‘Student-y or studious’: An exploration of students’ perceptions of parallel learning in preregistration physiotherapy education

ABSTRACTBackground/Aim: Within the United Kingdom (UK), physiotherapy preregistration training is provided at both undergraduate and postgraduate level at 17 higher education institutions (HEIs). Some course teams approach this by teaching preregistration BSc and MSc students simultaneously to meet the same learning outcomes. This is often termed “parallel learning” and it is not known how students perceive this mode of learning. The aim of the study was to explore the perceived benefits and challenges to parallel learning of preregistration BSc and MSc physiotherapy students. Methods: Students from two different UK-based HEIs participated in an exploratory qualitative research design, with data collected in focus groups of each cohort and HEI. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Several themes arose from student perceptions of parallel learning that were sceptical: “starting over again,” “misunderstanding each other’s motivations,” “establishing knowledge hierarchies,” and “competing for...