Chiropractic Foundation Year
Top ten in the UK for Health Professions for the last five years Guardian League Table 2019-23
This chiropractic course is designed for applicants who do not meet the admissions criteria for the Master of Chiropractic degree. You’ll start by completing a foundation year, which provides well structured support. Following successful completion of the foundation year, you will progress with confidence to the first year of the Chiropractic degree.
If you want to be a chiropractor, our Chiropractic courses provide the appropriate clinical education and training to meet registration requirements in the UK. Based at the Welsh Institute of Chiropractic, you will study the human body in health and disease, be able to identify abnormalities of human structure and function, and manage patients through manual methods. These include manipulation, soft tissue techniques and active rehabilitation.
Clinical experience is a major part of your chiropractic training. Elements of clinical work are introduced from the start. Your final year is a clinical placement, during which you will treat and manage patients with musculoskeletal disorders to develop your clinical skills, confidence and employability.
Our Chiropractic degree is fully integrated into the University infrastructure, offering students a wide educational experience, including a local hospital placement programme.
Rated second in the UK for Complementary Medicine (Complete University Guide 2023)
Get a glimpse of what it's like to study at USW before you apply
'Introduction to Chiropractic Management ' - Free Online Taster Course
All students on the Foundation Chiropractic programme study the following core modules in one year and then, subject to grades, progress on to the Master of Chiropractic.
- Foundations of Clinical Management
- Foundation Anatomy for Chiropractors
- Foundation Physiology for Chiropractors
- Foundation Biophysics
- Foundation of Professional Development in Chiropractic
- Foundation Biology
Teaching
Typically, students on our foundation chiropractic course will spend around around 12-14 hours each week in lectures, practicals, tutorials, laboratory or clinical work, depending on the topic.
Assessment
A variety of assessment methods are used throughout each term, including (but not exclusively) short-answer in-class tests, practical tests, multiple-choice tests, group presentations and long-answer written tests.
Accreditations
Our Chiropractic programme is accredited by both the General Chiropractic Council (GCC) and the European Council on Chiropractic Education (ECCE). This means graduates are qualified to apply to register with the GCC, have the ability to work in European states, and are eligible to sit entry examinations in most accredited areas worldwide.
Placements
Final year chiropractic students spend 13 months working under professional supervision in the outpatient clinic at the Welsh Institute of Chiropractic, managing the care of a wide range of patients. The student clinicians have access to state-of-the-art diagnostic modalities including DXA scans, musculoskeletal ultrasound, X-ray services and MRI.
Students spend one week on a hospital placement at Prince Charles Hospital under the supervision of Professor Karras, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon. The hospital placement provides students with the opportunity to engage with other health professionals in a number of departments including surgery and fracture clinics.
Students also have the opportunity to work with University sports teams as well provide care at external events ranging from triathlons, cycle events, tennis tournaments and professional rugby. All placement opportunities provide an enhanced student experience to prepare the student clinicians for graduate positions.
Facilities
Our Welsh Institute of Chiropractic (WIoC) centre has 18 treatment rooms, as well as a digital X-ray suite, MRI facilities and a functional rehabilitation suite. We have first-class learning facilities on campus, including a clinical simulation suite, DEXA-scan and a diagnostic ultrasound suite.
Lecturers
We regularly revalidate courses for quality assurance and enhancement
At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.
If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.
The entry criteria below reflect our standard entry requirements for the course for September 2023. However, all applications received by the University are reviewed holistically and individually. Entry criteria for September 2024 is changing and will be published on ucas.com from 8th May 2023. Entry criteria for September 2024 will be updated on our website from the end of October 2023.
Contextual offers
We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions. USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university. Here is a link to our Contextual Admissions Policy.
Other qualifications and experience
We can also consider combinations of qualifications and other qualifications not listed here may also be acceptable. We can sometimes consider credits achieved at other universities and your work/life experience through an assessment of prior learning. This may be for year one entry, or advanced entry to year two or three of a course where this is possible.
To find out which qualifications have tariff points, please refer to the UCAS tariff calculator.
If you need more help or information or would like to speak to our friendly admissions team, please contact us here
Additional requirements
* An Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check on the Child & Adult Workforce and Child and Adult Barring Lists and subscription to the DBS Update Service. (Overseas equivalent required for non-uk applicants)
* Evidence of observation of a minimum three hours of a chiropractor in clinical practice.
Please note, applicants who are joining us in September 2022 but who are currently unable to fulfil this requirement in light of the Covid-19 situation, will have this taken into consideration. It will not be necessary to contact us if you are unable to undertake this observation.
* An IELTS (or equivalent) minimum average score of 6.0 is required for non-UK applicants.
