Frequently Asked Questions

Postgraduate Certificates

Modular Postgraduate Programmes

Attendance on the paired taught modules is 9.00am to 4.00pm however, where there are online modules or practical sessions these times may vary.

Practical Surgery & Ultrasound Courses

Improve International was established in 1998 by a group of veterinary surgeons from across the UK, including a number of recognised experts. We provide the highest quality CPD in a format that allows you to develop your skills and knowledge in a logical and progressive fashion, under the supervision of dedicated Course Directors, each of whom has the highest qualifications in his or her field.

Our courses are run in venues across the UK and also in a number of other countries including Spain, Portugal and Italy.

We are in partnership with Harper Adams University (HAU) and the European School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ESVPS) to ensure the highest academic standards.

Harper Adams University

Founded in 1901, HAU has a long, proud tradition of the highest educational standards and is widely recognised for the quality of its education. HAU validate Improve’s PgC programmes and ensures the teaching elements and examination processes meet the highest academic standards.

ESVPS

Is an awarding body who accredits and awards veterinary qualifications. They provide assessments in the form of assignments and examinations for all programmes.

The General Practitioner Certificate examination is included within the cost of the modular programme.  It is a middle-tier qualification awarded by the European School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ESVPS) which is a not-for-profit accrediting and awarding body based in the UK. Improve International’s modular programmes ensure that you are provided with the highest quality of appropriate practical and clinically relevant training to prepare you for undertaking the GPCert assessments. The GPCert is awarded in recognition of the additional time dedicated to furthering your knowledge and skills and indicates that you have achieved a deeper understanding in your area of interest which can then be applied to more complicated cases in general practice.

The GPCert examination consists of a multiple-choice question (MCQ) paper.  All MCQs are provided by the speakers of each Improve International modular programme and are reviewed and approved by the ESVPS examination committee.  The examination paper will assess all areas of the course syllabus and hence assess your knowledge in your chosen subject area. The duration of the MCQ examination will depend on the subject being studied but will last between 2-4hrs. Examinations can be taken in an ESVPS invigilated venue or online in the comfort of your own home with one to one remote invigilation (provided by our remote invigilation partner TestReach for an additional fee).

The PgC is a university qualification which provides 60 academic credits. The qualification is positioned at masters level seven within the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA) framework for higher and further education. The 60 credits can be used towards achieving a PgD 120 credits and a Masters degree which represents 180 credits at level seven. The PgC is a recognised academic qualification which will demonstrate that you have achieved a certain standard in that subject.

All applicants must:

• Hold a veterinary qualification
• Have spent a minimum of one year in veterinary practice
• UK-based applicants must also be on the RCVS Home Practising Register, whilst applicants based outside the UK must hold a qualification that would entitle them to register as a member of the RCVS

Additionally, UK-based veterinary surgeons who qualified from 2007 onwards must have completed the RCVS Professional Development Phase (PDP) before they can enrol.

You can take up to 3 years to spread your taught modules.

You are able to “upgrade” from a GPCert to a PgC within 5 years of the GPCert exam date. Please contact ESVPS for further information – ESVPS.

Improve’s modular training programmes have been developed over a period of 20 years and are taught by world-renowned experts in their field.  They successfully blend theoretical lectures with hands-on practical sessions where appropriate and delegates also have access to valuable online learning components.

A PgC comprises 600 hours of notional study. This is typically made up of the following:

• 100 hours of taught sessions and ten hours of practical experience for Small Animal Medicine
• 70 hours of taught sessions and 48 hours of practical experience for Small Animal Surgery
• 82-94 hours preparing for and reflecting on the taught sessions. This includes pre and post course online evaluation and self-reflection
• 200 hours of independent study, including the preparation and writing of assignments
• 200 hours preparing for final examination

At the beginning of the programme you will receive a syllabus and specific learning objectives for all of the taught modules.

During the programme you will be required to document your current knowledge and skills prior to each module and undertake an informal short multiple choice exercise. After the module you will then undertake a further multiple choice exercise to reflect on knowledge gained and implement a strategy to address any outstanding knowledge and skills gaps via independent study.

ESVPS provide the assessments, please refer to the Postgradute Certificate area for more information.

The final examination takes place yearly covering the course syllabus. You must have attended all modules to be entered for the final exam.

