Medical Physics – (M.Sc.)

Contents

The programme's nine modules are:

• Radiation Physics
• Radiation Biology
• Generic Skills and Methods; Health and Safety
• Practical Aspects of Radiation Physics
• Applications of Ionising Radiation Physics
• Applications of Non-ionising Radiation Physics
• Hospital Experience
• Ultrasonics and Audiology
• Research Project and Dissertation

Module Overview

The MSc Medical Physics comprises nine modules. These include a period of hospital experience and a summer research project.

The syllabus is designed to provide the knowledge, skills and experience required for a modern graduate medical physicist. It places more emphasis than many other courses on topics beyond ionising radiation (X-rays and radiotherapy), for example, on magnetic resonance scanning and blood dynamics. Although applications of ionising radiation seem likely to remain a major branch of medical physics, other fields are increasing in importance, and modern medical physicists are now involved in the wide range of physical problems which arise in clinical medicine.

The nine modules are as follows:

Radiation Physics

Thirty hours of lectures including: atomic and nuclear physics and the interaction of radiation with matter, plus introductory material describing detector operation and dosimetry.

Radiation Biology

Thirty hours of lectures focusing on human biology, the nature of the interaction of ionising radiation with biological systems and including the effects of ingested radionuclides. Effects at the cellular level and the impact that this has on the individual are also covered.

Generic Skills and Methods; Health and Safety

Thirty hours of lectures, labs, seminars and workshops including: the nation’s health and the role of medical physics; probability and statistics; student seminars; computers in medicine; communication and research skills workshop, including literature reviews, research project plans, research proposals; electrical safety.

Practical Aspects of Radiation Physics

Thirty hours of radiation laboratories and ten hours of supporting lectures on detection, dosimetry and radiation protection in practice.

Applications of Ionising Radiation Physics

Thirty-eight hours of lectures, labs and hospital sessions including: X-rays and diagnostic radiology; nuclear medicine; radiotherapy and treatment planning.

Applications of Non-ionising Radiation Physics

Thirty-five hours of lectures and labs including: electronics and instrumentation; NMR spectroscopy, imaging and signal analysis; haemodynamics; biodielectrics; clinical neurophysiology; lasers in medicine; UV radiation and blue light.

Hospital Experience

Sixty hours of hospital visits, demonstrations and hospital experience: a visit to Royal Marsden Hospital (the first dedicated cancer hospital in the world); demonstration of the use of radiation sources; demonstration of the three-dimensional imaging technique of X-ray CT (computed tomography); demonstration of treatment planning; radiotherapy physics visit and demonstrations; a two-week long hospital experience; a visit to St George's Hospital.

Ultrasonics and Audiology

Thirty-five hours of lectures, labs and hospital sessions including: ultrasonics theory; ultrasonics, instrumentation and practice; audiology; audiological testing.

Research Project and Dissertation

You will undertakes a supervised project either on campus or off (off campus projects are typically supervised by a hospital medical physicist). The project lasts eleven weeks. You will give a mid-project seminar and writes a dissertation at the end of the project.

Module Breakdown

Each of the nine modules is sub-divided into its various primary sections as shown.

Module 1: Radiation Physics (30 hours of lectures)

• Atomic and nuclear physics
• Radiation physics

Module 2:Radiation Biology (30 hours of lectures, tutorials and practicals/demonstrations)

• Musculoskeletal
• Cardiovascular, digestive, urinary, integumentary and immune
• Neurological function and the senses

Module 3: Generic Skills and Methods; Health and Safety (30 hours of lectures, labs, seminars and workshops)

• The nation’s health and the role of medical physics
• Probability and statistics
• Computers in medicine and associated student seminars
• Communication and research skills workshop, including literature reviews, research project plans, research proposals
• Electrical safety
• Aspects of medical physics

Module 4: Practical Aspects of Radiation Physics (40 hours)

• Radiation labs
• Radiation detection, dosimetry, radiobiology and radiation protection

Module 5: Applications of Ionising Radiation Physics (38 hours of lectures, labs and hospital sessions)

• X-rays and diagnostic radiology; MTF and ROC analysis
• Nuclear medicine
• Radiotherapy and treatment planning

