Return to Practice Nursing
2022/23 Part-time Undergraduate course
School:
School of Nursing
Campus:
Belfast campus
Start dates:
September 2022
January 2023
Overview
Ulster University is the sole provider for Return to Practice Nursing in Northern Ireland.
In this section
Summary
If you have ever considered returning to nursing, now is the time to do it. Our return to practice programme is designed for nurses from all fields of practice (adult, mental health, learning disabilities and children’s nursing) whose NMC registration has lapsed, who have practiced for fewer than 750 hours in the previous five years, or 450 hours in the three years before their application for readmission to the register.
The focus of the course is on enabling you to regain your confidence in knowledge and practice and to update your clinical skills, knowledge, numeracy, literacy, digital and technological literacy in a safe and effective way, to meet the NMC standards of proficiency for registered nurses.
A variety of approaches support learning and assessment, considering your intended area of practice, personal circumstances and prior learning and experience.
You are normally expected to undertake between 150 and 400 hours of supernumerary clinical practice to achieve the practice-based requirements for the programme. The exact number of hours will be determined following an assessment process that considers your prior learning and experience and the length of time since you last practised.
This programme enables you to:
- meet the standards of proficiency to be readmitted to the NMC register,
- regain confident knowledge, and update your skills and knowledge (including numeracy, literacy, digital and technological) to enable you to provide safe, effective, person-centred nursing care.
Application process
Application is made using our online application system. Assessment of your application will follow with an invitation to attend for interview.
Interview in June 2022 for September 2022 intake.
Interview in October 2022 for January 2023 intake.
What to expect at interview:
Due to coronavirus restrictions and government guidance on social distancing, interviews may take place virtually. The process will be discussed with you prior to the interview date.
In preparation for the interview, we recommend that you think about the reason why you want to come back to nursing and consider some of the changes that have happened in nursing since you left. Take some time to look at some websites – we would recommend the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and the Northern Ireland Practice Education Council (NIPEC).
Develop an awareness of issues related to the health service and your field of practice that are reported in the media. It is also a good idea to identify how you plan to manage the demands of returning to study and practice and to identify some strategies you might want to put in place to ensure you maintain good work and life balance.
How to Apply
If you are interested in applying for the Return to Practice Programme, please click on the link below to access our Online Applications process.
Once you have set up your username, please choose Undergraduate Part Time as your application type to ensure your application is processed correctly.
When prompted for your programme choice, please scroll down to Nursing, Return to Practice - Part Time, Belfast.
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About this course
In this section
About
Linked programmes
Associate awards
Attendance
Start dates
- September 2022
- January 2023
Teaching, Learning and Assessment
<The content for each course is summarised on the relevant course page, along with an overview of the modules that make up the course.
Each course is approved by the University and meets the expectations of:
- the relevant generic national Qualification Descriptor
- the applicable Subject Benchmark Statement
- the requirements of any professional, regulatory, statutory and accrediting bodies.
Attendance and Independent Study
As part of your course induction, you will be provided with details of the organisation and management of the course, including attendance and assessment requirements - usually in the form of a timetable. For full-time courses, the precise timetable for each semester is not confirmed until near the start date and may be subject to change in the early weeks as all courses settle into their planned patterns. For part-time courses which require attendance on particular days and times, an expectation of the days of attendance will often be included in the letter of offer. A course handbook is also made available.
Courses comprise modules for which the notional effort involved is indicated by its credit rating. Each credit point represents 10 hours of student effort. Undergraduate courses typically contain 10- or 20-credit modules and postgraduate course typically 15- or 30-credit modules.
The normal study load expectation for an undergraduate full-time course of study in the standard academic year is 120 credit points. This amounts to around 36-42 hours of expected teaching and learning per week, inclusive of attendance requirements for lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical work, fieldwork or other scheduled classes, private study, and assessment. Part-time study load is the same as full-time pro-rata, with each credit point representing 10 hours of student effort.
Postgraduate Masters courses typically comprise 180 credits, taken in three semesters when studied full-time. A Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert) comprises 60 credits and can usually be completed on a part-time basis in one year. A 120-credit Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) can usually be completed on a part-time basis in two years.
Class contact times vary by course and type of module. Typically, for a module predominantly delivered through lectures you can expect at least 3 contact hours per week (lectures/seminars/tutorials). Laboratory classes often require a greater intensity of attendance in blocks. Some modules may combine lecture and laboratory. The precise model will depend on the course you apply for and may be subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. Prospective students will be consulted about any significant changes.
Assessment
Assessment methods vary and are defined explicitly in each module. Assessment can be via one method or a combination e.g. examination and coursework . Assessment is designed to assess your achievement of the module’s stated learning outcomes. You can expect to receive timely feedback on all coursework assessment. The precise assessment will depend on the module and may be subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. You will be consulted about any significant changes.
Coursework can take many forms, for example: essay, report, seminar paper, test, presentation, dissertation, design, artefacts, portfolio, journal, group work. The precise form and combination of assessment will depend on the course you apply for and the module. Details will be made available in advance through induction, the course handbook, the module specification and the assessment timetable. The details are subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. You will be consulted about any significant changes.
Normally, a module will have four learning outcomes, and no more than two items of assessment. An item of assessment can comprise more than one task. The notional workload and the equivalence across types of assessment is standardised.
Calculation of the Final Award
The class of Honours awarded in Bachelor’s degrees is usually determined by calculation of an aggregate mark based on performance across the modules at Levels 5 and 6 (which correspond to the second and third year of full-time attendance).
Level 6 modules contribute 70% of the aggregate mark and Level 5 contributes 30% to the calculation of the class of the award. Classification of integrated Masters degrees with Honours include a Level 7 component. The calculation in this case is: 50% Level 7, 30% Level 6, 20% Level 5. At least half the Level 5 modules must be studied at the University for Level 5 to be included in the calculation of the class.
