Nursing is a challenging, sometimes difficult, but highly rewarding career option with excellent career development opportunities.
During your degree you’ll spend around 50% of your time in a clinical setting enabling you to put into practice the skills you’ll have learnt in the classroom.
As Nursing is such a vocational course it’s important to be sure that you’re choosing the right course and the right university. After all, you’ll be spending the next three or four years of your life there, so you need to be sure you’re making the best choice for you.
One of the best ways to make the right choice about a university is to attend an open day. This is a great opportunity to see the full picture and not be dazzled by the shiny brochure or flashy website that all universities have.
Here’s more about studying Nursing and the university open day questions to ask about studying Nursing:
To work as a nurse in the UK you’ll need to be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and in order to do this you’ll need to have studied for your degree at an NMC approved institution.
You can search for NMC approved Nursing degree courses on the NMC website.
Once you’ve found a suitable course and university you should book on to an open day for each university that you’re interested in.
You can check out our calendar for details of university open day dates.
All universities have their own schedule for open days but all open days usually follow a fairly similar format.
At an open day you’ll have a chance to view the campus and university buildings. This will usually include lecture rooms, library facilities, accommodation halls, and recreational facilities.
Universities put on sample lectures, talks by staff and current students, and other activities to give you a better insight into life as a student at their institution.
During the day you’ll have plenty of time to ask questions and find out everything you need to know about the course, the university, and student life.
As a potential Nursing student you may find that you need an interview as part of the application process.
Some universities choose to combine their interviews with their open day so it’s important to check with each university that you’re applying to so you can prepare for the day.
As we said above, a university open day is your chance to ask any question you like about the course, the university, or being a student.
Here are some good questions to ask at a Nursing university open day:
About the admissions process
About the Nursing course
About equipment and university facilities
About placements and work experience
About exams and projects
About your graduate prospects