Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Research, Education and Leadership

Person in lab coat looking at notes with microscope on lab bench

This one-year course is open to all health care staff and includes modules on clinical research, clinical education and clinical leadership. It is designed for doctors, dentists, nurses and allied health professionals. The course is taught part-time and is designed to be flexible and accessible to working healthcare professionals contributing towards research and professional development through reinforcement of Good Clinical Practice (GCP).

The course is delivered through face to face teaching sessions requiring in-person attendance at Madingley Hall, Cambridge. Attendance at all contact days is compulsory. Additional content and tutorials may be delivered synchronously online, requiring attendance in ‘real time’. The course delivery is supported through the Virtual Leaning Environment [VLE].

We plan to offer the following modules for standalone CPPD study (not for credit) in 2025-26:

Clinical leadership
Clinical research
Clinical education
Advanced clinical leadership
Healthcare law
Healthcare informatics

Course Dates

Our learners

Kivlyn, MSt in Genomic Medicine

“Each module brings together such a diverse group of learners. You meet people from all walks of life, and that makes the learning experience even richer.”

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Rebecca, Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching Creative Writing

“Having been turned down by Cambridge in 1987, I saw this as my chance to finally study here.”

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Our learners

Key Features

Who is the course designed for?

The Postgraduate Certificate is part of the Clinical Medicine Programme, a suite of part-time courses designed to enhance the specialist skills of senior healthcare professionals in training and broaden their understanding in healthcare education, research, leadership and management. The modules are designed to complement postgraduate curricula.

The programme has been developed by Cambridge University Health Partners, (the academic health sciences centre), in conjunction with the School of Clinical Medicine and University of Cambridge Continuing and Professional Education (PACE).

Aims of the programme

Provide professionally relevant teaching and learning informed by research in an integrated clinical and teaching environment.
Create an international cohort of healthcare professionals able to pursue and develop their roles in a rapidly-changing and challenging environment of clinical medicine.
Develop the confidence within this cohort to lead service improvement for safe and high quality patient care, with the required knowledge, skills and capability to have a positive personal impact on the work of others in their clinical team and wider service.
Develop clinicians with an understanding of teaching, professional development and assessment in the field of clinical medicine.
Develop clinicians with an understanding of research methodologies and ethical considerations relevant to clinical medicine.
Encourage participants to develop as reflective practitioners with the emotional intelligence, resilience and astuteness required to be effective clinical leaders.
Encourage a commitment to intellectual challenge and evidence-based clinical practice informed by the latest conceptual and theoretical knowledge of clinical education, research methods, ethics and clinical leadership and governance.

Student support

Depending upon your needs, a variety of support opportunities are available to you including wellbeing support sessions, short-term counselling, and study skills support sessions. Find out more in our student support webpages.

Teaching

The Postgraduate Certificate comprises three modules and combines face-to-face study days with on-line activity, study and assignments:

Clinical Leadership (also available as stand-alone study)

Face to face teaching dates: 6-9th October 2025, 5th June 2026.

Aims

To develop students as healthcare leaders with the required knowledge, skills & capability to have a positive personal impact on the work of others in their clinical team and wider service.
To contribute to the development of emotional intelligence, resilience & political astuteness required to be a healthcare leader in a rapidly changing & challenging environment.
To develop students who are committed to safe and high-quality patient care.
To develop students who are confident in leading for improvement and leading across a wider system of healthcare.

There are eight themes within the Clinical Leadership Module:

Theme 1: Clinical Leadership in the NHS
Theme 2: Self-awareness and personal leadership qualities
Theme 3: Project/change management theories and practice
Theme 4: The impact of effective leadership within the clinical arena and how to enhance leadership. Leadership resilience strategies
Theme 5: Teams: An evidence-based approach to people management and developing high-performing teams
Theme 6: Rescuing failing teams, managing difficult behaviour
Theme 7: Improvement, strategic development, business planning & marketing
Theme 8: Presenting projects, change management, organisational theory. Change within large organisations – the NHS, learning from other industries

Clinical Research

Face to face teaching dates: 19th-22nd January, 19th February 2026 (5 teaching days)

Aims

To allow students to participate effectively in clinical research and to provide students with a framework to develop research ideas into publishable studies.
Provide students with the knowledge to understand the importance of research activity in the future of clinical care within healthcare systems and tertiary health care institutions.
To provide students with insight into study design, funding and management, and understanding of the regulatory environment in which research is conducted.
Contribute to continuing professional development of healthcare professionals by providing knowledge of research and academic career pathways.

There are eight themes within the research module:

Theme 1: Understanding the role of research in clinical practice and the role of clinicians in conducting research, and the elements of good clinical practice;
Theme 2: Effective review of the literature;
Theme 3: Understanding research methodologies;
Theme 4: The clinical study design process and ethical approval;
Theme 5: Publication and dissemination;
Theme 6: Funding applications and grant writing skills;
Theme 7: Statistics, data analysis and data presentation;
Theme 8: Critically appraising the literature;
Theme 9: Research career pathways.

In addition, a Good Clinical Practice Course is completed electronically.

Clinical Education (also available as stand-alone study)

Face to face teaching dates: 11th-14th May, 16th May 2026 (5 teaching days)

Aims

Ensure students develop advanced skills and motivation for teaching.
Allow students to contribute to continuing development of healthcare professionals by stimulating inter-professional education.
Develop students as teachers and prepare them for the high standards of revalidation and appraising of the educational aspect of their work.

There are five themes within the education module:

Theme 1: Educational Theory
Theme 2: Educational Supervision
Theme 3: Evaluation and Quality of Teaching
Theme 4: Technology in Education
Theme 5: Academic and Teaching Skills

A virtual learning environment will support students’ learning throughout the programme.

Please note: teaching dates may be subject to change.

Assessment

Students are assessed formatively throughout the course using a variety of techniques and interrelated strategies including evidence of regular reflection. Demonstration of active participation in the programme will be required. There may also be a requirement for the students to take part in peer review of other students.

Students will be required to submit :

Module: Clinical Leadership

A written assignment from the healthcare simulation workshop of 1,000 words or equivalent
A retrospective report on the quality improvement project*, in the form of:

a) an academic project poster

b) a verbal presentation (10 minutes followed by 5 minutes Q&A) supported by a slideshow

*The quality improvement project will be carried out by the candidate throughout the academic year, on an individual title approved by the tutors in Michaelmas term.

Module: Clinical Research

Summative assessment will be conducted using a written assignment (2500 - 3000 words) in the form of a theoretical research project proposal in an area of clinical practice relevant to the student’s own speciality or interest.