How to Study Nursing and Midwifery in the UK and Ireland

What a pre-registration nursing or midwifery degree is

In both the UK and Ireland, you become a nurse or midwife by completing a pre-registration degree at an approved university and then registering with the national regulator. The degree is the qualifying step: you cannot practise on the protected title of "nurse" or "midwife" until you are on the regulator's register.

Nursing degrees in the UK are usually structured around a field of practice — adult, children's (paediatric), mental health, or learning disability nursing. Midwifery is a separate degree from nursing. In Ireland, nursing branches (general, children's and general integrated, mental health, intellectual disability) and midwifery are likewise distinct programmes. Choose your field carefully, because it shapes both your placements and the part of the register you can later join.

Why the programme must be NMC- or NMBI-approved

The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) regulates nurses, midwives and nursing associates across the four UK countries. The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) is the equivalent regulator in Ireland. Only a programme that the regulator has approved leads to eligibility for registration.

Before you accept an offer, confirm the specific course is on the regulator's approved list — this is the single most important check for an international applicant. A general health or biomedical degree, however good, does not by itself make you eligible to register as a nurse or midwife.

• UK courses: check the course is NMC-approved on the NMC's approved programmes pages.
• Ireland courses: check the course is NMBI-approved and the higher education institution is recognised.
• Verify the field of practice (e.g. adult vs mental health nursing) matches your career goal.
• Confirm any English language evidence the university or regulator requires on the official source.

Clinical placements: the core of the course

Nursing and midwifery degrees are not classroom-only. A large share of the course is supervised clinical practice in real care settings — hospitals, community services, and for midwifery, maternity units. Placements are timetabled across the whole programme, not saved for the final year, so expect shift patterns including some evenings, nights and weekends.

Because placements are integral to qualifying, attendance and the practice hours you complete are assessed alongside academic work. The exact placement requirements are set by the regulator and university, so confirm the current structure on the official course page. International students should plan around the placement timetable, which can be intense and is set by the university and its partner care providers rather than by you.

How to apply

For UK universities, undergraduate nursing and midwifery applications go through UCAS, with a personal statement and references. Some universities run interviews or values-based selection, and a few offer apprenticeship or graduate-entry routes alongside the standard degree.

In Ireland, school-leaver entry to nursing and midwifery is normally through the CAO. Mature and graduate applicants may have separate routes. Entry requirements, points and any aptitude or interview stages vary by university and change year to year — always confirm the current requirements on the official course page before applying.

• UK: apply via UCAS; prepare a personal statement and check for interviews.
• Ireland: school-leavers apply via the CAO; check mature/graduate routes separately.
• Read each course's own entry requirements — do not assume they are identical across universities.
• International students: confirm visa requirements (gov.uk for the UK, irishimmigration.ie for Ireland).

From graduation to registration

Completing an approved degree makes you eligible to apply for registration; it is not automatic. In the UK you apply to join the NMC register, meeting its requirements including English language evidence; in Ireland you apply to the NMBI to join the Register of Nurses and Midwives. You must be registered before you can practise on the protected title.

If you trained outside the UK or Ireland, a different international-registration process applies and is handled directly by the regulator. International graduates of a UK or Irish approved programme should check the regulator's registration pages for the exact steps, evidence and fees, which are set officially and can change.