A Professional Doctorate is a specialist qualification that is appropriate if you are in, or are aspiring to, a senior professional appointment in practice, education or management in sports therapy. It demonstrates your ability to perform at the level of 'expert' within your area of specialism.

The aim of the course is to provide a unified approach to theory and practice within a professional context, so your learning is structured to allow you to develop your skills both in the workplace and within the university environment.

Depending on your individual circumstances, your study can be undertaken over the course of between 5-6 years. During this time, you will prepare two portfolios which chronical your development of expert practice in your workplace. In tandem, you also study taught modules at the University of Essex which provide you with the expertise in qualitative, statistical and other research methods required for researching physiotherapy.

Your own interests, experiences, and needs determine a great deal about how your course is structured, and what areas you can focus on. A key part of demonstrating your expertise in your specialist area is the development of a 40,000-word dissertation on a relevant topic.