Midwifery with RM BSc (Hons)

About the course

Midwives provide essential care during pregnancy, labour and the postnatal period to both mothers and babies. Our BSc(Hons) Midwifery with RM course will train you to become a qualified midwife, eligible to apply for registration* with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). It will give you a sound knowledge of what is normal and healthy in childbearing women - the midwife’s sphere of expertise - and also enable you to recognise and manage deviations from this.

You will develop critical, analytical and reflective skills, essential for making sound judgements and providing good, evidence-based care. You will also refine your communication skills in relation to both your colleagues and your clients, and make use of information technology where appropriate.

Your theoretical studies will be supported by a range of clinical experiences focused on the childbearing woman and the baby. These make up fifty per cent of your studies and are based in one of the three local maternity units, where you will work alongside a
registered midwife. Through these placements, you will gain extensive hands-on experience in the community, providing ante, intra and postnatal care. You will work on the maternity unit, experiencing the delivery suite and ante/postnatal wards. In addition, you will spend time on the day assessment unit and antenatal clinic, as well as within the gynaecology ward, operating theatres, special care baby unit and intensive care unit.

* Registration is not automatic. The regulator must be satisfied that the candidate is of good character and in good health in addition to having achieved the necessary qualification

In each year of study of the BSc(Hons) Midwifery with RM course you will combine theoretical studies at the University with valuable clinical experiences.

At the end of the second year you have the option of an elective placement, enabling you to experience midwifery in different settings within the UK or abroad. In each year, you will identify a small caseload, which gives you the opportunity to provide continuity of care throughout the whole spectrum of childbirth.

Why choose this course?

• With the BSc(Hons) Midwifery with RM course you gain sound midwifery knowledge of normality, enabling you to become competent in recognising and managing deviations from this normality
• The course lays the foundation for your continuing personal and professional development throughout your career.
• Throughout the course your theoretical studies, are supported by clinical experiences which are focused on the childbearing woman and the baby
• Lecturers provide close support to students both in the University and in practice
• When you graduate we offer you opportunities for post-qualification study at Masters and Doctoral level

Study routes

• Full Time, 3 Years

Locations

• University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield

Careers

Most midwives graduating from the BSc(Hons) Midiwifery with RM course gain employment in local NHS Trusts, but some choose to move further afield.  Many of our former graduates are now in midwifery managerial positions. 

Opportunities exist for midwives to specialize in particular aspects of care such as Teenage pregnancy, Parent Education or Bereavement care. 

You can also pursue an academic career and move into the field of midwifery education or research

Teaching methods

You'll experience a wide variety of learning styles on this course. During your studies you'll develop your capacity for self-directed study and further your interpersonal skills. We particularly emphasise the importance of structured research; well-prepared written and verbal presentations; and computer literacy.

Alongside elements of standard lectures, seminars, tutorials and laboratories, you also learn through case studies, individual and group projects and other student centred activities. In your final year you will normally have the opportunity to practice your independent study skills by completing a major project or dissertation.

Work Placement

Placement sites are allocated according to preference and availability and include: Barnet and Chase Farm NHS Trust, West Herts Hospitals NHS Trust, and East and North Herts NHS Trust. The placements will give you the opportunity to link the theoretical knowledge you gain via the lectures and seminars with the practical experiences.

In addition, you also have the option to do an elective placement (between three-six weeks) at the end of the second year enabling you to experience midwifery in different settings within the UK or abroad.

Professional Accreditations

When you successfully complete the BSc(Hons) Midwifery with RM course, you can apply for registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, the regulatory body governing Midwifery practice in the UK.  It is necessary to register in order to practice as a midwife in the UK.

Structure

Year 1

Core Modules

• An Introduction to Inter-professional Education

  The module is designed to give students the opportunity to work in multi-professional groups in order to improve understanding of a range of professional roles and encourage co-operative learning and working. The rationale for and benefits of inter-professional working within health and social care are explored. Learning will be through multi-professional group seminars and tutorials that require students to access and gather appropriate data from a range of sources and apply this to a series of practice-based, simulated scenarios and exercises.

• Practical Midwifery Skills

  The learning outcomes for this module will be achieved using a blend of teaching and learning methods but will predominantly focus on enquiry based learning, including- scenario based workshop activities within the skills laboratories, and trigger based learning on individual clinical practice sites. StudyNet will be used to facilitate students' learning, communication between the students and the students and lecturers involved with this module.

• Study Skills

  This module allows students to work at their own pace to develop personal study skills strategies to support their own independent styles and pace of learning. Students will access online services to work through a series of workshops, workbooks and online tutorials to support the learning outcomes. In addition students will access seminars to build on and develop their academic writing skills.

