Podiatric Medicine

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Course Overview
Key Facts
Course Outline
Further Education
Why Choose This Course?
Course Fees
Find Out More

What our lecturers say What our students say

Entry Points (2020)

443

Course Overview

Podiatry is a healthcare profession that specialises in the management of disease and disorder of the lower limb and foot. The foot is a highly complex structure, which can develop problems affecting a patient’s overall health and quality of life. Podiatry can significantly improve people’s quality of life by promoting and maintaining mobility. Therefore, podiatry as a career can be extremely rewarding and fulfilling, giving immense job satisfaction. Podiatrists are educated in diagnosis and in planning and implementing interventions for all age groups. As a podiatrist, you will work as an independent, autonomous practitioner, demonstrating expertise in assessing, diagnosing and managing lower limb and foot-related problems. You will work alongside other health professionals, such as doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and orthotists.

Applications and Selections

Who Teaches this Course

Requirements and Assessment

Key Facts

Entry Requirements

Minimum Grade H5 in two subjects and passes in four other subjects at O6/H7 Level in the Leaving Certificate, including Irish, English, another language, Mathematics, a laboratory science subject (i.e. Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Physics with Chemistry (joint) or Agricultural Science), and any other subject recognised for entry purposes.

Additional Requirements

Students must satisfy the Garda/Police vetting and Medical Clearance requirements.

Duration

4 years

Next start date

September 2021

A Level Grades (2020)

nuigalway.ie/alevels

Average intake

Closing Date

NFQ level

Mode of study

ECTS weighting

Award

CAO

GY504

Course code

Course Outline

Year 1

Introduction to Clinical Studies
Podiatry Theory I
Human Anatomy
Human Body Function
Professional Development
Redefining Health and Wellbeing

Year 2

Clinical Studies II
Podiatry Theory II
Pathophysiology
Functional Anatomy and Biomechanics
Research Methods I
Introduction to Pharmacology

Year 3

Clinical Studies III
Medicine and Surgery
Pharmacology in Health and Disease
Research Methods II
Podiatry Theory III
Health Promotion in Podiatry

Year 4

Clinical Studies IV
Skills for Practice
Footwear and Orthoses
Research Dissertation
Working with Vulnerable Adults
Contemporary Practice

Curriculum Information

Curriculum information relates to the current academic year (in most cases).
Course and module offerings and details may be subject to change.

Glossary of Terms

Credits: You must earn a defined number of credits (aka ECTS) to complete each year of your course. You do this by taking all of its required modules as well as the correct number of optional modules to obtain that year's total number of credits.
Module: An examinable portion of a subject or course, for which you attend lectures and/or tutorials and carry out assignments. E.g. Algebra and Calculus could be modules within the subject Mathematics. Each module has a unique module code eg. MA140.
Subject: Some courses allow you to choose subjects, where related modules are grouped together. Subjects have their own required number of credits, so you must take all that subject's required modules and may also need to obtain the remainder of the subject's total credits by choosing from its available optional modules.
Optional: A module you may choose to study.
Required: A module that you must study if you choose this course (or subject).
Required Core Subject: A subject you must study because it's integral to that course.
Semester: Most courses have 2 semesters (aka terms) per year, so a three-year course will have six semesters in total. For clarity, this page will refer to the first semester of year 2 as 'Semester 3'.

Further Education

Graduates have the option to study a variety of programmes at Postgraduate, Masters and PhD levels.

Why Choose This Course?

Career Opportunities

Graduates of the degree course will have a professional qualification and may work in a variety of settings such as:

Hospitals
Sports centres
GP practices
Nursing homes
Private practice
Education and research
Community rehabilitation services
Opportunities for further postgraduate studies

Who’s Suited to This Course

Learning Outcomes

Work Placement

Clinical Practice, a process of work-based learning which involves a partnership between the Clinical Educator and the student in the practice setting, is an integral part of the programme. All students are required to complete 1,000 hours of clinical practice successfully under the supervision of qualified podiatrists. Clinical practice will be integrated into each year of the programme and primarily takes place in Merlin Park Podiatry Clinic, based at Merlin Park Hospital, Galway. This facility provides an out-patient podiatry service to patients with a variety of medical and surgical conditions, children, people with sports injuries and patients requiring soft tissue surgery. The programme is the only such professionally accredited qualification in the Republic of Ireland.

Study Abroad

Related Student Organisations

Course Fees

Fees: EU

€8,092 p.a. 2020/21

Fees: Tuition

€4,868 p.a. 2020/21

Fees: Student Contribution

€3,000 p.a. 2020/21

Fees: Student levy

€224 p.a. 2020/21

Fees: Non EU

€23,750 p.a. 2020/21

Occupational Health Service Fee

In year one students are required to pay a €200 fee towards a subsidised Occupational Health Service provided to students of the College of Medicine, Nursing & Health Sciences in compliance with all relevant legislation and standards. ‌

Find out More

The School of Health Sciences
T+ 353 91 495 814
F+ 353 91 495 540
podiatry@nuigalway.ie
www.nuigalway.ie/podiatry/

What Our Students Say

Lauren Connell | Postgraduate Research Student

I chose to study podiatric medicine because I wanted to be an autonomous specialized clinician, initially when looking at the course I was enthralled by the thought of studying anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology whilst engaging clinically in Merlin Park Podiatry Clinic. If you are undecided about the course, I would advise to look at the course content, as this course encapsulates biological sciences and clinical content which is interesting for somebody interested in health care. If you enjoy learning about how the body functions in a normal and pathological state, if you want to make difference to patients' lives, and if you'd like to become a specialized clinician in an upcoming profession then Podiatric Medicine could be for you. In my final year I was awarded the Tomorrow’s Podiatrists inaugural podiatry student of the year award. In 2019, I graduated with a first-class degree, and I am now a postgraduate research student, with an avid interest in patient care and student education.

Jamie O'Sullivan | BSc (Podiatry)

...A lot of the course is practical work, so we either see the different treatments being carried out or we get to do it ourselves. I find this much more interesting to learning theory all the time! I love sport and through my course I could branch off into the sports side of podiatry such as orthotics or sports injuries...