Children and Young People's Nursing (pre-registration) MSc
Study level: Postgraduate
This MSc course offers graduates from a range of backgrounds the opportunity to enter the Children and Young People’s nursing profession in two years.
Year of entry
Location
Coventry University (Coventry)
Study mode
Full-time
Duration
2 years full-time
Course code
HLST263
Start date
January 2024
Course overview
The course is designed to equip you with the hands-on clinical and care skills to prepare you to practise autonomously and compassionately, providing family-centred care and building therapeutic relationships to become a caring practitioner, well-prepared to meet the needs of children, young people and their families.
- This course aims to prepare you to analyse the needs of, and develop and deliver effective care for, children from birth to young adulthood.
- You will consider their physiological needs, mental health and wellbeing in the provision of care and understand the importance of evidence-informed practice, care and compassion.
- It is designed to challenge you to develop high standards of person-centred care, skills in coordinating complex care, clinical, legal and ethical decision-making, leadership and mentoring.
- All eligible students on this course may qualify for a minimum payment from the Government of £5,000 per year, with additional payments for students incurring childcare costs from the NHS Learning Support Fund.

Joint Top Modern University for Career Prospects
Guardian University Guide 2021 and 2022
5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities
QS Stars University Ratings
Top 5 UK Student City (Coventry)
QS Best Student Cities Index 2023Why you should study this course
The Children and Young People's Nursing (pre-registration) MSc is a two-year postgraduate course which can lead to registration as a Children and Young People's Nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). On successful completion of the course, you will be able to demonstrate the professional values, attitudes and behaviours required to deliver safe and effective, holistic child and family-centred care. This will allow you to play a vital role in the journey of children and their families, during very challenging and difficult times.
- The course is aimed at individuals with a prior undergraduate degree and evidence of experience in health and social care. Previous undergraduate degrees may include (but are not limited to) health-related disciplines, psychology, criminology or sociology degrees. Those with non-health-related degrees must demonstrate extensive experience in the clinical health and social care sector. It is also suitable for existing nurses looking for dual qualification.
- This course responds to the current challenges in healthcare, related to the complex care issues around mental, physical, cognitive and behavioural impairment. The inherent specialised content will enable graduates to analyse, enhance and deliver care to children and their families. The individual needs of those children and young people - experiencing either acute episodes or chronicity of illness and injury - will be examined, ensuring you will adopt enhanced nursing skills and knowledge. A focus upon physiological, mental health and wellbeing is a traditional approach, and you will develop skills to care for a range of ages, including neonates, infants, children and adolescents. This is complemented by research and evidence-informed practice and independent project work which is focused on and promotes service improvement.
- Practice placement2 learning is integral and accounts for 50% of the course – this is organised by the university. The clinical practice experience exposes you to caring for the needs of children, young people and their families across a range of health services. This means an eclectic range of placements may be accessed including special care, Accident and Emergency, children's wards, adolescent care, high dependency care, specialised surgery, neonatal intensive care and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). Hospice and respite care, community children's services and safeguarding involvement facilitates the preparation of a highly skilled graduate and knowledgeable nurse registrant.
- Upon successful completion, in addition to eligibility for NMC registration, you will also graduate with a Chartered Management Institute (CMI) accredited1 qualification in Leading and Creating Organisational Health and Wellbeing and have the opportunity to apply to become a member of the CMI (see accreditation section for more details).
- You will study in the multi-million pound state-of-the-art Alison Gingell Building, which provides facilities4 for teaching and research, featuring hospital wards, critical care settings, an operating theatre, community housing and other real-life nursing environments relevant to practice.
Accreditation and professional recognition
This course is accredited1 by the following professional bodies:

Nursing & Midwifery Council
The course is currently fully accredited by the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for the 2023/2024 intake and, providing you also meet the NMC requirements, on successful completion you will be eligible to apply for registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (additional costs may apply).

Chartered Management Institute (CMI)
As part of this course, you will undertake a professional development module which is currently accredited by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) for the 2023-24 intake. Upon successful completion of the module, you will gain the CMI Level 7 Certificate in Strategic Management and Leadership Practice at no additional cost. Further details can be found under the module section and on the Professional Development module homepage.
Nursing at Coventry University
We have an excellent reputation for the quality of the education provided to trainee and qualified nurses.
Learn why you should study with us

