Undergraduate Course: Forensic Medicine & Science (FREN07001)
Course Outline
| School | Deanery of Molecular, Genetic and Population Health Sciences |
College | College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 7 (Year 1 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Part-year visiting students only |
| SCQF Credits | 60 |
ECTS Credits | 30 |
| Summary | The course aims to explore the basic elements of medicine, science and law as applied to the investigation of death and crime, and its application to the court law. |
| Course description |
The course is delivered primarily via lectures, with the actual format varying from session to session. There are no formal tutorials or practical classes. Lectures may be accompanied by group activities (case based discussion and analysis).
Participants are encouraged to discuss issues raised by the content of the course with other participants and lecturers.
An important feature of this course is the use of forensic practitioners to illustrate how the theory is applied to the forensic context in practice. Lecturers are drawn from a range of forensic disciplines, and include academics and forensic practitioners.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
|
| Academic year 2022/23, Part-year visiting students only (VV1)
|
Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Full Year |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Please contact the School directly for a breakdown of Learning and Teaching Activities |
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
25 %,
Coursework
75 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The course assessment consists of three essay/case study assignments of between 500 and 2000 words and an end of course 3 hour closed book written examination. In order to pass the course, the student must achieve a pass average for the three pieces of written work AND must pass the final examination. |
| Feedback |
Course evaluation forms are distributed at the end of each term offering students the opportunity to give specific feedback on lectures and general comments on the course. Students are encouraged to discuss issues arising from the lectures and course amongst themselves and with the lecturers. Students are provided with formative feedback for each assignment. |
| No Exam Information |
|
| Academic year 2022/23, Part-year visiting students only (VV2)
|
Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Full Year |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
600
(
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 12,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
588 )
|
| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
25 %,
Coursework
75 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
|
| Additional Information (Assessment) |
The course assessment consists of three essay/case study assignments of between 500 and 2000 words and an end of course 3 hour closed book written examination. In order to pass the course, the student must achieve a pass average for the three pieces of written work AND must pass the final examination. |
| Feedback |
Course evaluation forms are distributed at the end of each term offering students the opportunity to give specific feedback on lectures and general comments on the course. Students are encouraged to discuss issues arising from the lectures and course amongst themselves and with the lecturers. Students are provided with formative feedback for each assignment. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Describe the main medical, scientific and legal definitions, concepts, techniques and methods utilised in forensic investigation;
- Explain and discuss the principles of medical, scientific and technical evidence-gathering, the presentation of such evidence in courts of law and evaluate and critically analyse the evidential significance of different evidence types;
- Describe and discuss the basic mechanisms whereby natural disease, external trauma, drugs and poisons cause harm resulting in illness and death and describe and interpret the changes observed;
- Illustrate the limitations of medical and scientific investigation in assisting judicial processes, accident investigation and in the investigation of human rights abuses;
- Examine and explain the underlying principles governing legal processes, the working of the courts and medical ethics.
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Reading List
Students are provided with information on how to access the University of Edinburgh's library resources and how to search for and locate relevant reference material, including the following online sources:
E-books:
Forensic Pathology: Principles and Practice by David Dolinak, Evan W Matshes & Emma O. Lew
Forensic Pathology for Police, Death Investigators, Attorneys, and Forensic Scientists by Joseph Prahlow
Forensic Medicine: Clinical and Pathological Aspects by Jason Payne-James, Anthony Busuttil and William Smock
Clinical Forensic Medicine 2nd Ed.1996 by W. D. S McLay
Forensic DNA Typing: Biology, Technology, and Genetics of STR Markers 2nd Ed. by John M Butler.
Principles and Practice of Criminalistics: The Profession of Forensic Science Protocols in Forensic Science by Keith Inman & Norah Rudin
Forensic Human Identification: An Introduction by Timothy James Upton Thompson & Sue M Black
Forensic Anthropology and Medicine: Complementary Sciences from Recovery to Cause of Death by Aurore Schmitt, Eugénia Cunha, and João Pinheiro.
Forensic Entomology by Dorothy E Gennard
Bloodstain Pattern Analysis: With an Introduction to Crime Scene Reconstruction by Tom Bevel & Ross M Gardner
Wildlife Forensics: Methods and Applications by Jane E Huffman & John R Wallace
E-journals
Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine
Forensic Science International,
Journal of Forensic Sciences
Journal of Clinical Forensic Medicine
International Journal of Legal Medicine
American Journal of Forensic Medicine and Pathology
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Forensic,pathology,science,forensic evidence-gathering,legal,Forensic evidence analysis |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Mark Arends
Tel: (0131 6)51 8019
Email: |
Course secretary | Miss Kathryn Britton
Tel: 0131 242 9457
Email: |
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