Professional Course
Course Prospectus
Course Prospectus
Professional Course in Herbal Medicine
Length of Study: 4-6 years (depending on chosen pathway)
Schedule: September – July. Resits may run into August
Award: Diploma in Herbal Medicine (DipHM), conferring eligibility to apply for membership of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists (NIMH).
Clinical Hours: 500 hours (up to 250 can be taken online)
Accreditation: National Institute of Herbal Medicine
Total Study Hours: 3600 hours plus 500 clinical hours (excluding writing-up time)
Fees: please see our fee page. There will also be additional costs such as travelling to clinical training clinics, and you will need to invest in reading texts and clinical equipment.
Course Outline – 4-Year Course
(subject to change)
Year 1
- Herbal Traditions 1 – Materia medica of key medicinal plants
- Anatomy and Physiology for Herbalists – Biochemistry, anatomy and physiology
- Plant Science – Plant chemistry and plant pharmacology
- Practitioner Development – Research skills for herbalists
- Clinical Training – none
Year 2
- Herbal Traditions 2 – Materia medica of key medicinal plants
- Pathophysiology – Disease processes, presentations of conditions
- Making and Taking – Herbal pharmacy skills
- Clinical Methods – Introduces students to case taking skills, the art of differential diagnosis and understanding medical tests
- Counselling – Counselling skills for herbalists
- Clinical Training – 50 hours of observation (and writing up) in the Online Heartwood Student Clinic (Jan-July)
Year 3
- Plants in Practice 1 – Herbal therapeutics for body systems and common conditions
- Biophilia – Exploration of beneficial human relationships with nature
- Clinical examination techniques and safeguarding – Clinical examination skills and safeguarding for herbalists
- Integration Module 1 – Case-based learning
- Clinical Training: 175 hours. A minimum of 100 is needed to progress to year 4. Observation and case taking – students start taking cases mid way through year 3.
Year 4
- Plants in Practice 2 – Herbal therapeutics for body systems and common conditions
- Clinical Examination Skills in Context and Herbal Safety – Clinical examination skills in clinical context, Final Clinical Exam preparation, herbal safety including Schedule 20 herbs
- Business skills and Practice Management – Setting up and running a herbal practice
- Integration Module 2 – Case-based learning
- Clinical training – 275 hours
6 Year Course
(subject to change)
Year 1
- Herbal Traditions 1 – Materia medica of key medicinal plants
- Anatomy and Physiology for Herbalists – Biochemistry, anatomy and physiology
- Practitioner Development – Research skills for herbalists
- Clinical Training – none
Year 2
- Herbal Traditions 2 – Materia medica of key medicinal plants
- Plant Science – Plant chemistry and plant pharmacology
- Pathophysiology – Disease processes, presentations of conditions
- Clinical Training – none
Year 3
- Making and Taking – Herbal pharmacy skills
- Clinical Methods – Introduces students to case taking skills, the art of differential diagnosis and understanding medical tests
- Counselling – Counselling skills for herbalists
- Clinical Training – 50 hours of observation (and writing up) in the Online Heartwood Student Clinic (Jan-July)
Year 4
- Plants in Practice 1 – Herbal therapeutics for body systems and common conditions
- Biophilia – Exploration of beneficial human relationships with nature
- Clinical Examination Techniques and Safeguarding – Clinical examination skills and safeguarding for herbalists
- Clinical Training: 100 hours. A minimum of 100 is needed to progress to year 5.
Year 5
- Plants in Practice 2 – Herbal therapeutics for body systems and common conditions
- Integration Module 1 – Case-based learning
- Business skills and Practice Management – Setting up and running a herbal practice
- Clinical Training: 125 hours. A minimum of 100 is needed to progress to year 6. Observation and case taking – students start taking cases
Year 6
- Clinical Examination Skills in Context and Herbal Safety – Clinical examination skills in clinical context, Final Clinical Exam preparation, herbal safety including Schedule 20 herbs
- Integration Module 2 – Case-based learning
- Clinical training – 225 hours
Delivery
The delivery of this course takes place through a VLE (Virtual Learning Environment) called Moodle.