What you'll study
The delivery of theory components is through a range of theory modules which focus on extending your knowledge and cognitive skills, providing you with a sound critical, analytical and reflective approach to person-centred care delivery.
The practice component considers the knowledge base that underpins person-centred care delivery/management, and the range of skills required to care for individuals with specific psychosocial and children and young people’s (CYP) health-related problems.
How you'll learn
A range of teaching and learning methods are employed in the MSc in Children and Young People's Nursing programme including lectures, clinical simulation, seminars, workshops, tutorials, practical clinical work in a practice setting and work-based learning. The teaching and learning activities are intended to engage you with the relevant theory and facilitate understanding of the module content, to question and formulate ideas and perspectives on the subject material, in preparation for assessment.
You will have support in preparation for the assessments from a variety of sources. These could include your module leaders or a subject specialist in the library resources on the course-web platforms. Furthermore, you will also have support from practice educators in the clinical placement areas which are an integral part of this programme of study.
In addition to the teaching and learning methods, a key learning feature of this master’s course is independent study. This means you will take the initiative and responsibility for working through the learning material and make decisions on how to collate, manage and present the information for your assessment.
Teaching contact hours
This is a full-time course, and you are expected to attend theory for a minimum of two and a half days each week during term time and work 40 hours per week while on practice placement modules.
Additionally, you will be expected to undertake significant self-directed study of approximately 6.5 hours each week, depending on the demands of individual modules.
There are four practice modules throughout the two-year course. These modules are mandatory, and attendance is a necessity to meet the practice hours requirement for NMC registration.
You must successfully pass all modules to meet the eligibility requirement for professional registration with the NMC.
The contact hours may be made up of a combination of face-to-face teaching, individual and group tutorials, and online classes and tutorials.
As an innovative and enterprising institution, the University may seek to utilise emerging technologies within the student experience. For all courses (whether on-campus, blended, or distance learning), the University may deliver certain contact hours and assessments via online technologies and methods.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are prepared for courses due to start in or after the 2023/24 academic year to be delivered in a variety of forms. The form of delivery will be determined in accordance with Government and Public Health guidance. Whether on campus or online, our key priority is staff and student safety.
Assessment
All assessment methods are aligned to the Children and Young People's Nursing MSc programme objectives, and the learning outcomes of each module reflect the programme objective.
Assessment methods include:
- Critical appraisal essays
- Presentations
- Viva voce
- Reports
- Observed Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE)
- Practice assessment
- Dissertation
The Coventry University Group assessment strategy ensures that our courses are fairly assessed and allows us to monitor student progression towards achieving the intended learning outcomes.
As a mature student, being able to obtain a master's degree and my nursing registration at an accelerated rate is beneficial in being able to start my professional career sooner. The course content is interesting, varied and engaging and being able to consolidate learning while out in practice in a variety of placement areas is invaluable. The course staff are extremely knowledgeable in their field and go above and beyond in the support they provide to students academically, practically and pastorally.

Entry requirements
Typical offer for 2023/24 entry.
Fees and funding
2023/24 tuition fees.
Student | Full-time | Part-time |
---|---|---|
UK | £9,250 per year | Not available |
EU | Not available | Not available |
All eligible home students on this course can apply for a minimum payment from the Government of £5,000 per year, with additional payments for students incurring childcare costs*.
For advice and guidance on tuition fees and student loans visit our Postgraduate Finance page and see The University’s Tuition Fee and Refund Terms and Conditions.
Tuition fees cover the cost of your teaching, assessments, facilities and support services. There may be additional costs not covered by this fee such as accommodation and living costs, recommended reading books, stationery, printing and re-assessments should you need them.
The following are additional costs not included in the tuition fees:
- Any costs associated with securing, attending or completing a placement (whether in the UK or abroad).
-
How do you know if you need to pay UK or international tuition fees?
We carry out an initial fee status assessment based on the information you provide in your application. Your fee status determines your tuition fees, and what financial support and scholarships may be available to you. The rules about who pays UK (home) or international (overseas) fees for higher education courses in England are set by the government's Department for Education. The regulations identify all the different categories of student who can insist on paying the home rate. The regulations can be difficult to understand, so the UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) has provided fee status guidance to help you identify whether you are eligible to pay the home or overseas rate.
If you meet all the criteria required by any one category, including any residence requirements, your institution must charge you the home rate. You only need to find one category that you fit into.
Facilities
Our multi-million-pound Alison Gingell Building provides facilities4 for teaching and research, featuring hospital wards, critical care settings, operating theatre, community housing and other real life nursing environments relevant to practice.

Alison Gingell Building
The Alison Gingell Building features mock hospital wards, an operating theatre, critical care settings and other real-life environments.

Mock Hospital Wards
Our mock hospital wards and critical care settings give you the chance to experience patient scenarios in a real-world environment.

