Skip navigation

Nursing Studies Hons (Child)

Course details
  • Bachelor of Science (with Honours)
  • 4 Years
  • Full-Time
  • 6 September 2027
  • Undergraduate
Course location
Main Site

Course summary

As a children’s nurse, you will help give children the best possible start in life. Caring for babies, children and young people with a wide range of needs, every day is different. What stays the same is your focus on safe, compassionate and family-centred care.

You might:

  • support a premature newborn in neonatal care

  • help a child in A&E

  • work with young people managing long-term mental health conditions.

Our BSc (Hons) Nursing Studies (Child) programme prepares you for this rewarding role. You’ll build the knowledge, practical skills and professional values to deliver high-quality care in hospitals, homes, schools and community services. From your first day, we will support you to grow into a confident children’s nurse.

Blending academic study and hands-on experience, you’ll learn how children grow, develop and communicate. Clinical placements make up half your learning, giving you real experience with children and families across different age groups, settings and specialisms.

Unlike adults, children can’t always express their feelings, so we focus on specialist communications skills to connect with children and support them and their family. A core feature of Children's Nursing is working in partnership with children, young people and their families to manage care with other health and social care professionals.

As Scotland’s largest single-campus provider of pre-registration nursing education, you’ll train in our Interprofessional Simulation Centre. There, you can build confidence working alongside allied health professionals in lifelike settings using real equipment and advanced patient manikins.

You’ll graduate ready to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council as a Registered Children’s Nurse. You can then begin a rewarding career making a lasting impact on young lives.

Please note:

The BSc Nursing (Child) and BSc (Hons) Nursing (Child) follow the same structure in the first 3 years.

The BSc focuses on the core knowledge and clinical skills needed to become a Registered Nurse. The BSc (Hons) provides an additional fourth year of specialist study and academic dissertation.  Both the BSc and BSc (Hons) lead to registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council as a Registered Nurse following completion of the first 3 years.

Important: You must apply for your preferred route. Opportunities to transfer between the BSc and BSc (Hons) once you accept your offer are very limited and will not be considered until Year 3.

Why choose this course?

  • Give children the best start in life. Learn how to communicate across age groups, engage with young people and empower families to support their children.

  • Study at the largest single-campus provider of pre-registration nursing education in Scotland.

  • Practice clinical skills in lifelike hospital wards and community settings. Build confidence with real equipment and advanced patient manikins at our Interprofessional Simulation Centre.

  • Set yourself up to thrive as part of a dynamic multi-agency team, working regularly with students from other health and social care courses.

  • 50% of the course is dedicated to clinical placements. Engage with patients face-to-face and get hands-on experience of real-life settings.

Careers

When you complete Year 3, you will be eligible for registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) as a Registered Children’s Nurse.

You will be ready to apply for a range of positions across the NHS and other sectors, working closely with:

  • patients

  • parents

  • clients

  • service users

  • carers.

You may also go into management or research roles.

You’ll benefit from great employment opportunities through our practice partners. These currently include a number of NHS Boards, including NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Ayrshire and Arran, as well as private and third sector agencies.

Some graduates have sought employment in countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and the USA.

Professional bodies

Professionally accredited courses provide industry-wide recognition of the quality of your qualification.

  • Nursing and Midwifery Council

How to apply

Apply by
13 January 2027

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

Course code:
B731
Institution code:
G42
Campus name:
Main Site

Points of entry

The following entry points are available for this course:

  • Year 1

Entry requirements

Typical qualification requirements

A level
BCC

preferably including a science subject, and GCSE English, Maths and a Science subject at C/4

T Level
M

Health and Science: Science 
Health and Science: Healthcare Science 
Health and Science: Health 
Education and Childcare 
plus GCSE English, Maths and a Science at C/4

Scottish Higher
BBBC

Must include Higher English or Essay based subject plus National 5 Maths or Application of Maths or SCQF Level 5 Numeracy Plus National 5 in a science subject at C or above (from Chemistry, Biology or Physics). Accepted essay-based Higher subjects include Drama, History, Modern Studies, Psychology, and RMPS.

Access to HE Diploma
Distinction: 9 Merit: 33 Pass: 3

Access to HE Diploma with minimum of 60 credits with 45 at level 3
Access to HE Diploma in Health or Care – Requires GCSE Maths, Science and English C/4 if not included in Access Diploma

International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Offer: 28

IB Diploma of 28 with specific scores of SL 4 in a science subject and Maths and English A at SL or HL at Grade 5 or English B at SL Grade 6 or HL at Grade 5

Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
DMM

Applied Science, Biological/Biomedical Science or Health Care related at DMM and GCSE English, Maths and a Science subject at C/4

Foundation Apprenticeship (SCQF Level 6)
Pass

Accepted as equivalent to one Higher at grade B as part of the overall grade profile of Highers required for entry. Any essential subjects at Higher should still be achieved in addition to the Foundation Apprenticeship.

Leaving Certificate - Higher Level (Ireland) (first awarded in 2017)
H3H3H3H3

including Higher Level English or Essay based subject, plus Ordinary Level Maths and a Science at minimum O3/O4

Scottish HNC

HNC Healthcare Practice Graded Unit A considered for 1st Year

Applicants should have recent assessed study (not work based) within the past 5 years
A reference which should be relevant with the past 9 months
Applicants must be 17 by the January after their Programme starts

Minimum Qualification Requirements

Typical qualification requirements

Scottish Higher BCCC

Must include Higher English or Essay based subject plus National 5 Maths or Application of Maths or SCQF Level 5 Numeracy Plus National 5 in a science subject at C or above (from Chemistry, Biology or Physics). Accepted essay-based Higher subjects include Drama, History, Modern Studies, Psychology, and RMPS.

Foundation Apprenticeship (SCQF Level 6) Pass

Accepted as equivalent to one Higher at grade B as part of the overall grade profile of Highers required for entry. Any essential subjects at Higher should still be achieved in addition to the Foundation Apprenticeship.

Additional entry requirements

Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) / Disclosure Scotland Check
Health Checks
Arranged by University
Interview
Applicant interview event attendance is compulsory. We recommend applicants check their spam email for updates as interview invitations will be sent from the university email address.
Other
Applicants must be 17 by the January after their Programme starts

English language requirements

TestGradeAdditional details
IELTS (Academic)7IELTS - overall 7 with at least 7 in reading, listening and speaking, and 6.5 in writing

Historical entry grades data

This section shows the range of grades that students who received offers were previously accepted on to this course with (learn more).

It is designed to support your research but does not guarantee whether you will or won't get a place.

Admissions teams consider various factors, including interviews, subject requirements, and entrance tests. Check all course entry requirements for eligibility.

Not enough data available

We are unable to show previous accepted grades for this course. This could be because the course is new, it's a postgraduate course, there isn't enough historical data, or the provider has opted out of sharing their entry grades data for this course - learn more.

Fees and funding

Tuition fees

Per year tuition fees

LocationFeeYear
England, Wales, Northern Ireland, Channel Islands & Republic of Ireland£9790*
Scotland£1820*
EU & International£15700*

* This is a provisional fee and subject to change.

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

Additional costs may apply to students on this programme. Please check the fees and funding section of the programme page on the GCU website for specific details.

Like this page