A range of learning and teaching activities take place via this online delivery platform including:
- Live Webinars for each subject – we encourage students to attend the live webinars. However, these are recorded for those who can’t attend.
- Substantial weekly lessons embedded into the delivery platform, featuring filmed tuition by expert practitioners from around the world, underpinned by text, graphics, and additional learning resources.
- Intake-specific forums for group discussions and enrichment of learning as well as a community forum for all students on the Professional Course
- One-to-one personal tutorials. You will be allocated a personal tutor who guide you through your studies.
- Online training clinics, for up to half of the clinical training hours, with case analysis and discussion.
- The clinical training is managed and overseen by Heartwood and involves each student “rotating” through a number of different clinics during their clinical years. We also have an online Heartwood training clinic.
- We have a network of training clinics around the country, as well as some beyond the UK, so that students can complete the clinical elements of their course as near to home as possible. Please email us at admin@heartwoodteam.net for an up-to-date list.
- Please note that we do not offer a non-clinical route. Thus, you will need to commit to undertaking the required number of hours (you will need to ensure that you can undertake at least 250 hours of face to face clinical training)
Fees
Recommended Study Time
A professional training course demands a serious investment of time.
- 4 year course, the recommended study time is 21-30 hours per week
- 6 year course the recommended study time is 14 to 21 hours per week.
This excludes clinical training hours (500 hours in total plus writing up time). Please note, these are guidelines and the time needed depends on the demands of the course at the particular time, the individual, and relevant prior learning.
Of these hours, 30-50% would typically be via our VLE (Moodle); watching videos and completing online tasks, attending webinars, completing quizzes and attending tutorials. The remainder comprises directed or self-directed background reading, research, assignment writing and revision. Students are expected to engage in their studies for at least 40 weeks of the year.
Entry Criteria
Successful completion of the Heartwood Foundation Course (or equivalent), plus 4 GCSEs at grades A-C / grade 4 or above (including English, Maths and a Science); or BTEC Level 2/First Diploma (in a relevant subject with merit or distinction); or NVQ Level 2; or equivalent Level 2 qualification.
Those without GCSE English at grade C / grade 4 or above need to offer proof of proficiency in English, for example:
- Cambridge Advanced Certificate (CAE) / Cambridge C1 Advanced – 185 overall with a minimum of 176 in each skill
- Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) / Cambridge C2 Proficiency – 185 overall with a minimum of 176 in each skill
- IELTS (Academic) – 7.0 overall with a minimum of 6.5 in each skill
- Pearson Test of English (Academic) – 69 overall with a minimum of 62 in each communicative skill
- TOEFL iBT Institution code: 0394 – 100 overall with a minimum of 25 in writing and 23 in each of the other skills
- Trinity College London Integrated Skills in English (ISE) – Level III (ISEIII) with merit in each skill
Applications from those over 21 with an existing qualification and/or experience in another therapeutic discipline will be considered for course entry on a case-by-case basis.
Accredited Prior Learning
Accredited Prior Learning (APL) is available for students who have partly completed studies with Betonica and Lincoln College. Currently we do not offer APL for other courses. General Practitioners are eligible for Accredited Prior Experiential Learning (APEL) – please enquire.
All enquires – email us at admin@heartwoodteam.net
Betonica
- Completed year 1 with Betonica:
- allows entry to our PC course
- Completed year 2 with Betonica:
- you will need to complete our year 1 Practitioner Development module and have worked through some elements of our Anatomy and Physiology module before starting Heartwood year 2 (this applies to both the 4 year and 6 year courses)
- APL for a limited number of clinical training hours. Please enquire for further information
- Completed year 3 with Betonica – entry onto our year 2 of the 4 year pathway, or year 2 of our 6 year pathway (you will be APLd for year 2 Plant Sciences)
- APL clinical training hours – please enquire
Lincoln College
Please enquire
Need help?
Get in touch
Heartwood Education
19 Saltfield Crescent,
Luton, Bedfordshire,
LU4 9NU
+44 (0) 1342 824555