All delegates progressing to a PgC will receive a subscription to Harper Adam’s online e-library providing access to 1,000s of scientific articles and abstracts.

Medicine delegates will be provided with a ‘Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine’ by Ettinger & Feldman and Surgery delegates with ‘Veterinary Surgery’ by Tobias and Johnston.

Surgery delegates will also receive a total of five ‘How to’ DVDs by Professor Howard Seim of Colorado University illustrating key surgical procedures.

The Improve Learning Management System provides access to a notes library, discussion forum and other study resources including webinars.

A dedicated Programme Tutor will support every individual during their PgC programme to ensure a rewarding and successful learning journey.

More information can be found on our Learning Support page

ESVPS will also provide support with assignments.

Our PgC programmes are flexible to try to enable you to fit study in to busy practice life. With our Clinical PgCs, we have tried to ensure two modules are offered back-to-back for the duration of the course to reduce your travel time and costs and make the learning experience more immersive. With our Medicine and Surgery PgCs, these are run every month from 2-8pm, therefore reducing the amount of time out of practice.

No. We understand that you are busy professionals and aim to be as flexible as possible.

Whilst we need advance notice if you are going to be unable to attend a particular module, we will make every effort to find you an alternative venue and date. If the alternative dates don’t suit, you can attend the missed module when the programme runs the following year. The only restriction is that you need to attend all of the taught modules before you can sit the relevant ESVPS examination.

On the homepage of this website, click the link which says “Sign In”. A drop down list of CPD areas will display, select Bitesize.

If you have forgotten your website username please contact us using enquiries@improveinternational.com or call us on 01793 759159.

The username for your account will be the email address you provided when signing up to our Bitesize online CPD. You would have been sent an email containing the case sensitive password within 24 hours of signing up to Bitesize. You can copy and paste the password into the password box.

Login details take 24 hours to be processed, if you have not received an email please do check your trash or junk folder in your email account as some servers do default this email into either folder. If you still have no password after 24 hours; please do contact Improve International via enquiries@improveinternational.com or (01793) 759159 for your password to be resent to you.

Bitesize has its own support service, whether it is help with using the platform or perhaps a technical issue. To access this please login to the Bitesize platform and click on the support tab on the top bar, here you will have an option to choose either: How to use Bitesize or the Technical Support Forum.

If you have completed the free one month’s trial and would now like to sign up to the full annual subscription please here.

If you have any queries please contact Improve International: enquiries@improveinternational.com or (01793) 759159.

Yes …..

For all one and two-day courses payment is due upon registration.  Payments can be made by credit card or BACS.

We offer the following flexible payment options on our modular programmes, see the individual programmes for more information.

European School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ESVPS) is a not-for-profit organisation established in 2003 with the remit of accrediting veterinary CPD and awarding a range of Certificates on a pan-European basis. ESVPS has extensive experience in the veterinary industry of providing assessments that assess knowledge and understanding for training courses that have been accredited by them.

The General Practitioner Certificate examination is included within the cost of the modular programme.  It is a middle-tier qualification awarded by the European School of Veterinary Postgraduate Studies (ESVPS) which is a not-for-profit accrediting and awarding body based in the UK. Improve International’s modular programmes ensure that you are provided with the highest quality of appropriate practical and clinically relevant training to prepare you for undertaking the GPCert assessments. The GPCert is awarded in recognition of the additional time dedicated to furthering your knowledge and skills and indicates that you have achieved a deeper understanding in your area of interest which can then be applied to more complicated cases in general practice.

The GPCert examination consists of a multiple-choice question (MCQ) paper.  All MCQs are provided by the speakers of each Improve International modular programme and are reviewed and approved by the ESVPS examination committee.  The examination paper will assess all areas of the course syllabus and hence assess your knowledge in your chosen subject area. The duration of the MCQ examination will depend on the subject being studied but will last between 2-4hrs. Examinations can be taken in an ESVPS invigilated venue or online in the comfort of your own home with one to one remote invigilation (provided by our remote invigilation partner TestReach for an additional fee).

As the GPCert qualifications are new, there is no guarantee at this time that the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons will include the qualification in their Register. This does not, however, prevent individuals from listing the qualification after their name in their own documents or business notices.

No. Many previous delegates have completed courses with no desire to enrol for a certificate and have benefited enormously.