All other qualifications have an overall grade determined by results in modules from the final level of study. In Masters degrees of more than 200 credit points the final 120 points usually determine the overall grading.
Figures correct for academic year 2019-2020.
Academic profile
The University employs over 1,000 suitably qualified and experienced academic staff - 59% have PhDs in their subject field and many have professional body recognition.
Courses are taught by staff who are Professors (25%), Readers, Senior Lecturers (20%) or Lecturers (55%).
We require most academic staff to be qualified to teach in higher education: 82% hold either Postgraduate Certificates in Higher Education Practice or higher. Most academic staff (81%) are accredited fellows of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) by Advanced HE - the university sector professional body for teaching and learning. Many academic and technical staff hold other professional body designations related to their subject or scholarly practice.
The profiles of many academic staff can be found on the University’s departmental websites and give a detailed insight into the range of staffing and expertise. The precise staffing for a course will depend on the department(s) involved and the availability and management of staff. This is subject to change annually and is confirmed in the timetable issued at the start of the course.
Occasionally, teaching may be supplemented by suitably qualified part-time staff (usually qualified researchers) and specialist guest lecturers. In these cases, all staff are inducted, mostly through our staff development programme ‘First Steps to Teaching’. In some cases, usually for provision in one of our out-centres, Recognised University Teachers are involved, supported by the University in suitable professional development for teaching.
Figures correct for academic year 2021-2022.
Belfast campus
Accommodation
High quality apartment living in Belfast city centre adjacent to the university campus.
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Student Wellbeing
At Student Wellbeing we provide many services to help students through their time at Ulster University.
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Belfast Campus Location
Standard entry conditions
We recognise a range of qualifications for admission to our courses. In addition to the specific entry conditions for this course you must also meet the University’s General Entrance Requirements.
In this section
Entry Requirements
In accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Standards for return to practice programmes (NMC, 2019), on entry to the programme you must:
- have confirmation of previous registration with the NMC as a nurse
- demonstrate (at interview) the values and capability to behave in accordance with the Code
- have capability in literacy, digital and technological literacy and capability to update numeracy skills to meet the programme outcomes
- have sufficient health and character to enable safe and effective practice, through satisfactory occupational health assessment and criminal record checks
- have a pass at GCSE Mathematics at level C or above (or equivalent qualification, or have a grade 04 at Ordinary Level of H6 at Higher level in Irish Leaving Cert Mathematics
- meet the NMC English as a second language requirements, where appropriate (IELTS level 7 in everything except written English at 6.5).
Practice learning experiences are organised using a regional approach between the university and our practice learning partners in the five Trusts in Northern Ireland.
Intakes are in September (Semester 1) and January (Semester 2) each year.
Apply
Start dates
- September 2022
- January 2023
Fees and funding
Module Pricing
The price of your overall programme will be determined by the number of credit points that you initiate in the relevant academic year.
For modules commenced in the academic year 2022/23, the following fees apply:
| Credit Points | NI/ROI Cost | GB Cost | International Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| 120 | £4,629.60 | £9,249.60 | £15,360 |
| 60 | £2,314.80 | £4,624.80 | £7,680 |
| 30 | £1,157.40 | £2,312.40 | £3,840 |
| 20 | £771.60 | £1,541.60 | £2,560 |
NB: A standard full-time undergraduate degree is equivalent to 120 credit points per year.
Additional mandatory costs
It is important to remember that costs associated with accommodation, travel (including car parking charges) and normal living will need to be covered in addition to tuition fees.
Where a course has additional mandatory expenses (in addition to tuition fees) we make every effort to highlight them above. We aim to provide students with the learning materials needed to support their studies. Our libraries are a valuable resource with an extensive collection of books and journals, as well as first-class facilities and IT equipment. Computer suites and free Wi-Fi are also available on each of the campuses.
There are additional fees for graduation ceremonies, examination resits and library fines.
Students choosing a period of paid work placement or study abroad as a part of their course should be aware that there may be additional travel and living costs, as well as tuition fees.
See the tuition fees on our student guide for most up to date costs.
Disclaimer
- The University endeavours to deliver courses and programmes of study in accordance with the description set out in this prospectus. The University’s prospectus is produced at the earliest possible date in order to provide maximum assistance to individuals considering applying for a course of study offered by the University. The University makes every effort to ensure that the information contained in the prospectus is accurate but it is possible that some changes will occur between the date of printing and the start of the academic year to which it relates. Please note that the University’s website is the most up-to-date source of information regarding courses and facilities and we strongly recommend that you always visit the website before making any commitments.
- Although reasonable steps are taken to provide the programmes and services described, the University cannot guarantee the provision of any course or facility and the University may make variations to the contents or methods of delivery of courses, discontinue, merge or combine courses and introduce new courses if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary by the University. Such circumstances include (but are not limited to) industrial action, lack of demand, departure of key staff, changes in legislation or government policy including changes, if any, resulting from the UK departing the European Union, withdrawal or reduction of funding or other circumstances beyond the University’s reasonable control.
- If the University discontinues any courses, it will use its best endeavours to provide a suitable alternative course. In addition, courses may change during the course of study and in such circumstances the University will normally undertake a consultation process prior to any such changes being introduced and seek to ensure that no student is unreasonably prejudiced as a consequence of any such change.
- The University does not accept responsibility (other than through the negligence of the University, its staff or agents), for the consequences of any modification or cancellation of any course, or part of a course, offered by the University but will take into consideration the effects on individual students and seek to minimise the impact of such effects where reasonably practicable.
- The University cannot accept any liability for disruption to its provision of educational or other services caused by circumstances beyond its control, but the University will take all reasonable steps to minimise the resultant disruption to such services.