Community Houses
Our two full-size community homes can be used for sessions simulating working with patients outside of a hospital setting.
Careers and opportunities
Those who successfully complete this course will be eligible to apply for registration as a Children and Young People's Nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) to practice as a registered professional in nursing. Registration may be subject to additional costs.
The course is an indication to current and potential employees that you have both the ability and the academic characteristics required for working in a variety of CYP health settings. The programme is developed with the aim to position you for an accelerated career pathway to become a future nursing leader, clinical expert, educator or researcher within the profession.
For nursing provision, employability is very high and employment is possible in a variety of clinical/specialist areas in a range of public and private healthcare settings. It may be possible to use your qualification to work overseas.
Where our graduates work
One final year student has already secured a job at the Royal Berkshire Hospital’s general medical children’s ward, due to start in January 2024.
The current Children and Young People’s Nursing team at Coventry have a range of clinical experience from health visiting to intensive care, theatres to clinical research, A&E to diabetes nurse specialist and neonatal intensive care. It is this variety which makes us well positioned to teach, prepare and inspire you in your learning and future career. We are able to draw on our varied experience and work very closely with practice colleagues to ensure those clinical professionals with current and most appropriate knowledge teach you. We are a small team who have all left clinical practice within the last 6 years, which means we are well-equipped to prepare you for becoming qualified. We really get to know our students, so are well-placed to support and guide you into become the best Children and Young People’s Nurses of the future.

How to apply
-
UK students
To apply to study for a postgraduate course at Coventry University, you can apply online.
For further support or more information about your course get in touch with us today.
Chat with our admissions team
Complete our contact form.
-
Disclaimers
Coventry University together with Coventry University London Campus, CU Coventry, CU London, CU Scarborough and Coventry University Online come together to form part of the Coventry University Group (the “University”) with all degrees awarded by Coventry University.
1Accreditations
The majority of our courses have been formally recognised by professional bodies, which means the courses have been reviewed and tested to ensure they reach a set standard. In some instances, studying on an accredited course can give you additional benefits such as exemptions from professional exams (subject to availability, fees may apply). Accreditations, partnerships, exemptions and memberships shall be renewed in accordance with the relevant bodies’ standard review process and subject to the university maintaining the same high standards of course delivery.
2UK and international opportunities
Please note that we are unable to guarantee any UK or International opportunities (whether required or optional) such as internships, work experience, field trips, conferences, placements or study abroad opportunities and that all such opportunities may be subject to additional costs (which could include, but is not limited to, equipment, materials, bench fees, studio or facilities hire, travel, accommodation and visas), competitive application, availability and/or meeting any applicable travel COVID and visa requirements. To ensure that you fully understand the visa requirements, please contact the International Office.
3Tuition fees
The University will charge the tuition fees that are stated in the above table for the first Academic Year of study. The University will review tuition fees each year. For UK (home) students, if Parliament permit an increase in tuition fees, the University may increase fees for each subsequent year of study in line with any such changes. Note that any increase is expected to be in line with inflation.
For International Students, we may increase fees each year but such increases will be no more than 5% above inflation. If you defer your course start date or have to extend your studies beyond the normal duration of the course (e.g. to repeat a year or resit examinations) the University reserves the right to charge you fees at a higher rate and/or in accordance with any legislative changes during the additional period of study.
4Facilities
Due to COVID-19, some facilities (including some teaching and learning spaces) and some non-academic offerings (particularly in relation to international experiences), may vary from those advertised and may have reduced availability or restrictions on their use.
5Placements
Satisfactory health clearance and enhanced criminal record disclosure is also required. As part of the health clearance checks you will be required to provide information about your immunity and vaccination status. You will also be required to provide information about your COVID-19 vaccination status. We therefore recommend that you are fully vaccinated including the COVID-19 vaccine. The information you provide will be used to determine your eligibility to go on placement(s). Placements are provided at the placement provider’s discretion. The University is therefore unable to guarantee the provision of placements or the location and type of placement offered.
6NHS Payment
The rules may be subject to review by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) in the future and as a result may change. Please therefore check the NHSBSA website for up-to-date information before applying.
Student Contract
By accepting your offer of a place and enrolling with us, a Student Contract will be formed between you and the university. A copy of the 2023/24 contract can be found here. The Contract details your rights and the obligations you will be bound by during your time as a student and contains the obligations that the university will owe to you. You should read the Contract before you accept an offer of a place and before you enrol at the university.
You may also like

Learning Disabilities Nursing (pre-registration) MSc
