Bachelor of Nursing (Adult) Spring Intake (BN)

Why study this course

Join us and study at a School that is ranked 1st in Wales and 8th in the UK for Nursing in The Times Good University Guide 2020.

Adult nursing is an exciting, challenging and rewarding career. Validated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council our programme provides you with the skills and knowledge to become a registered nurse within 3 years and offers you the opportunity to make a real difference to people’s lives and become part of the nursing workforce of the future.

You will work with adults of all ages who may be experiencing one or more long or short-term health conditions such as, injuries from an accident, cancer or diabetes. You will build trusting relationships with individuals in your care and their families, with the aim of improving their quality of life, whatever their situation. While you will specialise in adult nursing from the start of the programme, the integrated nature of teaching means you will learn with those studying children’s nursing and mental health nursing. Sharing ideas between disciplines will broaden your perspective on healthcare and help sharpen your focus on your specialist field.

You will be taught at a Russell Group University by motivated and knowledgeable lecturers in the field of adult nursing who are influencing healthcare across Wales and beyond through engagement and research. You will be allocated both a personal tutor who will offer you pastoral support and an academic assessor who will support your professional development during the programme.

As a School we are based at the University Hospital of Wales campus (the 3rd largest University Hospital in the UK). Our placement partners include both Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Aneurin Bevan Health Board; which means you’ll experience placements across different settings and locations in South East Wales.

We provide courses recognised by both the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). This contributes to a vibrant interdisciplinary environment, with opportunities for shared learning, formative assessments with other health professionals and inter-professional education (IPE) not available at many institutions.

We have highly equipped skills laboratories in our Clinical Simulation Suite which enable you to learn in simulated wards, community, home and emergency environments. Lifelike simulations mean you can safely practice and develop essential skills, developing your proficiency and confidence before going out into placement; empowering you to provide leadership in multi-disciplinary care where innovation and technology are rapidly evolving.

A varied placement experience undertaken across the three years of the programme will allow you to integrate academic theory with practice and gain insight as to the wide-ranging employment opportunities available to you upon qualification. You will benefit from placements supported by experienced nurses to help you in becoming the best nurse you can be.

On successful completion of the programme you will be eligible to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) as an Adult Nurse. With this registration, you can work in a range of healthcare settings, both in the United Kingdom and abroad.

Above all else, we strive to ensure that our graduates are ready for the next step in their career and the many opportunities that await them. That’s why 100%* of our nursing students are in employment or further study after 6 months of graduating (*DHLE and HECSU).

Accreditations

• Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)

Careers and placements

Career prospects

The career options for nurses are varied and plentiful, ranging from hospital, primary care or community settings - including being based within GP surgeries - to industry or research in the UK and internationally, making this an exciting degree to embark upon.

As a School of Healthcare Sciences we are proud that 100% of our nursing graduates are in employment and/or further study six months after graduating (UNISTATS).

Career destinations include:

• Adult nurse - the main point of contact for adult patients (aged between 16 and 110+) and their families, you’ll play a vital role in a multi-disciplinary team.

• Advanced nurse practitioner – a role for nurses who have done extra education and academic qualifications to be able to examine, assess, make diagnoses, treat, prescribe and make referrals for patients.

• Health visitor – nurses who have chosen to gain additional education and qualifications as specialist community public health nurses. The additional training in public health enables you to assess the health needs of individuals, families and the wider community.

• Research nurse - crucial to delivering research. You’ll provide and deliver high quality patient care, deal with data collection, follow-ups, patient groups and industry.

• Ward manager – you’ll provide leadership and visibility at ward level important to the delivery of safe, high-quality care to patients.

• Consultant nurse – you’ll ensure that nurse departments are following legal constraints and protocol.

• Lecturer - becoming a nurse lecturer could offer you the opportunity to make sure the next generation of nurses are competent and confident in the practice setting.

Graduate careers

• Ward Manager
• Lecturer
• Health Visitor

Placements

All nursing students must complete a minimum of 2300 hours of supervised and successfully assessed practice placements as a requirement of the professional body (NMC, 2018). The programme includes seven full-time placements which will enable you to apply and build upon the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you will have acquired in the academic setting.

Our placement providers are primarily situated in health and social care settings across South East Wales, although students may also have an opportunity to pursue non-traditional placements in the private and third sectors.