Reimagining Leadership, Innovation and Quality in the Scientist Training Programme

During our curriculum review at Aston University, conducted concurrently with the national Scientist Training Programme (STP) review, we acknowledged the significance of establishing a dedicated master’s level module on Leadership, Innovation, and Quality. Although elements of these subjects had been previously incorporated into the Year 1 Introduction to Healthcare and Professional Practice module, there was no distinct module exclusively focused on them. To address this gap, we developed a new standalone module, positioning it in Year 3, as our observation indicated that trainees engage with these concepts more profoundly after acquiring substantial workplace experience. This modification signifies a paradigm shift in the timing and manner of introducing these critical skills to trainees, thereby ensuring coherence with the STP curriculum and the practical demands of professional practice.