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What does a career in nursing look like?
Could there possibly be a profession more respected than nursing?
Is nursing on your list of possible careers? If so, you’re in good company because this is one of Australia’s most popular degrees.
Nursing is so many things wrapped up in one. It bridges a passion for care and community with scientific methodology, and it’ll scratch your inquisitive itch every day on the job. Learn more about the Bachelor of Nursing at Murdoch and get started on your journey.What can I do with a nursing degree from Murdoch University?
People often assume nursing is about working the hospital ward. Whilst this certainly is a common path, it’s far from the only one.
In the future, you might:
- Work in the unpredictable and fast-paced realm of emergency care
- Help bring life into the world and support new mums as a midwife
- Assist with life-changing surgery
- Collect evidence and support victims of crime as a forensic nurse
- Work in a day clinic with a great work-home balance
- Care for sick school children
- Aid people having an acute mental health crisis
- Find your passion in clinical research or academia, or
- Be a nurse educator, training other nurses or members of the public.
What does our previous Head of Nursing at Murdoch say about the realities of nursing? Hear from Emerita Professor Cathy Fetherston as she discusses career progression and career mobility.
What’s involved in the Bachelor of Nursing?
The Bachelor of Nursing is a three year degree, if completed full-time. It’s a person-centred approach combined with psychosocial and biological sciences, which will fully equip graduates with the skills and knowledge to be qualified as a registered nurse.
Murdoch is one of the smaller nursing schools in WA. This means you’ll get to know your lecturers and tutors well, and have a more close-knit cohort – who might end up as future friends and colleagues.
The Good Universities Guide 2024 rated the course 5-stars for learning resources, overall experience and skills development. It’s not all book learning or sitting in lectures, however. You’ll have work placements from your very first year and even the opportunity to learn on the job abroad at a later date, too. There will be a little bit of everything, with 18 weeks clinical prac across hospitals, aged care, and community settings throughout Western Australia.
There will be plenty of additional learning experiences on campus to bolster your skills and knowledge. The Sim Suite is a state-of-the-art setting that mimics reality so you can practice the very same nursing skills you’ll be using during prac and after graduation. You’ll be rehearsing what it’s like when an emergency occurs, for example cardiac arrest or anaphylaxis, as well as routine day-to-day medical scenarios. Watch the video with Senior Lecturer Prue Andrus as she discusses the Sim Suites at Murdoch.
Further study in nursing
Whilst you can definitely finish uni after completing your undergraduate degree, there’s also a world of possibility for postgraduate study to further your skillset. These include:
- A Master of Health Care Management, which could be suitable if you’re interested in leadership or governance.
- A Graduate Certificate in Contemporary Mental Health, which provides the specialist skills needed for this growing area of healthcare, and
- A Graduate Certificate in Gerontological Healthcare, training graduates to support our ageing society.
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What does a career in nursing look like?
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Posted on
Monday 5 December 2022
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