On commencing the Bachelor of Nursing degree

Please note: To enable you to be more adequately prepared for study in the course, it is highly recommended that you start this course by enrolling concurrently in:

NURS11157 Lifespan Approach to Health and Well-Being

NURS11158 Evidence Informed Nursing Practice

Course Structure

Please be aware that it is essential that you undertake the course in the order that is listed in course structure as there are pre-requisite units to be complete prior to other units and/or co-requisite units that must be completed together.  

It is particularly important to look at clinical placement units and the terms in which they are offered (NB: clinical units in years 2 and 3 of the course are offered only once each year). You are required to successfully complete:

· NURS13136 Clinical Practice 5 in the final term of study to enable the University to be in a position to recommend you for registration at the completion of the degree.

Please note that in line with accreditation requirements, aspects of the course may be subject to change during your enrolment. These changes may relate to course structure, unit names and content, clinical placement hours and/or mandatory checks.

Undergraduate Planners for Nursing Students can be found under the following link.

• http://www.cqu.edu.au/student-life/new-students/planners-and-profiles

Clinical Placement

On accepting your offer in to the Bachelor of Nursing course it is strongly recommended that you immediately commence gathering evidence to complete the Mandatory Checks required to attend clinical placement: 

WIL Mandatory Check Information

There is a Mandatory Check submission deadline that occurs up to three months prior to the commencement of each of the terms that you are enrolled.  This date is to ensure that your mandatory checks are in order before you are deemed eligible to attend and are allocated a clinical placement in the following term.  Further information about this is available in the Clinical Placement (Work Integrated Learning) Moodle site.  Please ensure that all evidence is submitted into Sonia (the University’s online placement system) by the due date.

A total of 800 hours clinical placement in an off-campus health care setting is an integral component of the Bachelor of Nursing course.  Students may be required to travel to complete placement.

Clinical Placements are organised as block placements by the University and can occur in health care organisations throughout Australia where a service agreement is in place.

Clinical Placements occur in the following units:

Entry Requirements

Domestic Students

There are no course pre-requisites however Senior English, Senior Science and Senior Mathematics are strongly recommended. Students without Senior English, Senior Science and Senior Mathematics are strongly recommended to undertake one of the following access courses:

· Skills for Tertiary Education Preparatory Studies (STEPS)

· Tertiary Entry Program (TEP)

English Language Proficiency Requirements

If you were not born in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa or United States of America you are required to meet the English Language Proficiency requirements set by the University.

Applicants are required to provide evidence of completion within the last 5 years of:

·        a secondary qualification (Year 11 or 12, or equivalent), or

·        bachelor level qualification study for a period of at least 2 years fulltime with an overall GPA 4.0

completed within Australia, Canada, New Zealand, United Kingdom, South Africa, Ireland, or United States of America, which will meet the English proficiency.

If you do not satisfy any of the above you will need to undertake an English language proficiency test and achieve the following scores as below.

·        An International English Language Testing System (IELTS Academic) overall band score of at least 6.5 overall with a minimum 6.5 for Reading and Writing and 6.5 for Speaking and listening, or

·        An Occupational English Test with Grades A or B only in each of the four components.

English test results remain valid for no more than two years between final examination date and the date of commencement of study, and must appear on a single result certificate.

Each student will be assessed individually.

NOTE Students who are not born in the above recognised countries need to be aware of the English Requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia that need to be demonstrated prior to registration. Please contact the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia for information on this requirement. http://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/

Application for Credit Transfer

Recognition of prior learning: Credit transfer will only be granted where a student is able to demonstrate that tertiary-level studies, equivalent in content and depth to the CQUniversity course, have been successfully completed. The normal maximum amount of credit which may be granted to a prospective student enrolling into the Bachelor of Nursing course is 72 credit points. Credit can only be granted for units and courses satisfactorily completed in the last 7 years at a recognised educational institution including the Diploma of Nursing. (Unit credit is subject to accreditation and registration requirements.)

In cases of prospective students transferring from a pre-registration Bachelor of Nursing course from a recognised educational Australian institution the maximum amount of credit which may be granted will be 96 credit points of the course.

Refer to the Credit Transfer website at http://www.cqu.edu.au/credittransfer for further details on the guidelines and application process.

Computing Requirements

It is a requirement of enrolment in this course that you have access to the CQUniversity website. You will be required to undertake various components of study in the course using email and the internet.

It is strongly recommended that you have access to a broadband connection or higher to access online resources that would include but are not limited to, email, internet, video streaming, electronic assessment submission.

Professional Standards and Conduct

You are expected to behave in a professional and appropriate manner. The use of abusive language, threatening behaviour, misuse of campus property and sexual harassment, will not be tolerated.  These misdemeanours will be treated as serious matters and may result in suspension or exclusion.

Please ensure that you are familiar with the Student Charter and Student Behavioural Misconduct Procedure which is available on the CQU website. In addition, nurses and midwives must be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA), and meet the NMBA's professional standards in order to practise in Australia. For more information on the NMBA’s professional standards visit http://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Codes-Guidelines-Statements/Professional-standards.aspx.

Registration standards define the requirements that applicants, registrants or students need to meet to be registered.   For more information visit http://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Registration-Standards.aspx

To ensure patient safety, nurses and midwives are deemed mandatory reporters and under National Law are subject to making notification about notifiable conduct.  For more information about notifiable conduct visit http://www.ahpra.gov.au/Notifications/Make-a-complaint/Mandatory-notifications.aspx

It is important to be aware that complaints or concerns can be raised about the health, conduct or performance of a registered health practitioner or student at any time.  For more information about complaints or concerns related to health professionals visit http://www.ahpra.gov.au/Notifications/Make-a-complaint.aspx