University of Southampton Calendar 2010/11- Section VIII


University Calendar 2011/12 Section X : Academic Regulations - Faculty of Health Sciences

Academic Unit	Health Sciences
Final Award	Diploma with Advanced Studies in Nursing
Programme(s)	Diploma with Advanced Studies in Nursing with Professional Registration on Part 1 of the Register of the Nursing and Midwifery Council
Last modified	July 2011

Reference should be made to the University's General Regulations found in Section IV and Section V (Higher Degree Regulations) of the University Calendar.

Except where an opt-out has been granted by the University, the following academic regulations apply in addition to the General Regulations.

Admissions

Candidates for admission must satisfy the Regulations for Admission to Degree Programmes as specified in Section IV of the General Regulations and meet the entry requirements for either school leaver or mature applicants stipulated for this profession.

Admission to, and continuation on, the programme is subject to specific health requirements (consistent with the provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act [1995]). Prospective students are required to inform the Faculty of any health problems relevant to their future employment as a health professional. All students will be subject to an occupational health check.

Admission to, and continuation on, the programme is subject to consideration of any criminal convictions. The programme is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act [1986]. Prospective students are required to inform the Faculty of all criminal convictions. All students will be subject to an enhanced Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check.

Equality Statement
The Faculty wishes to make places available to a wide range of people who will make a useful contribution to the study and practice of nursing. The University and the Faculty are committed to a comprehensive policy of equal opportunities in which students are recruited on the basis of their relevant merits and abilities and are given equal opportunities within the University. The aim of the policy is to ensure that no prospective or current students should receive less favourable treatment on any grounds that are not relevant to academic ability and attainment and state registration as a professional nurse.

The University’s Disability Equality Scheme includes an Action Plan which identifies the steps that the University is taking to improve the opportunities available to disabled students. Applications from candidates with disabilities are always considered and assessment of their abilities and needs undertaken sensitively.

Decisions are based on whether or not the applicant meets the admission criteria, whether the programme can be delivered to the applicant in a way that meets their requirements, making reasonable adjustments if necessary and whether at the end of the programme, the graduate would meet the competencies set by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL)
APEL/APCL will be considered on a case by case basis and in accordance with the University regulations for APL as well as NMC regulations.

Structure of Programme(s)

The programme leading to the award of Diploma with Advanced Studies in Nursing shall be of three years' duration. The maximum period of registration shall normally be five years. This period of registration will incorporate periods of suspension or interruption of studies. In line with NMC regulations, the programme must be completed within five years of the commencement date.

In Year 1 students will study 120 credits at Level 4 (Certificate)
In Year 2 students will study 120 credits at Level 5 (Diploma)
In Year 3 students will study 80 credits at Level 6 (Diploma with Advanced Studies)

The outline of the content of each module shall be specified in the module profile and made available to students on ‘Blackboard’.

Progression

Progression Regulations are as described in the University Calendar, Section IV : General Regulations: Progression, Determination and Classification of Results. For all programmes which lead to registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, statutory regulations apply.

The pass mark for each module will be 40% for all levels. Students must meet the pass criteria in both academic and practice experience to pass overall.

Module Referral

The criteria for module assessment referral are:

Failure to achieve a Pass/Fail assessment.
Where an assessment comprises of two or more components the minimum pass mark for each part must be 35% with an aggregate minimum mark of 40%.
In order to meet NMC requirements in drug calculations, specified assignments must achieve 100% pass mark for this component.
In Year 1, meeting NMC requirements for completion of all assessment within 12 weeks of completing year 1 to progress to year 2.
Non-attendance or late arrival more than half an hour after the start of an examination/presentation, or is required to leave the examination room.
Submission of an assignment 24 hours or more after the published deadline.

Practice Experience Referral

A student will normally be required to retrieve a practice experience by:

developing a retrieval action plan in partnership with a mentor, academic tutor;
re-submitting the retrieval action plan documentation to be implemented within a set four-week practice period immediately following the summative practice assessment points at the end of Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3;
in Year 1, meeting NMC requirements for completion of all assessment within 12 weeks of completing year 1 to progress to year 2;
undertaking a new experience if a significant number (33%) of proficiencies have been referred, and submitting a completely new assessment of practice documentation.

A student completing Practice Experience 6 of the programme (final practice experience), if referred, will normally:

undertake a new experience during an agreed period of extended time;
re-submit the assessment of practice documents 6-8 weeks after commencing the additional placement.

