 855111

Nathan Caswell Price

Admissions tutor

n.caswell-price@worc.ac.uk

Paramedic Science BSc (Hons) with Foundation Year

What makes Paramedic Science with Foundation Year at Worcester special?

Overview

Key features

£5,000 support for healthcare students

Entry requirements

Academic entry requirements

English Language Requirements

Additional information

NHS constitutional values

Book your place at an Open Day

Course content

Year 1 (foundation year)

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

Contact time

Independent self-study

Duration

Assessment

Year 1 (Foundation Year)

Feedback

Meet the team

Careers

Careers and Employability

Fees and funding

Full-time tuition fees

UK and EU students

International students

Funding for Paramedic Science students

Additional costs

Accommodation

How to apply

Applying through UCAS

UCAS Code

Get in touch

Admissions Office

Nathan Caswell Price

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