We look for a high level of motivation and evidence of a significant level of proficiency in both numeracy and literacy. Those students without any formal qualifications should contact the University of South Wales directly. All applications are considered on an individual basis.
Typical A-Level Offer
BCC - CCD
Typical Welsh BACC Offer
Pass the Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate Diploma with Grade C in the Skills Challenge Certificate and BC - CD at A Level to include one A Level but to exclude General Studies (this is equivalent to 112-96 UCAS tariff points).
Typical BTEC Offer
BTEC Extended Diploma Distinction Merit Merit - Merit Merit Merit (this is equivalent to 112-96 UCAS tariff points).
Typical Access to HE Offer
Pass Diploma with 60 credits overall to include 45 level 3 credits with 12 Distinctions, a further 18 Merits and 15 Passes. Other combinations equating to 112 UCAS tariff points are acceptable
Additional Requirements
GCSEs: The University normally requires a minimum 5 GCSEs including Mathematics/Numeracy and English at Grade C or Grade 4 or above, or their equivalent, but consideration is given to individual circumstances.
International Entry Requirements
We also welcome international applications with equivalent qualifications. Please visit the country specific pages on our international website for exact details.
English Requirements
In general, international applicants will need to have achieved an overall IELTS grade of 6.0 with a minimum score of 5.5 in each component.
However, if you have previously studied through the medium of English IELTS might not be required, but please visit the country specific page on our international website for exact details. If your country is not featured please contact us.
Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee will remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course
August 2023 - July 2024 Fees
Full-time UK: £9000
Full-time International: £14400
August 2024 - July 2025 Fees
Full-time UK: TBC
Full-time International: £15260
Student Perks
At the University of South Wales, you’re investing in so much more than a degree. We strive to provide our students with the best possible experience, no matter what you chose to study. Whether it’s access to top of the range mac books and PCs, state-of-the-art facilities packed with industry-leading equipment and software, masterclasses and events led by industry experts, or a wide range of clubs and societies to meet likeminded people, better tomorrows start with extra perks.
Each course also has their own unique student benefits to prepare you for the real word, and details of these can be found on our course pages. From global field trips, integrated work experience and free course-related resources, to funded initiatives, projects working with real employers, and opportunities for extra qualifications and accreditations - at USW your future, is future-proofed.
Click here to learn more about student perks at USW.
Additional Costs
As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.
* Obligatory
| Item | Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| DBS * | £55.42 | This fee includes £40 for the enhanced DBS certificate, the Post Office Administration fee and the online administration fee. |
| DBS Updating Service * | £13 | Subscription required for each year of the course for a yearly fee of £13.
Please note the service has to be joined within 30 days of receipt of your enhanced DBS certificate.
|
UK students
Apply via UCAS if you are a UK residing applicant, applying for year one of a full-time undergraduate degree, Foundation Year, Foundation Degree or HND and you have not applied through UCAS before. If you are applying to study part-time, to top up your Foundation Degree or HND, or to transfer to USW from another institution, please apply directly.
International and EU students
Apply directly to the University if you live outside the UK.
Graduates of the Master of Chiropractic degree will be eligible to apply for registration with the General Chiropractic Council (GCC) to practise as a chiropractor in the independent sector in the UK. There is also opportunity to apply for registration and employment in other countries worldwide.
Our chiropractic course boasts a very high employment uptake in the profession. Chiropractic is a growing profession in the UK and Europe that offers substantial opportunities. There are also career opportunities in education, or you could specialise in sports medicine, rehabilitation, neurology or research.
Our Careers and Employability Service
As a USW student, you will have access to advice from the Careers and Employability Service throughout your studies and after you graduate.
This includes: one-to-one appointments from faculty based Career Advisers, in person, over the phone or even on Skype and through email via the "Ask a Question" service. We also have extensive online resources for help with considering your career options and presenting yourself well to employers. Resources include psychometric tests, career assessments, a CV builder, interview simulator and application help. Our employer database has over 2,000 registered employers targeting USW students, you can receive weekly email alerts for jobs.
Our Careers service has dedicated teams: A central work experience team to help you find relevant placements; an employability development team which includes an employability programme called Grad Edge; and an Enterprise team focused on new business ideas and entrepreneurship.
The Pontypridd Campus is made up of two sites: Treforest and Glyntaff. Our students love the community atmosphere, as well as living and studying in the same place. It’s quieter than the cities, with green open spaces and views across the valley.
It’s the community and friendships you’ll build that make this place special. Outside your studies you can experience our amazing sport facilities and Students’ Union.
Living in Halls is a great way to meet new people and make friends. We have high quality accommodation in Treforest, Cardiff and Newport.