International Nursing Studies (Top-Up) BSc (Hons)
Key Facts
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Duration
Full Time: 1 year
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Level
UndergraduateUG BSc (Hons)
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Starting
January
JAN
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Full Time: £18,500
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Waterside
Updated 29/06/2026
Overview
This course is subject to validation.
BSc (Hons) International Nursing Studies (Top-Up) is designed to equip international nursing practitioners with the advanced knowledge, critical thinking skills, and professional competencies needed to excel in professional practice.
By integrating rigorous evaluation, reflective practice, and evidence-based research, the programme supports practitioners to assess and manage risk, drive positive changes, and uphold high standards of quality and safety.
The course also emphasizes continuous improvement, ethical decision-making, and interdisciplinary collaboration, preparing professionals to make meaningful and lasting contributions to their field.
Highlights
- Designed to help qualified overseas nurses enhance their academic credentials, expand their professional knowledge, and pursue global career opportunities.
Entry Requirements
Applicants should normally have the following:
- A nursing qualification in their home country, which is equivalent to a UK HND
All International students applying for a course with us must meet the following minimum English language requirements:
- IELTS 6.0 overall, with no band lower than 5.5.
For information regarding English language requirements at the University, please see our IELTS page.
What You'll Learn
The BSc International Nursing Studies (Top-up) is designed to support qualified overseas nurses in advancing their academic qualifications, professional knowledge and global career opportunities.
The course is one-year full-time top-up programme.
This is a 20-credit module with 40–48 contact hours and 152–160 hours of self-directed learning, subject to validation.
The module promotes critical thinking and evidence-based decision making in the context of professional practice, while helping students strengthen reflective skills and build prior professional experience for career development.
Assessment is a 3,000-word written reflective account on professional and academic practice that meets the learning outcomes.
This is a 20-credit module with 40–48 contact hours and 152–160 hours of self-directed learning. The purpose of this module is to empower students to understand research concepts and processes. This will enable them to confidently and independently engage with research approaches, ethical considerations, and real-world applications.
Indicative content includes quantitative and qualitative research paradigms, the process and tools of conducting a research project, including research governance and ethics, the evaluation of research and its dissemination.
Assessment is a report focusing on a research design concept-map with commentary to meet the learning outcomes.
This is a 20-credit module with 40–48 contact hours and 152–160 hours of self-directed learning.
The module aims to increase knowledge, skills, and analytical ability in managing complex health conditions within the student’s professional scope of practice.
Students will critically analyze complex health conditions, evaluate the evidence base for treatment, and justify management strategies, interdisciplinary collaboration, and communication within their own practice.
Assessment is a 3,000-word critical review of five papers focused on a chosen complex health condition, with accompanying recommendations for personal practice.
This is a 20-credit module with 40–48 contact hours and 152–160 hours of self-directed learning.
The module is designed to encourage students to use evidence-based decision making to promote and influence positive transformation within their own practice and that of others.
Students will further develop critical analysis skills, strengthen their understanding of enquiry-based practice, and explore the contextualization of risk and change within their environment.
Assessment is a 20-minute recorded presentation identifying a risk from personal practice accompanied by submission of supporting documentation comprising a personal reflection upon learning and action plan for practice improvement.
This is a 40-credit module with 40 contact hours in total, including 5 hours of dissertation supervision, and 360 hours of self-directed learning.
The purpose of this module is to provide students with opportunities to undertake a research project. Students will apply research methods and methodologies to a pre-defined research project, and independently complete research tasks to provide new insights.
This module requires the production of a portfolio of outputs (equivalent to 8,000 words), derived from engagement in a research project to extend and apply knowledge of the research process.
Please note the modules shown here relate to the academic year 25/26. The modules relating to the academic year 26/27 will be available from July 2026.
2026/27 Tuition Fees
- Full Time New students: £18,500
Tuition fees quoted for International Students apply only to the 2026/27 academic year. These fees may increase in future years in line with Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation to reflect rising delivery costs. Any annual increase will be capped at a maximum of 5% of the previous year’s tuition fee. Updated tuition fees will be published on the UON website at least three months before the start of the next academic year.
University of Northampton offers a range of scholarships for international students; please see our International Scholarships page for further details.
Careers and Employability
By completing this programme, you will gain a UK Level 6 qualification and develop a broader understanding of contemporary international healthcare practice, leadership, evidence-based care and professional development.
Throughout the programme, students will strengthen key employability skills including critical thinking, communication, research literacy, intercultural awareness and digital capability — all increasingly important within modern global healthcare systems.
At the University of Northampton, students also benefit from support provided through Student Futures, the University’s dedicated employability and career development service. This includes career guidance, CV support, interview preparation, digital skills development and access to wider professional development opportunities.
Important Information Regarding UK Nursing Registration
Please note that the BSc International Nursing Studies (Top-up) is an academic top-up qualification and does not itself lead directly to Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) registration in the UK.
Students who wish to practise as registered nurses in the UK after completing this programme must also successfully complete the NMC Test of Competence, including the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), at an approved test centre, and subsequently obtain registration and a PIN from the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
The University of Northampton separately offers the OSCE Test of Competence through its dedicated Competence Test Centre.