BSc (Hons) Nursing (Adult)

• 104 UCAS points. We accept a full range of qualifications that carry UCAS points, including A-levels, BTECs and T levels. Please see our guide to the UCAS Tariff for examples of how to achieve these points. For most courses, we are also able to consider non-tariffable qualifications.
• Please note that this course is only available to Home students.
• Any subjects are acceptable at Level 3. Health and social care and biology-related subjects are preferred.
• You must also have five GCSEs at grade C or above or grade 4 to 9 (or equivalent), including English, Mathematics and, preferably, Science. Please contact us for a list of acceptable GCSE equivalents.
• Qualifications gained outside England and Wales will be assessed on an individual basis according to guidance by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
• If you have successfully completed an FdSc Nursing Associate programme approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council or FdA Health and Social Care (Assistant Practitioner) qualification, you may be eligible to apply for exemptions toward the BSc (Hons) Nursing (Adult). If you apply to join the degree at Level 2 (HE5), you may make a claim for recognition of prior learning (RPL) up to a maximum of 50% of the programme. Please note that you'll be required to produce a portfolio of evidence for this RPL claim.
• 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, and undertake a numeracy and literacy assessment. We're seeking students who can demonstrate commitment to a nursing career, have excellent communication skills, and are caring, compassionate and courageous.
• 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 prior to enrolment and on an ongoing basis throughout your studies and career. You must also declare immediately 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 6.0 with no less than 5.5 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.
• The University of Bolton recognises prior learning, whether gained through academic credit and qualifications or through your professional and employment experience. Previous learning may be used towards meeting the entry requirements for this programme or for exemption from part of this programme. It is your responsibility to make a claim for recognition of prior learning, and each claim will be considered in accordance with the University’s policy and regulations for the recognition of prior learning.
• Please note that it's not possible to join this course at Level 3 (HE6). Applications to join the course at Level 2 (HE5) will be considered.
• 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.

On successfully completing the University of Bolton's adult nursing 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.

Our BSc (Hons) Nursing (Adult) programme also offers a well-recognised career advancement pathway for qualified nursing associates and assistant practitioners. If you already hold an appropriate foundation degree, you may be able to top up your qualification and become an adult nurse in three years or less (the maximum possible exemption is 50% of the programme). This popular option recognises your prior learning and experience and allows you to take on full nursing responsibilities more quickly. It also opens the door to postgraduate study and provides a route to achieve your career ambitions.

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 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 and health promotion
• Management
• Armed forces
• Schools
• FE and HE teaching
• Clinical research
• Occupational health
• Overseas aid and development
• Prisons
• Universities
• Holiday companies
• Voluntary organisations

Home students starting this course in the first year will be required to pay a Home fee of £6,000 for the academic year 2024/25.

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.

For 2023-2024 entry, the maximum government approved undergraduate tuition fee for UK students is £9,250 per year. The University is able to charge this fee subject to an approved Access and Participation Plan for 2023-2024 and its current rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework.

Bursaries

Click here for more information about the scholarships and bursaries available to University of Bolton students.

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.

Modules

The modules listed below may be a mixture of compulsory and optional. You may not have the opportunity to study all the modules shown as part of the course.

• Principles of Nursing Practice
• Accountability and Professionalism
• Managing Health Through All Stages of Life
• Wider Approaches to Global Health
• Enhancing Clinical Skills: Assessing Planning and Providing Evidenced Based Care and Procedures and Interventions
• Medicines Management
• Coordinating Integrated Healthcare
• Embedding Person Centred Care/Evidence Based Approaches
• Advanced Clinical Skills and Procedures
• Leadership, Management and Quality in Healthcare

Assessment methods

Learning activities

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.