- Please note that this course is only available to Home students.
- You must have at least a lower second class honours degree (2.2) in any subject (or equivalent).
- You must provide evidence that you've completed (or are working towards) at least 600 hours of care-related work experience (this equates to approximately four months of full-time work) before you can join this course. Your work experience can be paid or voluntary, full-time or part-time and must be completed before the interview date. Your portfolio of work evidence will need to be verified by a registered professional (usually your employer or sponsor), and we can accept evidence of work completed within the last five years. This experience is essential for you to be able to complete the pre-entry portfolio detailed below.
- You must have evidence and complete a pre-entry portfolio in relation to the core skills underpinning elements of the NMC standards and the year-one learning outcomes of a three-year pre-registration nursing programme. To support you in achieving this, we provide a six-week bridging programme that you must successfully complete. This programme is free of charge and involves mainly online attendance. Usually, it will begin in April if you have applied for a September start, and in August if you have applied for a January start. It will support you in demonstrating that you have the right level of knowledge and skills for entry to this MSc. We'll guide you in developing your evidence and gaining further fundamental knowledge and understanding as you build and develop your pre-entry portfolio and prepare for master's level studies in nursing.
- Qualifications gained outside England and Wales will be assessed on an individual basis according to guidance by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
- You'll be asked to attend an interview if your application is successfully short-listed. The interview process will involve face-to-face interviews with academic staff, practice staff and service users. You'll also be assessed on your values, behaviours, communication and problem-solving skills. We're seeking students who can demonstrate commitment to a nursing career, have excellent communication skills, and are caring, compassionate and courageous.
- As part of the interview process, we'll require you to undertake and pass two diagnostic assessments. During the first assessment, you'll need to demonstrate capability in English and maths equivalent to Level 2/GCSE standard. Through the second assessment, you'll need to demonstrate a sound understanding of anatomy and physiology. We'll provide suggested reading and areas of study to help you prepare for these assessments.
- If successful at the interview stage, you'll be asked to undergo occupational health screening and a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
- You'll be required to satisfactorily pass occupational health screening.
- You'll need to demonstrate that you are of good health and good character before enrolment and on an ongoing basis throughout your studies and career. You must also immediately declare any police charges, cautions, convictions, conditional discharges, or determinations that your fitness to practise is impaired.
- This course involves working unsupervised with vulnerable adults and you must gain an Enhanced Disclosure certificate from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) before starting your studies. Charges are payable to cover the cost of the DBS Enhanced Disclosure application and annual registration with the online Update Service.
- If English isn’t your first language, you’ll also need IELTS 7.0 with normally no less than 6.5 in any band (or equivalent). We also accept a range of other English language qualifications – please visit our English Language Requirements web page for more details.
- To enter this programme, you must demonstrate that you meet specific foundational NMC learning outcomes for pre-registration nursing. You must submit a pre-entry portfolio mapped to the core skills and underpinning elements of the NMC standards. If you meet all of the stated entry and pre-requisite requirements, you'll be eligible to access this two-year programme. Meeting all of the pre-entry requirements listed above, along with the completion of this MSc Nursing (Adult) (pre-registration) programme, equates to the full NMC requirements of a three-year pre-registration nursing programme.
- You'll need to ascertain if you're eligible for a student loan via Student Finance England or will need to be able to self-fund.
- Please note that this course is subject to the University of Bolton's Fitness to Practise procedure.
Where changes are made to material information contained in this course description or a decision is taken to suspend a course between the offer of admissions and enrolment, we will inform applicants at the earliest possible opportunity and will outline the various options available to the applicant.
The University of Bolton's MSc Nursing (Adult) (Pre-registration) programme offers an exciting career advancement pathway for graduates from all subject areas who are gaining paid or voluntary work experience in caring for adults. It's ideal if you seek a career change into the deeply rewarding nursing profession or want to build on your previous studies in related areas such as health and social care or biological sciences.
You're already confident in your ability to learn at the honours level, and the experience you've gained working in care has ignited your desire and proven that nursing is your calling. This master's degree allows you to build on your academic skills and care experience and follow your passion for nursing in just two years. When you successfully complete our adult nursing pre-registration master's degree, you'll possess the knowledge and skills you need to perform as an independent, highly competent, compassionate nurse and work within the field of adult nursing.
As a graduate of this degree, you'll possess key transferable skills, including the ability to work independently, adapt to changing circumstances, work in teams and groups, and listen and respond to customers and their needs. You'll become adept at planning and time management, rational decision-making, critical thinking, and physical assessment and develop excellent communication skills during your time in both university and practice settings.
What can I do with this qualification?
