University of Southampton Calendar 2014/15


University Calendar 2014/15 Section X : Academic Regulations - Faculty of Health Sciences

Academic Unit	Health Sciences
Final Award	BN (Hons) (Dual Fields)
Programme(s)	Bachelor of Nursing (Hons) with Professional Registration on Part 1 of the Register of the Nursing and Midwifery Council - Dual Honours
Last modified	July 2014

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 in Section IV of the University Calendar and meet the entry requirements for either school leaver or mature applicants stipulated for this professional route. They must normally offer at least three A level passes(BBC) and, additionally, at least five GCSE passes at Grade C or above including English language.

Admission to, and continuation on, the programme is subject to specific health requirements (consistent with the provisions of the Equality Act [2010]). 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 Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)
RPL will be considered on a case by case basis and in accordance with the University regulations for RPL as well as the NMC regulations.

Structure of Programme(s)

The programme leading to the award of Bachelor of Nursing (Honours) (Dual Fields) shall be of four 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, programmes must be completed within five years of the commencement date.

In Year 1 students will study 120 credits at Level 4 (Certificate) (60 ECTs)
In Year 2 students will study 120 credits at Level 5 (Diploma) (60 ECTs)
In Year 3 students will study 120 credits at Level 5 (Diploma) (60 ECTs)
In year 4 students will study 120 credits at Level 6 (Honours) (60 ECTs)

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 or the Health and Care Professions Council, statutory regulations apply. For this reason, all our pre-registration programmes are exempt from section 3.3 (regarding compensation) and section 4.1 (regarding referral of assessments) of the General Regulations.

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. The only exception to this is where, in order to meet NMC requirements in drug calculations, specified assignments in Year 1 and Year 3 must achieve 100% pass mark for this component.

Theory 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 one part must be 40% with an aggregate minimum mark of 40%.
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.

Practice Module Referral

A student will normally be required to retrieve a referred practice experience assessment on one further occasion if he/she refers practice experience assessment.

The criteria for Practice Module referral are:

Failure to achieve all core competencies
Award of a ‘D’ in any criterion
Failure to submit on time without an agreed extension
In order to meet NMC requirements in drug calculations, specified assignments in Year 1 and Year 4 must achieve 100% pass mark for this component.

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

developing a retrieval action plan in partnership with a mentor and academic tutor;
re-submitting the retrieval action plan documentation to be implemented within a set four-week practice period at the first available opportunity following the summative practice assessment.

A student completing Practice Experience 8 of the award (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 weeks after commencing the additional placement.

Year 1 Progression into Year 2, Year 2 Progression into Year 3 and Year 3 Progression into Year 4
Students cannot normally progress from Year 1 to Year 2, Year 2 to Year 3 and Year 3 to Year 4 with any assessments outstanding. At the end of each academic year students will self declare their fitness to practice. Failure to do so will prevent re-enrolment.

Transfer between Programmes
The Faculty operates a policy/process whereby students may request to 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.

Termination of Registration
A student’s registration will normally be terminated following repeat assessments if he/she:

achieves a mark of 39% or below on a repeat attempt;
fails a Pass/Fail assessment on a repeat;
does not attend, or is more than half an hour late for a resit examination or is requested to leave the examination room.

Assessment

Students must meet the pass criteria in both academic and 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. https://sharepoint.soton.ac.uk/sites/ese/quality_handbook/Handbook/Assessment%20Framework.aspx.

Award of Qualification(s)

In order to qualify for the award of Bachelor of Nursing (Hons), candidates must:

have satisfied the entry requirements as set out in the programme specifications;
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 a minimum of 4600 hours of academic study and a minimum of 4600 hours of practice experience;
for Adult field students, have met the NMC requirements 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 programme shall be eligible for the exit award of a Certificate in Health Studies.

Students who are successful at Level 5 assessments but are unable to complete the full programme shall be eligible for the exit award of a Diploma 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 BA (Hons) in Health Studies as appropriate. The award cannot be named BN (Hons) Nursing as the term ‘Nursing’ is a title protected under the Health Act (1999) for those who are fully qualified and registered as nurses. Students whom complete 60 ECTS at level 4, 60 ECTS at level 7 and a minimum of 60 ECTS at level 6 but do not pass the practice modules will be eligible for the award of BA (Hons) in Health Studies as appropriate. The award cannot be named BN (Hons) 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 or BA (Hons) 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 successfully complete the programme. Opportunities for study abroad are available through the Erasmus scheme for students fulfilling criteria set by the Faculty. Students are not permitted to continue in placement whilst progressing an academic appeal against a relevant body.

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.

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