Module 6: Applications of Non-ionising Radiation Physics (35 hours of lectures and labs)

• NMR spectroscopy, imaging and signal analysis
• Haemodynamics
• Biodielectrics
• Clinical neurophysiology
• Lasers in medicine
• UV radiation and Blue Light

Module 7: Hospital Experience (60 hours of hospital visits, demonstrations and hospital experience)

• Royal Marsden/Royal Surrey County Hospital visit and demonstrations
• Use of sources of radiation, demonstrations
• X-ray CT demonstration
• Treatment planning demonstration
• Radiotherapy physics visit and demonstrations
• Hospital experience fortnight
• St George’s Hospital visit

Module 8: Ultrasonics and Audiology (35 hours of lectures, labs and hospital sessions)

• Ultrasonics theory, instrumentation and practice
• Audiology and audiological testing

Module 9: Research Project and Dissertation

Accreditation

The University of Surrey School of Management is unique as the only business school in the world to hold simultaneous accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), Association of MBAs (AMBA) and the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). MBA and Tourism students can be assured of the quality of their programme and the School as recognized by these awards.

The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) is an international body which assesses business schools on the quality of their programmes and operational management. AACSB International accreditation represents the highest standard of achievement for business schools, worldwide.

Institutions that earn accreditation confirm their commitment to quality and continuous improvement through a rigorous and comprehensive peer review.

AACSB International accreditation is the hallmark of excellence in management education. AACSB International accreditation assures stakeholders that business schools:

• Manage resources to achieve a vibrant and relevant mission.
• Advance business and management knowledge through faculty scholarship.
• Provide high-calibre teaching of quality and current curricula.
• Cultivate meaningful interaction between students and a qualified faculty.
• Produce graduates who have achieved specified learning goals.

An AACSB accredited business school gives an assurance that it is amongst the best in the world.

The Association of MBAs (AMBA) accreditation is widely recognised as the global standard for MBA programmes. The association has acted as an advocate for MBA programmes around the world since 1967 and assesses business schools and their post-experience management programmes against rigorous criteria. These criteria include:

• The institution offering an MBA should have a clear strategy and mission, explicitly expressed and regularly updated. It will have a clear understanding of the market for its products.
• Staff should be credible in terms of their academic qualifications, their ability to teach business at postgraduate level, the quality of their research and the extent of their business contacts and consultancy activities.
• As the MBA is a post-experience, postgraduate degree, students admitted onto an accredited MBA must have a minimum of three years work experience, with the cohort averaging 5 years experience.
• The curriculum should be generalist in nature and must cover the core business skills: marketing, the economic and legal environment of a business, accounting and quantitative methods, finance, organisational theory, interpersonal skills, information technology, and the processes and practices of management.

The School of Management has a long association with the tourism industry and a worldwide reputation for excellence in tourism education. It was the first institution in the UK to receive UNWTO TedQual certification for both its undergraduate and postgraduate tourism programmes.

The UNWTO TedQual certification system contributes to the quality and efficiency of tourism education training and research. It proposes a methodology and voluntary standards with universal scope to more clearly define the quality of tourism education systems. The UNWTO TedQual certification system is a quality assurance system for tourism education, training and research. The specific aims of the UNWTO TedQual certification system are:

• Establish a quality standard for tourism education and training systems.
• Smooth the way towards greater pedagogic productivity in tourism.

Funding details

At the time of writing the National Health Service is changing the way it supports the trainee clinical scientists, including medical physicists. Please contact the University for information on the current situation.

Prizes

Student Prizes and Sponsorship

The Department has the following prizes which are awarded on an annual basis:

Mayneord Prize

A prize in memory of Professor Valentine Mayneord will be awarded to the student with the best overall performance on the recommendation of the examinations board.

Professor Mayneord was one of the pioneers of medical physics, who had a long association with the Department and encouraged the growth of teaching and research in the field.

BNES Prize

A prize of £250 donated by the British Nuclear Energy Society, London, awarded to the student graduating from the MSc Medical Physics programme who submits the best project with a nuclear/radiation content.