Allied Health Professions and Public Health application information

Work experience

For all of our undergraduate Allied Health Professions and Public Health courses, you must have some experience of delivering care in a professional or voluntary capacity:

• For Physiotherapy, this might include observational experience ideally across a range of settings so that you gain a balanced insight of the role, purpose and scope of physiotherapy practice
• For Occupational Therapy, this could be working as a support worker, working for a charity or caring for family or friends
• For Paramedic Sciences, this can include caring for family members, volunteering with youth groups or being part of organisations such as the army, navy, air cadets or St John’s Ambulance

For all courses, you must be able to provide evidence of the experience gained, understanding of the profession and a genuine, reasoned commitment to studying a professional course must be explicit in your personal statement to be selected for interview.

You can also research the role you are applying for on the NHS website, such as Paramedic, Physiotherapist and Occupational Therapist.

Health declarations

Medical assessments of your mental and physical health and disclosure of criminal convictions apply to all Allied Health Professions and Public Health courses and are based on current HCPC requirements.

Students studying a health or social care course, that has a placement within the NHS or any other Care Quality Commission establishment, are strongly encouraged to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Find out more in our Help and Advice article.

What is the interview process?

All applicants must attend an interview as part of the selection process, which includes a group activity and an individual interview. Your values, problem solving and communication skills will be assessed. We select students based on their knowledge, motivation, experience, values and behaviours, not just academic ability.

You need to demonstrate an ability to:

• Study academic subjects at the level of the course
• Debate topics and issues
• Draw on conclusions from written material
• Study independently and as part of a group
• Interact with patients and colleagues in a caring and compassionate manner
• Demonstrate an understanding of, and commitment to, the course

Find out more information about our healthcare interviews.

Professional compliance and fitness to practice

As you are training to be a registered healthcare professional, the ability to practise safely, effectively and professionally is essential, as well as ensuring you are professionally compliant with regulations and standards, as based on current HCPC requirements.

This means you are required to complete the following:

• A health declaration form. Here you must demonstrate that you are of good health, good character and can satisfactorily pass occupational health screening. In addition, you will be required to attend an Occupational Health Assessment with an NHS Trust. The University will, considering current HCPC regulations, make any reasonable adjustments if required. Please refer to the HEOPS student fitness standards
• A self-declaration form about your conduct
• Obtain an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. The cost of the DBS check is covered by the University

Instructions on how you complete these checks will be sent to you once you hold a conditional firm offer with us. These forms are then reviewed alongside your application, and you must meet both the academic and fitness to practise requirements before you will be given an unconditional offer. If you are successful, you will also need to complete an annual declaration form to confirm you are fit and there are no changes to your DBS.