EVALUATION OF THE ACCELERATED POSTGRADUATE NURSE PILOT PROGRAMME

Tender description

The evaluation will be focused on the learning from the delivery of this educational programme and its potential application to future delivery of postgraduate nursing education. It will work with a network of stakeholders and the cohort of students distributed across separate learning disability and mental health nursing programmes at three universities; Edge Hill, University of Hertfordshire, and Kings College. There were 40 students who commenced the programme - 30 studying Mental Health Nursing and 10 to become registered Learning Disability Nurses. The cohorts of 10 are studying in London (Kings), Edge Hill (Edge Hill University), Hertfordshire and Southampton (both delivered through University of Hertfordshire). Since the launch of this programme the environment for post graduate entry to nursing has changed. The previous bursary model has been replaced with the student loan system including access to the loan system for second degrees. The evaluation of the programme will need to reflect this new context and focus on what we have learned from the programme in relation to postgraduate entry to the profession in general – what is the role for bespoke courses offering leadership elements, what were the most successful aspects of the scheme and how might existing postgraduate routes be able to apply this? We are not therefore seeking an evaluation which focuses on the funding arrangements for this programme because the wider arrangements for undergraduate and postgraduate nurse education are subject to separate review. Keywords: POSTGRADUATE, NURSE, PILOT, EVALUATION