Health and Society is a course for current undergraduate students considering a career in medicine or the allied health professions. The course is designed to offer undergraduate students a taste of the theory and practice of medicine through weekly lecture/seminars and clinical shadowing opportunities in various primary (family practice) and secondary care (hospital) settings.
What are the aims of the course?
The course has three specific aims, namely for students to develop greater awareness of:
- The patient experience
- The healthcare practitioner as scientist, scholar, practitioner and professional
- Healthcare systems
What sort of activities characterise the course?
- Shadowing clinicians and other healthcare practitioners
- Attending lectures/seminars led by academics and medical educators
- Simulated clinical scenarios with actor patients
- Reading and evaluating healthcare and related literature
- Using podcasts and watching film
- Visiting museums and art galleries
Can I take other modules in addition to this course as part of a King’s Study Abroad Package?
- Yes! Study Abroad students usually register for an additional three modules. This is done through the usual process of by submitting a module request form (MRF).
The course currently has two intakes; one in the Fall (September to December) and one in the Spring (January to June) semester. The Fall course duration is 12 weeks, and the Spring course duration is 16 weeks (and a month’s break at Easter).
How is the course structured and scheduled?
- The course consists of both in-class (lecture-seminars) and out-of-class (clinical shadowing placements).
- In-class lecture-seminars are timetabled for either a 16-week (Spring intake, January to May) or 12-week (Fall intake, September-December). In-class activities are always scheduled on Wednesdays with a lecture-seminar scheduled in the morning (1000 to 1230) and afternoon (1400-1630). Clinical shadowing opportunities are scheduled flexibly around students’ existing King’s schedules.
The course caters for undergraduate students who at the time of application to King’s College London are registered and studying at a university outside the United Kingdom.
A minimum cumulative GPA (Grade Point Average) of 3.3 (or equivalent) is required as is a strong interest in learning about the practice of medicine or allied healthcare professions. International students with English as a second language will need a minimum IELTS (International English Test Score) of 7.0 or TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score 630+5.0 TWE/109.
Health and Society applicants must submit a personal statement; as well as telling us why you are interested in applying to the Health and Society programme, please consider the following questions to support your application:
1. King's is focused on the importance of an international student experience. Please consider internationalisation from your own perspective and detail how having an international experience at King's will contribute towards your becoming a ‘global citizen’.
2. Studying in another country and adapting to a new education system can be very challenging. Please tell us a little about the strategies you will use to integrate yourself into life at King's and in London.
3. Please list some examples of King's modules that appeal to you, including Health and Society, and include: a) How these modules correspond with your current programme of study b) How these modules will contribute towards your long-term career aspirations.
4. What aspects of King's life do you hope to get involved in outside of your academic commitments?
Course assessment consists of the submission of a learning diary reflecting on clinical shadowing experiences, as well as an essay (2,500 words) addressing a topical dilemma or debate in health care.
The third and final assessment will consist of an oral presentation of your essay findings. The essay and presentations are both weighted 50%, with the diary not being officially marked, but regarded as a prerequisite to submission of the remaining assignments.
Teaching will normally take place on Guy's Campus every Wednesday morning (10.00-12.30) and afternoon (14.00-16.30). Guy's Campus is home to the School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, the Dental Institute, and the School of Medicine.
Close to London Bridge (one minute walk from London Bridge station/tube), on the South Bank of the Thames, next to Guy's Hospital, this is a fashionable area, with many bars, restaurants, markets and creative businesses. Nearby are two halls of residence (Great Dover Street Apartments and Wolfson House). Hay's Galleria and Borough Market (one of the oldest wholesale fruit and vegetable markets), as well as Southwark Cathedral, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre and Tate Modern.