Swansea University

What you'll study

This three-year honours programme integrates theory, clinical skills and extensive practice placements to develop competent, compassionate children’s nurses. Teaching covers child growth and development, family-centred care, clinical assessment and decision-making, pharmacology, safeguarding and mental health in children and young people.

• Year 1: Foundations of nursing practice, communication and therapeutic relationships, anatomy and physiology for child health, and introduction to clinical skills and safe practice.
• Year 2: Complex care of the child, acute and long-term conditions, medication management, and applied clinical skills with longer placement blocks in hospital and community settings.
• Year 3: Advanced practice topics, leadership and professional issues, evidence-based practice and research methods, with a final honours project or practice-focused dissertation and consolidation placements to prepare for professional registration.

Throughout the programme you will undertake supervised placements in a range of settings including paediatric wards, emergency departments, outpatient clinics, community children’s services and specialist teams. Teaching methods include lectures, small-group tutorials, simulation and interprofessional learning with students from other health professions.

Entry requirements

Applicants are expected to hold a combination of academic qualifications and relevant experience. Typical academic requirements include further/higher level qualifications such as A-levels (or equivalent national and international qualifications) with at least one science or healthcare-related subject preferred. Applicants must also meet minimum GCSE-level requirements in English language (and usually mathematics and/or science) or equivalent.

Health-related experience working with children or young people is highly desirable and may be demonstrated through paid or voluntary roles. All offers are conditional on satisfactory enhanced background checks (DBS/PVG), occupational health clearance, and references. Mature applicants and those with alternative qualifications are considered on an individual basis, often supported by evidence of relevant experience or prior learning.

Career prospects

Graduates qualify to apply for registration as a children’s nurse and typically take up roles in NHS hospitals, community children’s nursing teams, specialist paediatric services, and charitable or voluntary-sector organisations. Common early-career roles include staff nurse on paediatric wards, emergency paediatric care, neonatal units (with further training), and community nursing for children with long-term conditions.

With experience and further study, graduates progress into specialist clinical roles (for example paediatric oncology, intensive care, or mental health), advanced practice, clinical education, leadership and management, research or public health roles. Many nurses pursue postgraduate study such as specialist practitioner programmes, MSc-level qualifications or nursing-related postgraduate certificates to advance their career.

Why study at Swansea University

Swansea University’s School of Health and Social Care offers child nursing training with strong partnerships across NHS Wales, providing diverse placement opportunities across hospital and community settings. The programme places emphasis on hands-on learning through clinical skills suites and realistic simulation, supported by experienced academic staff and practicing clinicians.

Students benefit from interprofessional learning alongside other health and social care programmes, dedicated student support services, and access to university research strengths in child and family health. The regional setting gives exposure to a wide range of paediatric services and community practice, helping to prepare graduates for work across different healthcare contexts.