Programme summary
Courses and timetables
Career opportunities
Admission requirements
Programme summary
Qualify as a Registered Nurse and gain the skills required to work in a range of health-related areas, including community and mental health, medical and surgical nursing, and research. Practise what you've learnt at the fully equipped Education, Practice and Simulation Centre at Waitakere Hospital and during real-world practice placements.
The only programme in West Auckland leading to registration as a nurse, the
Bachelor of Nursing provides you with the skills to become a competent
Registered Nurse and an effective member of the healthcare team. You learn to
assess, manage and communicate effectively with patients both in hospitals and
the local community. Boost your analytical and interpersonal skills as you
evaluate ethical dilemmas in clinical nursing practice. Develop an
understanding of medical and surgical nursing, and community and mental health.
You also explore the role and application of technology in the healthcare
environment.
The programme focuses on:
- Meeting the health needs of people and their communities
- Supporting people with continuing health challenges
- Harnessing the technological advances that strengthen and support
nursing practice
- Maintaining a commitment to evidence-based practice.
Real-world learning
You’ll learn in a variety of ways: in groups, interactive tutorials,
lectures, through self-directed learning, web-based learning, videos, clinical
simulation, laboratories and practice experiences. You’ll also have
access to computerised library databases and the internet, and use
point-of-care, hand-held computers that help you document clinical experiences
and quickly access clinical reference tools.
Practise what you’ve learnt at the fully equipped Education, Practice
and Simulation Centre (SimLab) at Waitakere Hospital. In the final year, you
work on rostered nursing duties for four days per week. Practice experiences
include acute care, surgery, medicine, rehabilitation/disability, preventative
care and mental health. You’ll experience real-world practice placements
(approximately 200 days will be in practice settings) and must complete a
minimum of 1100 hours of designated nursing practice.
Experienced lecturers
The programme is taught by experienced and multi-cultural staff, many of
whom still work in clinical nursing practice.
Practise nursing at Waitakere Hospital
All students in Unitec’s Bachelor of Nursing learn the practical
skills required of the profession in the Education and Practice Simulation
Centre at Waitakere Hospital. The Centre offers a high-tech, simulated hospital
learning environment that reflects the real world of nursing practice. The
facility includes an acute assessment room, an operating theatre, a critical
care unit, a simulation room/ward, a community bed-sit, a seminar room, a
computer suite, interview rooms and an audio-visual control room.
In your first-year, you use the facility to learn the fundamental skills of
nursing practice before you experience them in an actual healthcare placement.
In later years, you use the Centre to learn progressively more advanced
clinical assessment and practice skills, and for learning through simulated
experiences. These simulated experiences offer the opportunity to present more
advanced clinical scenarios, and will give you a chance to actively participate
and apply what you’ve learnt about the management of real-life
situations. Simulations will be recorded on video and can be replayed for
learning through debriefing, analysis, critique and evaluation. The facility is
located within walking distance of Unitec’s Waitakere campus, and a
shuttle bus travels at set times between the two sites.
Industry links
Work in a variety of practice contexts, from Auckland City Hospital, North
Shore Hospital, Starship Children’s Hospital and private surgical
hospitals to the Waitemata District Health Board, the Mason Clinic, Rehab Plus
and a number of primary healthcare organisations.
Industry recognition
Approved by the Nursing Council of New Zealand (NCNZ) and the New Zealand
Qualifications Authority (NZQA), the Bachelor of Nursing enables you to qualify
as a Registered Nurse when you have passed the exam set by NCNZ.
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Courses and timetables
The following is a selection of the compulsory courses you need to study to complete this programme. Click the links below to view the course details and timetables for 2010.
Course no.Course name
+ View the full list of courses for 2010
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Career opportunities
- Charge Nurse
- District Nurse
- Nurse Educator
- Plunket Nurse
- Practice Nurse
- Public Health Nurse
- Staff Nurse
Admission requirements
To be eligible for admission, applicants must meet the general, discretionary or special admission requirements. Applicants must also meet the English language requirements and may be interviewed.
