Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education
A flexible programme for clinicians and healthcare educators who want to design excellent learning, assessment and supervision.
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Course overview
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Why enrol on the Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education at The University of Buckingham?
The PGCME at Buckingham is a fully online, part-time, Master’s-level programme for busy clinicians and healthcare educators who teach, supervise, assess or support learning in healthcare education.
From February 2026, the updated programme offers a flexible, clinician-friendly route to international professional recognition, combining academic study with practical, workplace-focused development.
Why choose Buckingham’s PGCME?
- Designed for healthcare professionals: Live workshops run in the early evening (typically 6–7.30 pm UK), rotating across weekdays so no one is consistently disadvantaged.
- Truly flexible: A blend of interactive live sessions, asynchronous activities, and drop-in support makes it possible to balance study alongside demanding professional roles.
- Professionally recognised: On completion you will be eligible for Accreditation Plus membership of the Academy of Medical Educators (AoME), and the programme is also mapped to the UK PSF (Descriptor 2) to support Advance HE Fellowship (FHEA) applications.
- Practice-based and reflective: Assessments connect educational theory to your real-world teaching and supervision, helping you grow as a confident, critically reflective educator.
- Supportive community: Join a cross-disciplinary network of peers, guided by experienced medical educators who understand the realities of clinical practice.
We aim to produce graduates who are able to:
- Create welcoming, safe, and purposeful learning environments
- Design and deliver engaging and effective teaching, learning, and assessment activities
- Have purposeful, developmental conversations with learners that support their personal and professional career development
- Have a sound grasp of key educational theories and concepts, drawing on these to develop and critique their own and others’ educational practice
- Adopt a critically reflective and reflexive approach to medical education and training.
Professional recognition
On completion of the PGCME you will gain:
- Accreditation Plus with the Academy of Medical Educators (AoME): Automatic eligibility for professional membership, including post-nominals, mapped to AoME Professional Standards.
- Advance HE Fellowship (FHEA):
- Participants who enter with at least six months of prior teaching experience and complete 80 hours of teaching during the programme will be awarded FHEA automatically on graduation.
- Participants who do not yet meet these criteria will graduate with the PGCert and AoME Accreditation Plus, and can apply for FHEA independently once they have the required experience.
The Buckingham PGCME is therefore both a postgraduate qualification and a pathway to internationally respected professional recognition.
What students tell us
We receive consistently excellent feedback from our students across all modules.
“The online course was far more engaging and motivating than I expected. The balance between activities, discussions and reading worked really well, and the tutors were so responsive that it always felt ‘live’ and interactive.”
“The course exposed me to new ideas and concepts in education, and being online made it much easier to balance with my clinical work. The tutors were always available and supportive throughout”
Modules
The PGCME consists of two compulsory 30-credit modules. Both must be completed to receive the award.
- Module 1: Introduction to Inclusive Teaching, Learning, and Assessment in Medical Education
- Module 2: Transformative Practices and Leadership in Healthcare Education
Each module runs for 15 weeks, with a planned pause between terms to consolidate learning and balance study with professional commitments.
Entry Requirements
To join the Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education (PGCME), applicants must:
- Hold a relevant degree (medicine, dentistry, or allied health profession). Applications from related healthcare fields will also be considered.
- Provide a short personal statement outlining motivation, career aspirations, and intended application of the programme.
Eligibility for the FHEA also requires:
- At least six months’ experience of teaching, training, or supporting learning in healthcare education before starting the programme.
- Be able to evidence at least 80 hours of planned teaching or learner support during the programme. These must involve direct student contact (e.g. teaching sessions, mentoring, small-group facilitation).
If English is not your native or first language, you must evidence your ability to write Masters-Level academic assignments, regardless of your country of residence. This can be done by providing an IELTS certificate (Overall 7.0, with minimum 7 in reading and writing). You must ensure that your personal statement demonstrates your ability to produce an accurately-written explanation of your reasons for applying.
Teaching & Assessment
The PGCME is delivered fully online, combining interactive live workshops with flexible asynchronous activities
- Live workshops interactive evening sessions (rotating weekdays)
- Asynchronous learning readings, activities and discussion boards at your own pace
- Drop-in sessions optional lunchtime support and catch-up
- Peer observation developmental feedback in your own workplace
Assessment is practice-based and reflective, with no written exams. Tasks are directly linked to your professional teaching and supervision, ensuring immediate relevance and international credibility.
This approach provides the flexibility required by busy healthcare professionals, while maintaining the academic rigour and international standards expected of a UK postgraduate qualification.
Meet our staff
The PGCME is facilitated by expert educationalists and physicians. Read more about our course lecturers, below.
Dr Omnia Allam
Dr Allam is a medically qualified doctor with several years of experience as a practicing paediatrician. She is also an internationally recognised medical and healthcare professional educator. Dr Allam has also led a strong multidisciplinary academic career for almost three decades. After obtaining two Master’s Degrees and a PhD in Technology Enhanced Learning in Medical Education, she has held leadership, teaching and academic research roles in multiple UK universities. She has also been an external examiner across several UK and overseas universities and an academic referee for peer reviewed international conferences and journals. She is particularly interested in curriculum design and review, assessment and technology enhanced learning in Medical Education.
Dr Rishen Cattaree
Rishen is the Lead for the Option modules and a Teaching Fellow at The University of Buckingham. He is a practicing clinician, also working as an anaesthetist at Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Rishen is also an honorary clinical lecturer at The University of Buckingham, where he leads the clinical rotation peri-operative block for undergraduate medical students, associate lecturer at Edge Hill University, and tutor at Brighton and Sussex Medical School.
Dates
Students are guided through the course by a calendar of weekly activities, some required, some optional or recommended.
February 2026 intake
Module 1: Monday 2 February 2026 – Friday 15 May 2026
Module 2: Monday 7 September 2026 – Friday 18 December 2026
September 2026 intake
Module 1: Monday 7 September 2026 – Friday 18 December 2026
Module 2: Monday 1 February 2027 – Friday 14 May 2027
After Your Course
Upon successful completion of the programme, you will be eligible for membership of the Academy of Medical Educators (AoME).
Course Fees
The fees for this course are:
| Start | Type | Total cost |
|---|---|---|
Sep 2025 Part-time (1 Year) Applications close on 25 August 2025 | UK | £3,528 |
| INT | £3,528 |
The University reserves the right to increase course fees annually in line with inflation linked to the Retail Price Index (RPI). If the University intends to increase your course fees it will notify you via email of this as soon as reasonably practicable.
Course fees do not include additional costs such as books, equipment, writing up fees and other ancillary charges. Where applicable, these additional costs will be made clear.
We offer a bursary of 10% of the fees to all staff working in one of our partner LEPs (please contact admissions to check if your LEP applies).
This fee is payable in full in advance. The University accepts letters of support from sponsors.
How To Apply
If you’re considering applying to the course we encourage you to contact us, either before or after making your application.
Apply directly
We welcome applications directly via our online application form which can be accessed from the ‘Apply now’ button.
Help and support
Our Admissions Team will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Contact them on +44 (0) 1280 820229 or by email FMHS-admissions@buckingham.ac.uk
For any queries relating to fees, please contact the expert staff of the student fees department at studentfees@buckingham.ac.uk, or phone +44 (0) 1280 820250.
Current applicants
If you would like to make any changes to your current application, please email, FMHS-admissions@buckingham.ac.uk, or phone +44 (0) 1280 820229 (and make sure you have your application number ready).