Course summary
Would you like to improve the lives of individuals experiencing mental illness? Our Mental Health Nursing degree prepares you to become a skilled and highly sought-after mental health nurse. You will immerse yourself in our student nurse community and take full advantage of our on-campus clinical skills and simulation facilities, which provide the opportunity to develop your skills and confidence in a safe and supportive environment. This includes using digital simulation as well as our simulated ward areas, high-dependency care areas, home spaces, and cutting-edge immersive simulation room. Alongside this, you will spend equal time on clinical placement in a variety of settings, including inpatient hospital care, dementia care, community, and specialist mental health provision. You will care for individuals across the lifespan who are experiencing different mental health conditions, and our unique campus locations mean you will gain wide-ranging experience working with diverse patient groups in both rural and city areas. Our academic team are experienced practitioners with a wide range of clinical backgrounds and academic interests. As well as delivering theoretical teaching based on the latest evidence and research, they will support you throughout your degree to ensure your student experience is fulfilling and enjoyable. The NHS Learning Support Fund, offering at least £5,000 per year, is available to eligible students. Course overview Mental health nurses provide support and care to vulnerable individuals across all stages of life. Our Mental Health Nursing degree combines essential nursing values with contemporary knowledge, communication and interpersonal skills to help you start your dream career in mental health nursing. You'll learn through a mix of lectures, workshops, guest speakers, and interactive discussions, gaining insights from academics and professionals with real-world expertise. You'll also develop your clinical skills through scenario-based experiences in mock hospital wards, computerised simulations, and our interactive immersive room. Upon completing this course, you will be eligible to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, enabling you to practise as a mental health nurse. This degree opens doors to diverse career opportunities in settings such as inpatient and community services, and specialist centres of excellence like eating disorders, memory assessment, drug and alcohol, and forensic and prison services. If you have completed an FdSc Nursing Associate programme, you can enter directly into the second year of this degree, allowing you to qualify as a mental health nurse in just two years. On this course you will...
- Work alongside individuals experiencing mental illness, long-term conditions, and significant psychological wellbeing concerns, providing time and support to help them recover.
- Use high-quality simulation facilities alongside your practice experience and academic lectures.
- Undertake placements in a wide variety of settings, covering child, adult and older people nursing, within both inner-city and rural locations.
- Learn from experienced practitioners with clinical experience in a wide range of clinical backgrounds and academic interests.
- Hear first-hand accounts of stories in healthcare from individual lived experiences.
- Achieve a professional qualification as a registered mental health nurse, alongside a varied experience of practice areas with which you can consider your future career options.
Modules
You will spend 50% of the programme in clinical practice being supervised and assessed by clinical staff. The theoretical input is delivered by expert teaching staff and is based on the most up to date contemporary evidence and research, using modern teaching methods and technology. The programme will equip you to deliver safe and effective care to the highest standards and ensure you practice with compassion and confidence. You will be taught to work with clients to make complex decisions regarding their care using evidence of new technology while delivering a wide range of services. Year one
- Applied Biological Sciences for Health
- Professional Practice and Accountability
- Developing Evidence Based Practice
- Introduction to Communication and Interpersonal Skills
- Concepts of Health and Social Policy
- Introduction to Mental Health Nursing
- Pharmacology and Medicine Therapeutics
- Living with Long Term Conditions Across the Lifespan
- Learning from the Lived Experience
- Communication and Relationship Management in a Therapeutic Context
- Contemporary and Complimentary Approaches to Mental Health
- Developing Mental Health Nursing Skills
- Clinical Decision Making and Complex Care
- Contemporary Issues and Change Management in Professional Practice
- Public Health
- Leading and Managing Health and Social Care
- The Art of Mental Health Nursing
Assessment method
Modules use formative and summative assessment so that you progress through a module and build knowledge for practice coherently and logically. Formative assessments are designed so that feedback on the individual student’s performance is provided before the submission of the final, summative assessment – though this does not contribute to the final module mark, or the credit awarded. The wordage – or equivalent – for both formative and summative assessments is counted towards the whole module assessment wordage. Types and methods of assessment will include:
- Group seminars and presentations
- Essays
- Interpersonal skills analysis
- Portfolio of evidence (achievement of clinical competencies and written evidence)
- Examination (context-based scenarios)
- Map of patient/client experience
- Reflective essays
- Community health profile, learning statement and reflective incident recording
- Resource package
- Poster presentation
- Oral Defence and Justification
How to apply
This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application codes
Please select a course option – you will then see the application code you need to use to apply for the course.
Points of entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
- Year 1
Entry requirements
Qualification requirements
UCAS Tariff - 104 - 112 points
A level - BCC - BBC
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016) - DMM
Access to HE Diploma - D: 15 credits M: 30 credits
Scottish Higher - BBBC - BBBB
T Level - Pass (C and above)
GCSE English Language and Maths at grade C or above or equivalent. Level 2 Functional Skills in maths and English. Adult Literacy level 2 and Adult Numeracy level 2 are also accepted.
Additional entry requirements
Criminal records declaration (DBS/Disclosure Scotland)
Health checks
Interview
Student Outcomes
The number of student respondents and response rates can be important in interpreting the data – it is important to note your experience may be different from theirs. This data will be based on the subject area rather than the specific course. Read more about this data on the Discover Uni website.
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
EU | £9535 | Year 1 |
England | £9535 | Year 1 |
Northern Ireland | £9535 | Year 1 |
Scotland | £9535 | Year 1 |
Wales | £9535 | Year 1 |
Channel Islands | £9535 | Year 1 |
Republic of Ireland | £9535 | Year 1 |
International | £16900 | Year 1 |
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
Provider information
University of Cumbria
Registered Office
Fusehill Street
Carlisle
CA1 2HH
Course contact details
Visit our course pageUniversity of Cumbria
0845 606 1144