Specialist Community Public Health Nursing PgDip and MSc

Do you have a first degree and are ready to study at postgraduate level? Are you a qualified nurse or midwife and looking for your next career step? Perhaps you would like to progress into a leadership or management role. This course enables you to specialise in one of three areas and on successful completion of the course you’ll be a qualified Specialist Community Public Health Nurse in your chosen area. Our course is accredited by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), granting a license to practice, so you’ll be eligible to apply for specialist community public health nurse posts within your specialism. You’ll be at the forefront of specialist nursing and be able to influence and facilitate change within the community environment.

Once you have successfully completed the Specialist Community Public Health Nursing PG Diploma at Brunel, you’ll have the option to apply to complete the MSc qualification by registering for a dissertation module for an additional fee.

On the PGDip programme you’ll follow one of our three specialist pathways:

Health Visiting

You’ll learn to promote health and the prevention of ill health in a proactive and innovative way. This can be applied to individual, group and community levels within the context of national and international considerations.

Occupational Health Nursing

This course covers health and safety at work, risk assessment, management of occupational disease and the promotion of physical and psychological health among the workforce.

School Nursing

This course will prepare you to lead a school nursing team of variable skill mix, to promote school health and meet the health-related needs of children and adolescents at school and their families and carers.

Brunel University London also offers some modules from this programme as a CPPD (Continuing Personal and Professional Development). To find out more and to apply, please click here.

If you are considering studying Specialist Community Public Health Nursing at Brunel University London, then you are committed to working jointly with the NHS to demonstrate the values and beliefs of the constitution.

NHS values
Patients, public and staff have helped develop this expression of values that inspire passion in the NHS and that should underpin everything it does. Individual organisations will develop and build upon these values, tailoring them to their local needs. The NHS values provide common ground for co-operation to achieve shared aspirations, at all levels of the NHS.

All incoming health and social care students must be double vaccinated against Covid-19 before the start of the course. More information can be found on the Immunisation Checking web page. ***Please note Brunel is aware that the mandatory vaccine policy is under Ministerial review and we will add an update here in due course.***

You’ll benefit from a course designed to combine your professional education with academic excellence. You’ll continue to gain valuable work experience while you study, as half of your time will be spent on supervised practice placements. You’ll also undertake a combination of compulsory and professionally-specific modules, the latter will be during the practice-based component of the course.

Please note, you'll only study the 'Managing Professional Perspectives in Specialist Community Public Health Nursing' module that relates to your chosen pathway. 

This course can be studied 52 weeks full-time or 104 weeks part-time, starting in September.

Fifty per cent of the course involves supervised practice placements within your chosen area of specialist practice. These are generally arranged with NHS trusts and involve experienced practice teachers who attend study days at Brunel.

If you have specialised in Occupational Health Nursing you’ll gain practical experience within occupational settings in either the public or private sector, and be supported by a qualified and experienced practice teacher. Career opportunities are available within the private sector such as airlines or retail, with local authorities and within the public sector.

Career progression as team leaders and managers frequently result following this award.

Qualified nurse/midwife with active registration on part one, or part two of the NMC Nursing Register (NMC PIN number should be provided within the application) with:

• 2.2 or above in a Nursing Degree

or

• A Nursing Diploma of Higher Education or the equivalent of 120 level 3 credits will be considered with nursing experience.

Two satisfactory references, one of which one should be an employment reference.

All applicants are required to be interviewed to ascertain their academic and professional readiness to undertake postgraduate study.

Please note: This course may involve regular access to children and/or vulnerable adults, also known as regulated activity. Where this is the case, students will be legally required to register with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The DBS costs £51 (depending on the method of application) and is a one off payment. Please note that, in all cases, SCPHN students will complete this process through their employer or course sponsor, and not through the University. For further guidance please email dbs@brunel.ac.uk.

An additional 60 credit module fee is charged for the dissertation for the award of MSc.

Overseas students who are funded by the NHS will be charged the NHS fee. Fees should be available early summer, however this fee is paid by NHS London. Self funded overseas students will be charged the displayed fee.

You’ll be assessed through a range of project work, assignments, examinations and practice experience.