• Woman's Journey to Motherhood 2

  The module content will reflect the public health agenda. This module considers the development, health and well-being of the childbearing woman, fetus and newborn infant during labour and the postnatal period. The underpinning knowledge provides the physiological and psychological basis for the provision of care. The role of the midwife in providing midwifery care is also explored from a wider social perspective, specifically to gain an in-depth understanding of cultural, religious and health issues. A multi-agency approach will be used to explore issues affecting the health and well-being of women and their families.

• Woman's Journey to Motherhood 1

  The module content will reflect the public health agenda. This module considers the development, health and well-being of the childbearing woman and her baby during pregnancy and childbirth. The underpinning knowledge provides the physiological and psychological basis for the provision of care. The role of the midwife in providing midwifery care is also explored from a wider social perspective, specifically to gain an in-depth understanding of cultural, religious and health issues. A multi-agency approach will be used to explore issues affecting the health and well-being of women and their families.

Optional

Year 2

Core Modules

• Altered Health States in Childbearing Women

  This module covers a range of medical, obstetric and psychological conditions that may already pre-exist or present for the first time during pregnancy or the post-natal period. Conditions arising or caused by childbearing will also be explored, including those of a gynaecological nature.

• Enhanced Neonatal Studies

  Students will explore a range of conditions that can impact on the health of the newborn baby. Appropriate referral and effective communication with the paediatric team will be highlighted. Particular emphasis will be given to the rationale and skills required for the comprehensive Examination of the Newborn baby which will be continued and completed during the third year of the Pre-registration Midwifery Programme.

• Health Promotion and Parenting

  The cultural, psychological and psychosexual changes that occur during pregnancy and following childbirth will be explored and the role of the midwife in enabling, supporting and facilitating positive parenting will be analysed and evaluated. Knowledge and understanding of appropriate communication skills will be integrated to facilitate a variety of effective strategies to general health promotion, including the promotion of sexual health and planned education sessions in a multi-cultural society. The module content will reflect the DoH public health agenda and the National Service Framework, standard 11 (DoH, 2005).

• Lifestyles, Diversity and Midwifery Care

  The module will cover a range of cultural, social, physical and psychological lifestyle issues that may pre-exist or may present for the first time during pregnancy. Students will be introduced to these lifestyle diversities as they affect the health of women in the childbearing period. Emphasis will be placed on interaction with diverse groups both childbearing women, health agencies and members of society. The importance of promoting and advocating high standards of care in a variety of practice situations and creating and maintaining an optimal environment conducive to this will be an important aspect of the module. Students experience in practice will support and enhance their learning on this module. Students will undertake visits both locally and nationally to observe and apply theories to their midwifery practice.

• Using Research to Develop Enquiry

  In this module, qualitative and quantitative research approaches, in relation to midwifery, will be addressed. The development of research questions, the research process and the classification of research designs and methodologies will also be explored. This will include concepts of rigour, representation and control, validity and reliability. Research methodology will include exploration of access, population and sampling, data collection approaches and data measurement. An overview of statistical methods will be included.

Optional

Year 3

Core Modules

• Complexities in Midwifery Care

• Contemporary Challenges in Midwifery Practice

  The module content will reflect the public health agenda and prepare students for admission to the NMC midwifery register as competent, confident practitioners, with problem solving skills. The module will focus on the promotion of normality within the childbearing continuum. Clinical governance and midwifery supervision will also be explored.

• Enhanced Midwifery Led Practice

• Enhancing Health & Social Care through Inter-professional Education

  The module is designed to give students further opportunities of working in multi-professional groups in order to improve understanding across professional boundaries and encourage collaborative learning and working that will bring benefit to patient/service-users. The justification for inclusion of inter-professional working within health care is addressed. The module requires students to bring specialist in-depth knowledge of their profession and professional codes of conduct to a group setting so that health and social care pathways are critically reviewed in the context of professional practice.

Optional

Fees & funding

If you are a UK or EU full-time undergraduate student, the NHS will pay the tuition fee for this course. You will not have to pay for the course yourself.

UK Students may be entitled to an NHS bursary.

Please note that in the event that you have to retake failed module(s) from a previous year (unconnected with adverse circumstances) you may have to 'step-off' the course until you have passed the module(s). In the event this happens, any NHS bursary you have been receiving will cease until you are in a position to resume the full-time course. In addition, you will be required to pay student tuition fees for retaking the failed module(s).

Find out more information on financial support arrangements for pre-registration health programmes.

University of Hertfordshire bursaries are not available for this course.

Discounts are available for International students if payment is made in full at registration

View detailed information about tuition fees

Other financial support

Find out more about other financial support available to UK and EU students

Living costs / accommodation

The University of Hertfordshire offers a great choice of student accommodation, on campus or nearby in the local area, to suit every student budget.

View detailed information about our accommodation

How to apply