Practitioner Professional Development (PPD)
Our PPD courses offer a unique opportunity for graduates from a variety of different fields to develop their skills and practice, and to gain professional qualifications taught by world-leading experts within a vibrant and ambitious learning community.
These highly-regarded part-time courses may be completed as a qualifications in their own right and some may serve as a progression route to the part-time Masters (MEd).
Taught courses
There are various courses available in the PPD programme through both face-to-face and online taught sessions.
The following is a list of courses on offer in academic year 2026/27:
- Introduction to Child and Adolescent Psychotherapeutic Counselling
- Postgraduate Diploma in Child and Adolescent Psychotherapeutic Counselling
- Postgraduate Advanced Certificate in Educational Studies: Educational Assessment
- Postgraduate Advanced Certificate in Educational Studies: Educational Leadership
PPD students are members of the Faculty of Education with access to all Faculty services, such as library membership and IT support. Successful completion of a PPD course entitles students to a University of Cambridge award.
Please note that PPD students are not members of a college and therefore do not pay a college fee. Access to some central university facilities (such as sports clubs) may therefore be restricted. However, they will be able to access the services of the University's Accessibility and Disability Resource Centre.
If you continue to our Masters programme, you will at that point be admitted to the central university, through the college system, as a full member of the university. You will then also be required to pay a college fee.
Students who progress to our Masters programme will at that point be admitted to the central university, through the college system, as a full member of the university. They will then be required to pay a college fee.
Progression
On completing the Educational Assessment or Diploma courses, students will be offered the opportunity to apply to the second year of the MEd. Please note there is no automatic right to continue and some routes may be unavailable. If they are unsuccessful in their application, they may still collect their PPD award.
Who joins the programme?
The programme offers academic study that is practice-focused and professionally relevant. Many of our students are professionals contributing to the development of children and young people in a variety of settings, such as schools, the armed forces, health and social care, both in the UK and overseas.
We welcome questions about our courses to ppd-admissions@educ.cam.ac.uk