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Dental Nursing

Entry requirements


A level

D,E,E-D,D

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

AQA Level 3 Technical Level (1080 glh)

MPP

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted on its own at Merit Merit or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Access to HE Diploma

M:15,P:30

Cambridge International Pre-U Certificate - Principal

P3,P3,P3

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme

24

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)

H4,H4,H4

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted on its own at Merit Merit or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

OCR Cambridge Technical Extended Diploma

MPP

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted on its own at Merit Merit or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications

Pearson BTEC Extended Diploma (QCF)

MPP

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted on its own at Merit Merit or towards tariff/grade requirements with other qualifications

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)

MPP

Accepted towards tariff requirements

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

Scottish Advanced Higher

D,D

Individual Advanced Highers can be accepted with Scottish Highers towards tariff requirements

Scottish Higher

C,C,C,C-B,C,C

T Level

Pass (D or E)

UCAS Tariff

64

Accepted towards tariff/grade requirements

About this course


Course option

2years

Full-time | 2024

Subject

Dental nursing

**Ranked 12th in the country for general Nursing** in the Best UK University Guardian League table (2024) and consistently achieving a high students’ employment rate, you can be confident that you will be equipped with the skills and knowledge when you graduate.

Our **Dental Nursing Foundation Degree** course provides you with a wide range of academic skills and work related competencies. On completion of the award you will be able to apply for **registration with the General Dental Council**.

The course is designed to recognise the increasing need for theory linked to practice, which is supported through applying the General Dental Council Standards for the Dental Team (2013) and the General Dental Council (2015) learning outcomes for Dental Nurses.

You will understand the key competencies required to work safely as a registered dental nurse and on completion of the course you will be able to put these into practice confidently. Our Dental Nursing course encourages the holistic care and treatment of dental patients and supports you in expanding your knowledge so that you are prepared for a career in Dental Nursing.

The course links theory to practice, supported through underpinning knowledge, work-based clinical skills, and placement options each year. You will be offered a range of work placements in environments such as general dental practices, hospitals and orthodontics, which will allow you to develop your competence in a range of skills before you register with **the General Dental Council**.

Through studying this Foundation Degree you will be able to develop careers in areas of dental nursing including radiography, oral hygiene instruction, sedation, work-based mentoring and special care dental nursing.

**By studying at the University of Northampton, you can be sure that:**

- You will experience student life at the University’s £330 million Waterside Campus. Come along to an Open Day and find out more.

- At UON we guarantee a room in our Halls of Residence for all new full-time, first year students who apply and accept their room offer by June 2024 - and we won't ask for a deposit for September 2024*.

- Students enrolling on this course at Northampton will be provided with their own brand new laptop** to keep at no additional cost. All sports clubs and societies are free to join at Northampton and every essential course text book is available via the library, meaning you won’t have to purchase copies. For more information on this visit our website (northampton.ac.uk/benefits).

- Our expert academics teach in small groups supported with one to one assistance. Our academics and students form a tight bond, providing individualised support and guidance whilst challenging students academically.

- Whatever your ambitions, we’re here to help you to achieve them. We’ll support you to identify the skills you’re learning during your course, find your strengths and secure practical experience so that when it comes to applying for jobs or further study you’ll feel confident in standing out from the crowd.

✱ eligibility criteria apply. See northampton.ac.uk/student-life/accommodation/ for more information
✱✱ eligibility criteria and terms and conditions apply. See northampton.ac.uk/benefits for more information

Modules

**STAGE 1:**
• Dental Nursing Practice 1 (compulsory)
• Foundations of Dental Nursing (compulsory)
• Introduction to Biomedical Science and Oral Biology
(compulsory)
• Chairside Support (compulsory)

**STAGE 2:**
• Dental Nursing Practice 2 (compulsory)
• Managing Patient Care (compulsory)
• Applied Biomedical Science and Oral Biology (compulsory)
• Advanced Chairside Support (compulsory)

*Students take all modules.
**Module information is quoted for 2023/24 entry. Please note that modules run subject to student numbers and staff availability, any changes will be communicated to applicants accordingly.

Assessment methods

There are various assessment methods, these include: viva voce; clinical simulated tests; presentations; assignments; electronic clinical portfolio.

Tuition fees

Select where you currently live to see what you'll pay:

Channel Islands
£9,250
per year
England
£9,250
per year
EU
£9,250
per year
Northern Ireland
£9,250
per year
Scotland
£9,250
per year
Wales
£9,250
per year

The Uni


Course location:

University of Northampton

Department:

Faculty of Health, Education and Society

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.

Dental 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?

100%
UK students
0%
International students
16%
Male students
84%
Female students
84%
2:1 or above
13%
First year drop out rate

Most popular A-Levels studied (and grade achieved)

C
C
E

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.

Dental 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.

£21,909
low
Average annual salary
99%
low
Employed or in further education

Top job areas of graduates

99%
Nursing and midwifery professionals
1%
Sales, marketing and related associate professionals
1%
Information technology and telecommunications professionals

What about your long term prospects?

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

Dental 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.

£30k

£30k

£31k

£31k

£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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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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?

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