Applicants transferring from an undergraduate nursing programme at another tertiary education institution will only be considered for selection upon receipt of a confidential report from the institution from which they are transferring.
General admission
Applicants must:
- Be at least 16 years of age when the programme begins (or provide a completed Early Release Exemption form, which you can obtain from your local Ministry of Education office); and
- Have a minimum of 42 credits at level 3 or higher on the National Qualifications Framework, including a minimum of:
- 14 credits at level 3 or higher in each of two subjects from an approved subject list; and
- 14 credits at level 3 or higher taken from no more than two additional domains on the National Qualifications Framework or approved subjects; and
- A minimum of 14 credits at level 1 or higher in Mathematics or Pangarau on the National Qualifications Framework; and
- minimum of eight credits at level 2 or higher in English or Te Reo Māori, of which a minimum of four credits must be in Reading and four in Writing (see note), or equivalent; or
- Have at least three C passes in New Zealand University Bursaries examinations, or equivalent; or
- Have gained the Unitec Certificate in Foundation Studies: Whitinga (Level 3) with the Nursing endorsement, including, except in exceptional circumstances, a minimum grade of C+ for course NURS4001.
Applicants must also:
- Provide evidence of clearance of any criminal conviction considered inappropriate for working with vulnerable people; and
- Provide a completed medical declaration and not have a medical condition that will impact on their ability to practise safely as a nurse; and
- Be able to participate in the practical aspects of the programme; and
- Provide two testimonials and/or character references, for example from a school or community organisation.
Discretionary admission (for applicants aged under 20)
Applicants who do not meet the general admission requirements and who are less than 20 years of age when the programme begins may be considered for discretionary admission if they can demonstrate aptitude for study at the required level. This could include, for example:
- Having a minimum of 60 credits at level 2 in four subjects, including a minimum of:
- 12 credits at level 2 in English, of which four must be in Reading and four in Writing; and
- 12 credits in level 2 science subjects; and
- Having a minimum of 14 credits at level 1 or higher in Mathematics or Pangarau on the National Qualifications Framework; and
- Providing evidence of support from their school; or
- Having a minimum of 48 credits at level 2 in four subjects, including a minimum of:
- 12 credits at level 2 in English, of which four must be in Reading and four in Writing; and
- 12 credits in level 2 science subjects; and
- Having a minimum of 14 credits at level 1 or higher in Mathematics or Pangarau on the National Qualifications Framework; and
- Having a minimum of 21 credits at level 3 (with a minimum of seven credits in at least three subject areas), or equivalent; and
- Providing evidence of support from their school.
Special admission (for applicants aged 20 and over)
Applicants who do not meet the general admission requirements and who are at least 20 years of age when the programme begins may be considered for special admission if they can provide evidence of aptitude or appropriate work or other experience.
English language
Applicants must:
- Have a minimum of eight NCEA credits in English at level 2, of which four must be in Reading and four in Writing, or equivalent; or
- Have a minimum of seven NCEA credits at level 3 in an English-rich subject, or equivalent; or
- Have successfully completed studies at level 5 or higher in an English medium; or
- Have a grade of 5 or better in New Zealand Sixth Form Certificate English, or equivalent; or
- Have gained New Zealand University Bursaries in an English-rich subject with a minimum mark of 40 percent, or equivalent; or
- Have an overall IELTS band score (Academic) of no less than 6.5 (with no band score lower than 6.5), or a TOEFL score of no less than 575, or equivalent; or
- Have an appropriate Unitec English language qualification, such as the Diploma in English (Academic), or equivalent.
Note: New Zealand secondary school graduates who have English as an additional language (EAL) using NCEA to meet Unitec programmes general admission criteria may substitute the eight credits in English at NCEA level 2 (four in Reading and four in Writing) with an IELTS score (or equivalent). This IELTS score is the same as that required by the programme in which they wish to enrol. These students are still required to achieve a minimum of 42 NCEA credits at level 3 or higher and the Mathematics or Pangarau requirements.