PgCert Independent Prescribing for Optometrists at Ulster University

Programme overview

A part-time blended-learning postgraduate certificate delivered mainly by distance learning, with some attendance at the Coleraine campus. Successful candidates can join the General Optical Council (GOC) register for the specialist independent prescribing qualification.

Faculty: Faculty of Life and Health Sciences | Duration: 1 academic year part-time | Intake: September 2027 | Study mode: part-time | Location: Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom

What you will study

Three compulsory modules: Principles of Pharmacology and Prescribing (20 credits), Assessment, Management and Treatment of Ocular Conditions (20 credits) and a 40-credit Independent Prescribing Placement Module completed under a Designated Prescribing Practitioner. Assessment includes written assignments, multiple choice questions, case study portfolios and OSCEs.

Career pathways

The qualification lets optometrists widen their scope of practice and manage and treat a wider range of ocular conditions.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Applicants must be GOC-registered optometrists working in the UK and must have a Designated Prescribing Practitioner (a registered healthcare professional in Great Britain or Northern Ireland with independent prescribing rights who has agreed to supervise 90 hours of learning in practice); a signed letter from the proposed practitioner is required before admission. International applicants: Academic IELTS 7.0 overall with no individual section below 6.5.

Intake: September 2027

Duration: 1 academic year part-time

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