Nursing is the largest healthcare profession in the country and offers excellent career opportunities and progression. Our adult nursing master's degree prepares you for a wide range of rewarding opportunities in general medical and surgical wards and specialist departments such as intensive care, accident and emergency and cancer units. Indeed, most healthcare services require qualified nurses. There are openings in general practice surgeries, nursing homes and hospices, outpatient day surgeries, community settings, home healthcare and mental health agencies.
Alternative career options
Graduates can use this qualification as a stepping-stone into many other careers. Some of these roles may require relevant experience and/or postgraduate study. Possible areas include:
- Public health
- Management
- Armed forces
- Secondary schools
- FE and HE teaching
- Clinical research
- Health promotion
- Occupational health
- Overseas aid and development
- Prisons
- Universities
- Holiday companies
- Voluntary organisations
International applications are not possible for this course
As an international student you are not allowed to study this course because of the
restrictions on your visa.
We offer a wide range of full-time courses in lots of different subjects, many of our courses start in
September and January. If you would like to see what courses are available please visit our
Course Search.
Useful information
Healthcare students starting and continuing their course from 1 September 2020 onwards can apply for additional funding support from the NHS Learning Support Fund. Please visit NHS Learning Support Fund web page for details.
Important note regarding tuition fees for the 2023-2024 academic year:
EU nationals who meet residency requirements (have settled or pre-settled status) may be eligible for 'Home' fee status.
If you do not meet these residency requirements, overseas fees will apply. Irish citizens living in the UK or Ireland will be eligible for 'Home' fee status under the Common Travel Area arrangement.
Please read the student finance for EU students web page on www.gov.uk for information.
The fees for a student's course of study will be set for the
normal duration of that course subject only to inflationary increases – measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) recorded in
March each year to take effect for subsequent start dates.
Additional costs
There may be some additional or optional costs associated with this course. These will be published after approval of the programme.
Modern healthcare professionals require a range of skills and values. Our practice partners and tutors will help you gain experience in a range of clinical scenarios designed to develop your skills in a safe and supportive environment.
Your studies will be split with 50% dedicated to theory and 50% committed to practice learning experience at local NHS Foundation Trusts and other healthcare organisations, which can offer learning experiences in a range of services across their sites (please note, considerable travelling may be required). As you progress through the course, we'll guide and encourage you to draw on your practice learning experience while studying theory and apply the theory you've learned to your practice so you can understand how the two complement each other.
The course explores the concepts of health and ill health in the adult population and the key sciences in nursing, including the biosciences, psychology and sociology. Topics such as assessment, care planning, law, ethics and the importance of communication with service users and healthcare colleagues are covered. You'll have the opportunity to learn about the importance of research and how its application in healthcare can transform the lives of patients and their carers, how to access and assess the latest research, and how to incorporate your findings into care plans and intervention strategies.
We'll support you in gaining key transferable skills, including the ability to work independently, adapt to changing circumstances, work in teams and groups, and listen and respond to customers and their needs. During your studies, we'll also encourage you to develop planning and time management, rational decision-making, critical thinking, physical assessment and communication skills. We aim for you to develop into a compassionate, kind and empathetic practitioner who respects and supports the patient's privacy, dignity and individuality, and makes safe and effective clinical decisions.
For theory-based modules, we use a blended learning approach that includes lectures, presentations, simulations delivered by tutors, seminar discussions, small group workshops, small group and one-to-one tutorials, virtual learning environments (VLE) and e-learning packages. You'll also need to undertake a significant amount of personal study, including general background reading, preparing for seminar activities, working on assignments and revising for examinations.
To help support your learning, the University also offers additional study skills sessions, such as essay writing, library skills and electronic searching, and numeracy.
We use a range of assessment methods, including essays, reports, presentations, portfolios, set exercises via multiple choice questions, objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs), traditional examinations and assessment of practice in the practice setting. The assessment of practice and theory are equally weighted in their contribution to the degree award as a whole.
We adopt a blended teaching and learning style, including online delivery and engagement where appropriate.
Disclaimer
The university will use all reasonable endeavours to deliver your course as described in its published material and the programme specification for the academic year in which you begin your course. The university considers changes to courses very carefully and the university will minimise any changes. Please be aware that our courses are subject to review on an ongoing basis and changes may be necessary due to legitimate staffing, financial, regulatory and academic reasons. The content of course modules and mode of associated assessments may be updated on an annual basis. This is to ensure that all modules are up-to-date and responsive to employment and sector needs. The published course material and the programme specification contain indicative ‘optional modules’ that may be subject to change due to circumstances outside of our control. For this reason, we cannot guarantee to run any specific optional module.
