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PgCert|Postgraduate Taught

Nursing Care of the Older Person in Care Home Settings

Entry year
2024/25
Entry requirements
Primary degree & Registration with NMC
Duration
1 year (Part-time)
Places available
TBC (Part Time)

The aim of the course is to provide registered nurses, working in care homes, with a strong foundation in providing specialist care for older people.

The course will provide students with advanced knowledge and specialist clinical skills in the practice of nursing older people. Those completing the programme will gain key, transferable and specialist skills to optimise the care of residents living in care homes.

Nursing Care of the Older Person in Care Home Settings highlights

Career Development

This postgraduate certificate in Nursing Care of the Older Person in Care Home Settings is the only such programme within the island of Ireland. It is only the second postgraduate course in the United Kingdom that specifically focuses on care home settings.

Further Study Opportunities

Students can elect to accept the award of Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing Care of the Older Person in Care Home Settings or they may wish to carry credits forward into further postgraduate study. Students may wish to complete additional level 7 modules and a dissertation to make up the credits for the award of a Masters Degree.

Course Structure

The Postgraduate Certificate is offered over two 12-week semesters over one academic year. Students may enrol on a part-time basis only (one day per week).

Assessment

Module assessment requires students to critically consider ways in which they can optimise the care of their current residents and how they can implement quality improvement in their practice. The module and assessment therefore focus on active improvement of care practice.

Module overview

The course will be delivered via three modules and contains 60 credits of the established and well-regarded specialist practice programme (older people’s pathway). One module takes place in semester one and two modules are in semester two.

People teaching you

Senior Lecturer, Education

Nursing and Midwifery
The programme is led by Dr Gary Mitchell who is a registered nurse with significant practice and research experience within the care home sector. Gary, a senior lecturer (education) at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, also occupies the role of Chair for the Royal College of Nursing's Older People's Forum.

Contact Teaching Hours

Medium Group Teaching

6 (hours maximum)
Each module has 3 contact teaching hours per week.

Teaching Times

Teaching will be delivered using a blended approach, approx 60% at Queen’s University Belfast and the remaining 40% delivered via online lectures. All teaching will take place on Wednesdays.

Learning and Teaching

Learning opportunities available with this course are outlined below:

Teaching

Morning and Afternoon.

Part-time (1 day per week)

Virtual Learning Environment

Access to lecture notes and teaching material is provided via the University Virtual Learning Environment, Canvas.

Assessment

Assessment will be by written assignments and presentation.

Module assessment requires students to critically consider ways in which they can optimise the care of their current residents and how they can implement quality improvement in their practice.  The module and assessment therefore focus on active improvement of care practice.

  • Summative written assignments
  • Summative presentation

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Modules

Modules

The information below is intended as an example only, featuring module details for the current year of study (2024/25). Modules are reviewed on an annual basis and may be subject to future changes – revised details will be published through Programme Specifications ahead of each academic year.

  • Year 1

    Core Modules

Entrance requirements

Applicants must:
• Hold a first level Registered Nurse qualification on the appropriate part of the Nursing and Midwifery Council Professional Register  
• Hold a primary degree. 
• Be currently working in a care home setting. 
• Be available to undertake the course on the date of commencement. 

A limited number of fully funded places (provided by the Department for the Economy) are available for this programme. Where there are more eligible applications received than places available, the academic selectors for this programme will make offers in rank order based on academic merit and potential as evidenced in the totality of the information provided in each application. We will operate a waiting list as required to allow us to fill all available funded places. If you have not been selected for a funded place, we will accept self-funded or employer-funded applicants, if spaces are available.

Further information is available at the link below.

Closing date for applications is Friday 16th August 2024 at 12 noon. However, we encourage applicants to apply as early as possible. In the event that any programme receives a high number of applications, the University reserves the right to close the application portal earlier than the deadline. Notifications to this effect will appear on the Direct Application Portal against the programme application page.
https://www.qub.ac.uk/Study/skill-up-flexible-skills-fund/

International Students

Our country/region pages include information on entry requirements, tuition fees, scholarships, student profiles, upcoming events and contacts for your country/region. Use the dropdown list below for specific information for your country/region.

