BSc (Hons) Children and Young People's Nursing

3 Years On Campus Bachelors Program

Coventry University London

Program Overview

The Children and Young People’s Nursing BSc (Hons) at Coventry University prepares you to care for babies, children, adolescents, and young adults — supporting not just their health, but also their emotional, social, and family wellbeing. It’s ideal if you’re compassionate, enjoy working with young people, and want a career that truly makes a difference in children’s lives.

Curriculum Structure

Year 1

Your first year gives you a solid foundation in nursing and introduces you to caring for younger patients. Modules like Becoming a Professional Practitioner, Evidence: Your Profession in a Global Context, Nursing Assessment and Care Delivery, and Understanding Influences on Health and Care cover essential nursing skills and how health is shaped by social and environmental factors. You’ll also begin placements (Placement 1: Introduction to Nursing Care and Placement 2: Delivering Nursing Care) to gain real-world hands-on experience under supervision.

Year 2

In year two, you build more advanced skills tailored to children and young people. Modules such as Therapeutic Interventions and Innovations in Children and Young People’s Nursing and Complex Decision-Making within Children and Young People’s Nursing Environments teach you how to respond confidently to a variety of health needs. Enhanced Approaches in Delivering Holistic Care ensures you can treat young patients holistically, considering their physical, emotional, and social wellbeing. Practical placements (Placement 3: Delivering Enhanced Nursing Care and Placement 4: Delivering Complex Holistic Nursing Care) let you apply your learning in hospitals, community settings, or other child-focused environments.

Year 3

Your final year prepares you to step into professional practice. Complex Care Coordination in Children and Young People’s Nursing trains you to manage care plans and coordinate services for young patients with complex needs, while Leading for the Future as a Health and Care Professional develops your leadership, communication, and teamwork skills. The Evidence-based Practitioner: Professional Project and Preparing for your Career in Nursing help you consolidate knowledge and reflect on your learning. Final placements (Placement 5: Coordinating Nursing Care and Placement 6: Practising Autonomously) give you the hands-on experience you need to graduate confident and ready to work.

Focus areas: children and youth nursing, holistic child-centred care, therapeutic interventions, complex care coordination, professional nursing practice, multi-disciplinary teamwork.
Learning outcomes: assess, plan, and deliver safe, evidence-based nursing care for babies, children, adolescents, and young adults; provide holistic and family-centred care; make complex clinical decisions; coordinate care for complex needs; work independently and as part of a healthcare team.
Professional alignment (accreditation): Approved by the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC), so you can register as a qualified children and young people’s nurse after graduation.
Reputation (employability / rankings): Coventry University is rated “Gold Overall” in the 2023 Teaching Excellence Framework and has 5 QS Stars for Teaching and Facilities, reflecting excellent teaching, resources, and student support.

Experiential Learning (Research, Projects, Internships etc.)

At Coventry, learning to care for children and young people is all about hands-on experience. You won’t just sit in lectures — you’ll practise your skills in realistic simulation spaces, then apply them in real hospitals, clinics, and community settings. This approach helps you gain confidence, make decisions safely, and understand the full journey of patient care — from hospital wards to home visits — before working independently with young patients and their families.

Here’s how you’ll get practical experience:

Simulation & mock-care environments: Train in purpose-built wards, critical care units, therapy suites, a mock ambulance, and “community houses” that replicate home-care settings, so you can practise safely before real placements.
High-fidelity mannequins and equipment: Use realistic paediatric mannequins and medical tools to learn essential nursing procedures, resuscitation, and emergency care in a controlled setting.
Patient pathway simulations: Experience scenarios like ambulance transfers, surgery prep, ward care, and home visits to understand the full care journey for children and young people.
Real-world clinical placements: About half of the programme is spent on placements in hospitals, community health centres, and children’s wards, giving you supervised, hands-on experience with real patients.
Support and digital tools: Placement supervisors, success coaches, and online learning resources help you balance practical and academic learning, ensuring you feel confident and prepared at every stage.

Progression & Future Opportunities

Graduating from Coventry’s Children and Young People’s Nursing BSc (Hons) sets you up to start a meaningful career straight away. You’ll be eligible to register with the Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC), so you can work as a qualified children’s nurse, and typical roles include children’s ward nurse, neonatal nurse, community children’s nurse, paediatric specialist nurse, or nurse team leader. This degree equips you with both the skills and confidence to make a real difference in young patients’ lives:

Support to launch your career: Placement supervisors, success coaches, and academic support help you build a strong CV, navigate placements, and prepare for employment.
Positive graduate outcomes: Around 90% of graduates are in work or further study within 15 months of finishing the degree.
Salary potential: Early-career salaries typically start around £27,000–£28,000, with experienced nurses earning £31,000–£32,000 or more.
Diverse career opportunities: Graduates work across paediatric wards, neonatal units, children’s emergency departments, hospices, and community care settings — giving you lots of options depending on your interests.
Pathways to growth and specialisation: Over time, you could move into specialist areas such as neonatal care, paediatric intensive care, youth mental health nursing, advanced practice, management, teaching, or research.

Further Academic Progression:
After completing this degree, you could pursue postgraduate study in areas like advanced clinical practice, paediatric specialist nursing, public and community health, or health-care leadership. With your NMC-approved qualification and hands-on experience, you’ll be ready to step into advanced roles, leadership positions, or even academic and research pathways.