Record Number of Student Nurses Start Their Training
Saturday, 30 September 2017
A record number of Nursing students have begun their training at the University of Worcester, helping patients in hospitals, GP surgeries and clinics across the region.
It is the largest ever intake of new Nursing students at the University, with 207 students starting their studies this month, alongside 27 new Midwifery students.
As part of their course they will be working in hospitals and healthcare settings across the region, helping local people in need.
Robert Dudley, Associate Head of Institute for Nursing and Midwifery, said: "We are delighted to be welcoming our largest cohort of Nursing and Midwifery students to Worcester. Our outstanding reputation as a provider of high quality healthcare education has led to this success. In collaboration with our practice partners we will now further develop these already outstanding candidates into highly competent and compassionate nurses and midwives of the future."
Eager to serve the communities in which most of them live, these new students say they are ready for the challenges ahead.
Amy Bates, 23, of Hereford, who has started a Children's Nursing degree and hopes to go into children's palliative care, said: "I worked as a health care assistant already and I worked as a carer previously. I wanted to take it a step further and be more at the forefront of patient care."
Lucy Capolongo, 20, of Warndon, Worcester, who is studying Adult Nursing after completing an Access course, said: "When I became ill in hospital the nurses that treated me inspired me. I want to help people and make their stay in hospital that bit better."
Also studying Children's Nursing is Abbygail Byrne, 21, of Stourbridge. She said: "It's always been an ambition of mine so it [the lack of a nursing bursary] didn't really phase me.
"The University is really well recognised for its achievements and success rate and when I came here it was really friendly."
The students will spend the next three years combining academic study in the classroom with practical skills training in the University's state-of-the-art clinical skills rooms, and a minimum of 2,300 hours working at placements on hospitals wards, GP surgeries and community health clinics.
Luckson Guvamatanga, 34, of Wolverhampton, who is studying Mental Health Nursing after working as a care support worker, said: "Worcester is one of the top universities when it comes to nursing. The class sizes are also not as large as the other universities so the teaching is more personal."
After passing all their practical and academic assignments, the students will earn a prized place as a registered nurse with the Nursing & Midwifery Council and will fill much-needed vacancies in the local health care system. The graduate employment rate for Worcester nurses is among the best in the Country at almost 100%.
The University admits two intakes of student nurses each year, in September and February. Competition is strong with as many as 10 people competing for each place.
A limited number of places are still available to join the programme in February. For more information come along to the next Open Day.