English Language Requirements

Applicants for whom English is not their first language must be able to demonstrate their proficiency in English in order to benefit fully from their course of study. Please see the following link for further information: https://www.qub.ac.uk/International/International-students/Applying/English-language-requirements/

International students wishing to apply to Queen's University Belfast (and for whom English is not their first language), must be able to demonstrate their proficiency in English in order to benefit fully from their course of study or research. Non-EEA nationals must also satisfy UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) immigration requirements for English language for visa purposes.

For more information on English Language requirements for EEA and non-EEA nationals see: www.qub.ac.uk/EnglishLanguageReqs.

If you need to improve your English language skills before you enter this degree programme, INTO Queen's University Belfast offers a range of English language courses. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for admission to this degree.

  • Academic English: an intensive English language and study skills course for successful university study at degree level
  • Pre-sessional English: a short intensive academic English course for students starting a degree programme at Queen's University Belfast and who need to improve their English.

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Careers

Career Prospects

Introduction

This programme offers an opportunity for students to develop skills of analytical thinking while facilitating student's continued professional development.

Prizes and Awards

QUB School of Nursing and Midwifery was awarded the 2023 Student Nursing Times, Nurse Education Provider of the Year (post-registration).

Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award for extra-curricular skills

In addition to your degree programme, at Queen's you can have the opportunity to gain wider life, academic and employability skills. For example, placements, voluntary work, clubs, societies, sports and lots more. So not only do you graduate with a degree recognised from a world leading university, you'll have practical national and international experience plus a wider exposure to life overall. We call this Graduate Plus/Future Ready Award. It's what makes studying at Queen's University Belfast special.

Tuition Fees

Northern Ireland (NI) 1 Free for DfE Funded students (see below)
Republic of Ireland (ROI) 2 N/A
England, Scotland or Wales (GB) 1 N/A
EU Other 3 N/A
International N/A

1EU citizens in the EU Settlement Scheme, with settled status, will be charged the NI or GB tuition fee based on where they are ordinarily resident. Students who are ROI nationals resident in GB will be charged the GB fee.

2 EU students who are ROI nationals resident in ROI are eligible for NI tuition fees.

3 EU Other students (excludes Republic of Ireland nationals living in GB, NI or ROI) are charged tuition fees in line with international fees.

All tuition fees quoted relate to a single year of study unless stated otherwise. Tuition fees will be subject to an annual inflationary increase, unless explicitly stated otherwise.

More information on postgraduate tuition fees.

Additional course costs

No tuition fees are payable by eligible students for the programme as it is funded by the Department for the Economy’s Skill Up programme. Please refer to https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/skillup for further information.

Applicants must meet the entry criteria for the course and be:

• over 18 years of age;
• eligible to work in Northern Ireland;
• settled in Northern Ireland, and has been ordinarily resident in the UK for at least three years; or
is a person who has indefinite leave to enter or remain in the UK

All Students

Depending on the programme of study, there may be extra costs which are not covered by tuition fees, which students will need to consider when planning their studies.

Students can borrow books and access online learning resources from any Queen's library. If students wish to purchase recommended texts, rather than borrow them from the University Library, prices per text can range from £30 to £100. Students should also budget between £30 to £75 per year for photocopying, memory sticks and printing charges.

Students undertaking a period of work placement or study abroad, as either a compulsory or optional part of their programme, should be aware that they will have to fund additional travel and living costs.

If a programme includes a major project or dissertation, there may be costs associated with transport, accommodation and/or materials. The amount will depend on the project chosen. There may also be additional costs for printing and binding.

Students may wish to consider purchasing an electronic device; costs will vary depending on the specification of the model chosen.

There are also additional charges for graduation ceremonies, examination resits and library fines.

How do I fund my study?

The Department for the Economy will provide a tuition fee loan of up to £6,500 per NI / EU student for postgraduate study. Tuition fee loan information.

A postgraduate loans system in the UK offers government-backed student loans of up to £11,836 for taught and research Masters courses in all subject areas (excluding Initial Teacher Education/PGCE, where undergraduate student finance is available). Criteria, eligibility, repayment and application information are available on the UK government website.

More information on funding options and financial assistance - please check this link regularly, even after you have submitted an application, as new scholarships may become available to you.

International Scholarships

Information on scholarships for international students, is available at www.qub.ac.uk/Study/international-students/international-scholarships.

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How to Apply

Apply using our online Queen's Portal and follow the step-by-step instructions on how to apply.

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Terms and Conditions

The terms and conditions that apply when you accept an offer of a place at the University on a taught programme of study.
Queen's University Belfast Terms and Conditions.

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