Health, Safety and Environment Management MSc/Diploma

Program Overview

The Health, Safety and Environment Management MSc/Diploma from the University of Birmingham trains students to identify, evaluate, and address health, safety, and environmental issues. Accredited by IOSH, graduates meet the academic requirements for certified-level membership and are prepared for careers in consultancies, commercial companies, and NGOs. The program combines technical and practical skills with management knowledge, fostering critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.

Program Outline

Degree Overview:

The Health, Safety and Environment Management MSc/Diploma is a postgraduate degree program offered by the University of Birmingham. It is accredited by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and upon successful completion, graduates will meet the academic requirements for certified-level membership. The program aims to teach the science and practice of occupational health, safety, and environmental control in the context of a team approach. Upon completion, students should be able to identify, evaluate, and provide solutions to a wide range of health, safety, and/or environmental problems, and function well in a multi-disciplinary team. The comprehensive syllabus recognizes the importance of technical and practical skills as well as the need for good management skills and critical thinking.

Outline:

The MSc is offered on a full-time (one-year) and part-time (two-year) basis. The Postgraduate Diploma is only available full-time (one-year). All modules are compulsory.

Modules:

• Health, Safety and Environment Management (online): This module is designed to strengthen the management skills of students and current practitioners in Health, Safety and Environment disciplines - as well as Business and Management - to equip them as senior managers of the future.
It will also enhance knowledge on the critical role and complexity of health, safety and environment issues and procedures in the context of local and global challenges. Topics covered include business resilience including financial aspects, teamwork, managing mental health and wellbeing, and stakeholder Engagement.
• Health, Safety and Environment Leadership (online): This module is designed to strengthen the leadership skills of students and current practitioners in Health, Safety and Environment disciplines - as well as Business and Management - to equip them as innovative and compassionate leaders of the future.
It will also enhance knowledge on the critical role and complexity of health, safety and environment issues in the context of local and global challenges. Topics covered include change management, strategy development, conflict management, and collaboration, negotiation and influencing.
• Environmental Protection and Climate Change: This module will develop students' appreciation of key concepts that link environmental science, ecology, pollution of the environment and human health and wellbeing.
They will develop an understanding of the scientific, technical, socio-economic, political and legal factors which influence climate change, environmental quality and safety and the mechanisms and partnership strategies available to effect change. Students will also gain an understanding of the sources, modes of transport and effects of pollution; and how pollution may be controlled in order to protect human health and the environment. Basic applied field and laboratory techniques for assessing environmental pollution will also be covered.
• Chemical and Biological Incident Management: The objectives of this module are to enable students to understand the causes of chemical and biological incidents; introduce methods of assessing the impacts of incidents; and develop a practical approach to managing and solving problems caused by chemical and biological incidents.
• Assessment and Control of Occupational Risks: This practically based module will provide students with an introduction to the role and interface of occupational health professionals.
It will enable students to recognize, evaluate and control a comprehensive range of hazards found in the workplace. The opportunity to study in detail specific occupational diseases will be afforded, for example, dermatitis and occupational cancer. Practical sessions will provide the opportunity to devise, implement and evaluate monitoring programmes for biological, chemical, physical and radioactive workplace hazards. The principal methods to control and to mitigate the impact of occupational hazards on the worker will be identified. There will be consideration of the legal relationship between employer and employee, which will include a review of the current case law relating to civil liability. There will be a review of occupational accident and ill health data and its relevance as a management tool will be evaluated. Theories of accident causation will be examined and management strategies to prevent accidents will be considered. In particular the role of the individual and the organisation will be explored. Quantitative and qualitative risk assessment methods will be studied. The philosophy of the management of controls to prevent accidents will be considered.
• Safety Technology: This module will examine the integrity of machinery, plant and structures including the causes and consequences of failure and a consideration of preventative measures.
The hazards arising from machinery, plant premises and processes will be evaluated and the technological and scientific principles which can be applied to remove or control the subsequent risk will be studied in detail. The following areas will also be considered with respect to their relevance to workplace safety; movement of people and materials, electricity and fire. Relevant legislative controls will be studied.
• Dissertation: This module will provide students with the underpinning skills necessary for them to successfully undertake an MSc research dissertation.
Students will gain an understanding of processes needed to plan, implement and evaluate a research-based study. In particular there will be sessions looking at hypothesis and research question generation, survey design, sampling strategies, qualitative approaches, literature searching and evaluation, and an introduction to some basic statistical techniques. Students will be expected to formulate their project ideas and to write their research protocols.
• An in-depth project will be submitted in the form of a dissertation or research paper.
Research can use a variety of methods, including mixed approaches.

Assessment:

Assessments are in the form of multiple choice tests, written assessments, presentations, reports, group work, and research dissertations.

Teaching:

The program utilizes a variety of teaching methods, including formal lectures, group work, case studies, practical simulations, industrial/commercial visits, and student-centered learning.

Careers:

On completion of this course, you will be in a position to identify hazards, evaluate risks, and suggest control measures in a range of situations. These skills are valued internationally by a range of employers including consultancies, commercial companies, government bodies, and Non-Governmental Organisations. The course is accredited by IOSH.

Other:

From the organization of the taught modules to thought-provoking field trips, learning was enhanced both practically and theoretically.