Year 1 Progression into Year 2 and Year 2 Progression into Year 3

Students cannot normally progress from Year 1 to Year 2 and Year 2 to Year 3 with any assessments outstanding.

Termination of Registration

A student’s registration will normally be terminated following resit/retrieval assessments if he/she:

achieves a mark of 39% or below on a referral attempt;
fails a Pass/Fail assessment on a referral attempt;
does not attend, or is more than half an hour late for a resit examination or is requested to leave the examination room;
submits a written further attempt assessment more than 24 hours after the stated deadline.

Transfers between Programmes
The Faculty operates a process whereby students may request a transfer to another programme. Transfers between academic programmes are confined to specific points in the programme journey and are governed by the programme structure in the Faculty.

Assessment

Students must meet the pass criteria in both academic and, when required, practice assessment to pass overall. Non-assessed work may also be a course requirement.

When attending for an examination you must produce either your university ID card or a form of photographic ID in which you are clearly identifiable. Students without photographic ID will not be permitted entry to the examination.

Work submitted up to 5 days after the deadline will be marked as usual. The final agreed mark is then reduced by the factors detailed in the relevant University Policy. http://www.soton.ac.uk/quality/docs/Extensions_and_Late_Submission_Penalties.doc”.

Award of Qualification(s)

In order to qualify for the award of Diploma with Advanced Studies in Nursing candidates must:

have satisfied the entry requirements as set out in the programme specification;
have undertaken all the levels of the curriculum as appropriate to each programme and passed all the required assessments (theory and practice);
have completed satisfactorily all practice assessment, practice experience and other coursework as required;
have met all the NMC requirements for progression;
have met the NMC requirements of 2300 hours of academic study and 2300 hours of practice experience;
for Adult branch students, have met the NMC requiments of the EU77/453/EEC directive;
be judged as of good health and good character and worthy of admission to the NMC register.

Students who are successful at Level 4 assessments but are unable to complete the full award shall be eligible for the exit award of a Certificate in Health Studies.

Any student who has achieved the academic requirements of the programme for which they are registered but have not met the good health or good character and conduct requirements for professional registration will eligible for the award of a Diploma in Health Studies. The award cannot be named ‘Nursing’, as the term ‘Nursing’ is a title protected under the Health Act (1999) for those who are fully qualified and registered as nurses.

Any student who experiences grave or terminal illness/injury which prevents them from continuing on their programme of study and achieving qualification may be eligible for a posthumous or aegrotat qualification named either Certificate in Health Studies or Diploma in Health Studies. The award cannot be named Nursing, as the term ‘Nursing’ is a title protected under the Health Act (1999) for those who are fully qualified and registered as nurses.

Placements/Study Abroad/Exchange/Fieldwork

Practice experience forms an integral part of the programme and students are required to pass in order to be awarded a Diploma with Advanced Studies in Nursing.

Other

These regulations may be revised during the student's period of registration in accordance with the procedures approved by Senate.

Compensation
Compensation is not permitted on this programme.

Special Considerations
Students are guided to the Special Considerations guidance in the University Calendar in particular the guidance relating to the deadlines for submission of Special Considerations forms. The treatment of special considerations is dealt with under separate Special Considerations procedures.

A student's performance may be worthy of special consideration if their performance in a relevant assessment has been adversely affected by exceptional circumstances outside their control and there is evidence to support such a claim.

Special considerations shall only apply to circumstances which can be clearly related to performance in particular elements of assessment.

The authority of the Special Considerations Board to make allowance for exceptional circumstances may be restricted in some programmes subject to Professional, Statutory or Regulatory requirements or because of the special requirements of particular programmes. In such cases, this will be made clear to students in programme documentation.

Fitness to Practice
Students are advised to acquaint themselves with the Faculty Fitness to Practise Policy which is used within the Faculty of Health Sciences.

Academic Integrity
Where issues of Academic Integrity are detected, the Faculty will follow the published Academic Integrity Regulations. Where a case remains active prior to an examination board, a mark of 0 will be presented to the examinations. This mark will then be amended by Chairs Action depending on the outcome of the Academic Integrity process.

The Faculty is moving to the use of Turnitin software as an educational resource to help students to help evaluate the originality of their own work. Where Turnitin submission is required of work that will contribute to summative assessment and the student fails to submit, they will be awarded a mark of 0 for the component in question.

Academic Appeals
Students are guided to the Academic Appeals Regulations in the University Calendar.