Got a uni question? Find your answer now on The Student Room.

University of Bedfordshire

UCAS Code: B790 | Foundation Degree in Science - FdSc

Entry requirements

GCSE/National 4/National 5

Four GCSEs graded C/4 or above including English and Maths. Functional Skills Level 2 will be accepted for English and maths.

UCAS Tariff

70-80

You may also need to…

Attend an interview

groups

About this course

Course option

2years

Full-time | 2025

Subject

General practice nursing

Nursing associates help bridge the gap between healthcare assistant and registered nurse. This practice-led course is aimed at healthcare assistants currently supporting registered nurses. Through study and work-based learning in a supportive environment, it develops your skills, knowledge, attitudes and behaviours so you can play an active part in improving people’s experience of healthcare.

**Course Accreditation/Industry Endorsement**
- This course meets the requirements of the national Nursing Associate Training programme curriculum as well as the NHS Constitution.

**Facilities and Specialist Equipment**
- Access to the latest medical/health equipment and facilities at regional hospitals and community health settings during placements.

- Fully immersive simulation suites at both our Luton and Bedford campuses, preparing students to respond to and manage clinical situations and scenarios.

- Simulation wards with a range of medical-grade training mannequins to tackle real-life scenarios in a safe and supported environment.

**Partnerships and Collaborations**
- The curriculum has been developed by experienced nurses and is delivered in partnership with local employers and services.

**Your Student Experience**
- You learn through a combination of lectures and seminars, guided study and work-based learning.

- We deliver predominantly face-to-face teaching so your tutors are on site to support you while you get to meet and exchange ideas with other healthcare students.

- Our lecturers are all experienced registered nurses and have published widely in their field.

- Our strong links with regional healthcare providers mean you can secure a practice placement in Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Hertfordshire, Milton Keynes, Oxfordshire or East London.

- Clinical specialists from our partnership trusts come to campus to support your learning so your studies are underpinned by the latest research and practice.

- Benefit from the support of a practice mentor and a personal academic tutor.

- On your placement, you undertake a mix of early, late and night shifts to ensure you experience typical shift patterns for a healthcare professional.

Modules

Areas of study may include:
- Introduction To Nursing Associate Interventions
- Application Of Nursing Associate Theory And Practice
- Academic Skills Development For Nursing Associates
- Exploring Health And Primary Care Services In The Community
- Understanding Health For Healthcare Practitioners
- Public Health Principles And Practice For Nursing Associates

Every effort is made to ensure this information is accurate at the point of publication on the UCAS website. For the most up-to-date information, please refer to our website.

The Uni

Course locations:

Bedford Campus

Luton Campus

Department:

School of Nursing

Read full university profile

What students say

How do students rate their degree experience?

The stats below relate to the general subject area/s at this university, not this specific course. We show this where there isn’t enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Community nursing

Sorry, no information to show

This is usually because there were too few respondents in the data we receive to be able to provide results about the subject at this university.


Who studies this subject and how do they get on?

95%
UK students
5%
International students
12%
Male students
88%
Female students
76%
2:1 or above
13%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
C

After graduation

The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.

Community nursing

What are graduates doing after six months?

This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.

£27,000
low
Average annual salary

Top job areas of graduates

99%
Nursing and midwifery professionals
0%
Health professionals
0%
Other administrative occupations

What about your long term prospects?

Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.

Community nursing

The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.

£31k

£31k

£35k

£35k

£34k

£34k

Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.

This is what the university has told Ucas about the criteria they expect applicants to satisfy; some may be compulsory, others may be preferable.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is the percentage of applicants to this course who received an offer last year, through Ucas.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Course location and department:

This is what the university has told Ucas about the course. Use it to get a quick idea about what makes it unique compared to similar courses, elsewhere.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF):

We've received this information from the Department for Education, via Ucas. This is how the university as a whole has been rated for its quality of teaching: gold silver or bronze. Note, not all universities have taken part in the TEF.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information comes from the National Student Survey, an annual student survey of final-year students. You can use this to see how satisfied students studying this subject area at this university, are (not the individual course).

This is the percentage of final-year students at this university who were "definitely" or "mostly" satisfied with their course. We've analysed this figure against other universities so you can see whether this is high, medium or low.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

This information is from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), for undergraduate students only.

You can use this to get an idea of who you might share a lecture with and how they progressed in this subject, here. It's also worth comparing typical A-level subjects and grades students achieved with the current course entry requirements; similarities or differences here could indicate how flexible (or not) a university might be.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Post-six month graduation stats:

This is from the Destinations of Leavers from Higher Education Survey, based on responses from graduates who studied the same subject area here.

It offers a snapshot of what grads went on to do six months later, what they were earning on average, and whether they felt their degree helped them obtain a 'graduate role'. We calculate a mean rating to indicate if this is high, medium or low compared to other universities.

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

Graduate field commentary:

The Higher Education Careers Services Unit have provided some further context for all graduates in this subject area, including details that numbers alone might not show

Have a question about this info? Learn more here

The Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset combines HRMC earnings data with student records from the Higher Education Statistics Agency.

While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?

Have a question about this info? Learn more here