Aerospace Medicine MSc

King's College London

Overview

The Aerospace Medicine programme aims to provide specialist training for medical graduates in the discipline from its research orientated basic science to its operational and clinical application. The course is therefore appropriate for Flight Medical Officers (Flight Surgeons), specialists in aviation and space medicine and for clinicians from other disciplines with a role to fulfil in aerospace medicine. It is not the aim of the course to train individuals in clinical medicine but rather to use the knowledge and experience students already have from their medical practice to allow them to understand its specialist application in aviation and space medicine.

Course detail

The Aerospace Medicine course is a unique study pathway that provides physicians with comprehensive theoretical and practical instruction in advanced aviation physiology, psychology, pathology, clinical and operational aviation medicine. The main aims of the course are: a detailed working knowledge of the scientific basis of aerospace medicine, the ability to understand and describe the medical and physiological effects of flight in health, develop the capacity to understand the interaction of the aerospace environments with the clinical status of the occupants of airborne craft as well as comprehend the hazards to flight safety that may arise from medical factors in air traffic controllers, develop the skills to investigate an aeromedical issue such as would allow them to make appropriate written or oral arguments regarding the aeromedical disposal of individuals in health and disease, an ability to communicate their ideas effectively and confidently, (for MSc only) have developed the skills associated with conducting a supervised project in aerospace medicine including its written and oral presentation.

Teaching and assessment

You will receive approximately 500 contact hours at during the course primarily at King’s and the RAF Centre of Aviation Medicine while there will also be various trips to external study locations. The course will be comprised of lectures, seminars and experiential/practical sessions. Typically, one credit equates to ten hours of work. If you are studying for the full MSc qualification, you will be expected to spend approximately 600 hours on the research project module and thesis. Your performance will be assessed through a combination of coursework and written/practical examinations. Forms of assessment typically include formative and summative written examinations, presentations and reports. Coursework contributes to 40% and examinations approximately 60% to your final mark.

Career prospects

Career opportunities in aerospace medicine are varied. Many undertaking specialist training have already been employed specifically for the role and are sponsored to undertake these courses. However others use such training to better equip themselves for potential employment. Areas of possible careers include with airlines, aviation regulators, air traffic services, military aviation and space agencies as well as in academic or commercial research organisations. Some aviation medical examiners (AMEs) undertake the DAvMed. Appointment as an AME in the UK is now restricted to doctors on the GMC specialist register. Previous graduates of the MSc course and DAvMed courses have been employed in all these areas and enjoyed a varied and challenging career.