Nursing (Pre-registration) Mental Health MSc



Qualify in two years as a Mental Health Nurse registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) and enjoy a flexible study approach.

Overview

This full time two-year MSc Nursing (Pre-registration) programme is for graduates from any discipline who meet the necessary entry criteria to study and work in the UK.

During this programme, you will learn in a variety of practice settings, and study contemporary evidence-based nursing modules. To facilitate a breadth of authentic educational experiences, you will learn with inter-professional health and social care teams, and from people accessing health and social care support. You will become a life-long learner; a critical thinker who supports and influences the highest quality evidence base and provides exceptional person-centred care.

You will enter the nursing profession as a confident, proficient and autonomous practitioner, with a strong understanding of current health and social care environments.  You will have the skills to lead, innovate and influence future provision to effectively meet the needs of people.

The School of Health and Social Care is based at our Sighthill Campus in the city of Edinburgh.

Typical entry point to this course is in January. Please enquire for more information. 

This course is now fully closed for January 2025. We're sorry that you won't be able to join us in January 2025. The next intake for this course is in January 2026 and applications will open in Spring 2025.

 
 
Mental Health Nursing student talking to a patient

Mode of Study:

Full-time

Duration:

2 years

Course details

Nurses today need to be able to demonstrate competence and leadership in nursing care. To deliver this, they need to be able to work flexibly, inter-professionally and collaboratively in a dynamic and ever-evolving health and social care arena.
 

Our nursing programme takes account of the key initiatives in health and social care at local, national and international levels and is developed in partnership with our clinical partners, students, service users and carers.

You will learn alongside your colleagues on your programme as well as colleagues studying their master's in Adult Health Nursing, colleagues from all fields of nursing on our Bachelor of Nursing (BN) programme and colleagues from our Allied Health and Social Work programmes. Each of your six practice placements will be specific to the Mental Health field of nursing. The course is designed so that you will acquire in-depth knowledge and understanding which gives you specific skills and competences to work within a variety of health and social care teams and settings. The programme will enable you to specialise in your chosen field of nursing to deliver high quality, evidence-informed person-centred care.

On completion, this course will have supported you to become a creative, autonomous, innovative and dynamic nurse with an excellent grounding in nursing theory and practice incorporating current developments within your chosen field of nursing.

Additional mandatory costs

Students are expected to pay for their registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council, at successful conclusion of their programme, £120. 

 
 
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    How you’ll be taught

    Your tutorials, theoretical learning and some skills teaching for the MSc Nursing (Pre-registration) will be online. Self-directed learning within communiites of learning enable support. Our clearly structured concept-based curriculum explores the most up to date evidence in health and social sciences, encouraging critical engagement and innovation.

    There will be regular clinical skills classes at the superb Simulation and Clinical Skills Centre at the Sighthill Campus in Edinburgh.

    There will be regular 'Touchpoint' weeks when you will attend the Sighthill Campus to hear from a range of fascinating speakers about their nursing specialty, career and research, as well as develop your understanding of interprofessional learning. Touchpoint weeks will also include engaging workshops and the opportunity to meet with each other socially and with your personal development tutor group. 

    A minimum of five of the six practice placements will be based in and around Edinburgh, the Lothians and Borders. 
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    Assessments

    Assessments are varied and include presentations, written editorials, case reports, verbal patient handovers with peers online, group discussions, critical reflection, and dissertation writing along with ongoing assessment within six practice learning environments.
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    Work placement

    Integrated into this programme are six practice placements. A minimum of five of these will be based in and around Edinburgh, the Lothians and Borders. There is an opportunity for students to arrange their sixth placement experience and we can offer support to help identify an experience further afield within the UK (in Scotland, England, Wales or Northern Ireland) - this is called a mobility placement. Within the university there are also opportunities for expanding your practice by volunteering in a range of activities, such as the food bank, charities and working with researchers in the School. Where possible we encourage you to attend conferences, workshops and participate in relevant research studies.*

    *These experiences may require funding through sponsorship/self-funding.

     
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    Study abroad

    There is no opportunity to study abroad during the programme.
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    Facilities

    You will have the opportunity to practice in both NHS Lothian and Borders, as well as exposure to social care and voluntary services. Your theoretical and some skills teaching will be online, and for face to face sessions you will be based at the Sighthill Campus in Edinburgh. Mandatory skills training will take place in a world-class skills unit with simulated clinical and social living space.

    The University is committed to delivering high quality programmes of learning and offers excellent support in terms of study facilities, library services, pastoral and academic skills support. Within the programme you will also have a personal development tutor who will support you and work co-productively to enable you to progress throughout the programme.

ACCREDITED BY

Disclaimer

Study modules mentioned above are indicative only. Some changes may occur between now and the time that you study.

Full information is available in our disclaimer.

Entry requirements

What are the entry requirements for Nursing Mental Health?

Bachelor (Honours) degree at 2:2 or above in any degree subject.  Alternatively we can accept a Bachelor (Ordinary) degree in nursing with distinction where registration is in an alternative field to the one you are wishing to study (e.g. child health or learning disability). There are two phases to the application process. In the first we assess your eligibility for the programme. If you are found to be eligible, you will then be asked to complete a pre-entry portfolio of approximately 2800 words to provide evidence of your relevant prior learning and experience related to the role of a nurse (a template and guidance will be provided). This enables you to study a shortened pre-registration nursing programme which is two years rather than three years. The portfolio provides evidence of you undertaking a minimum of 500 hours (equivalent to 12-14 weeks full-time) of occupational or voluntary work supporting the health and/or wellbeing needs of people, in addition to demonstrating a minimum of 500 hours of appropriate theoretical learning and understanding evidenced from a previous degree and practice.

National 5 Maths and Science (Biology, Chemistry or Physics) at grade C or above taken within the past 5 years is also required  - if applicants do not have these we can suggest alternative online equivalent courses to undertake.

Please note that students who have already studied a Nursing degree are unlikely to receive funding for a second Nursing degree.

To ensure safe and effective practice, all offers to the programme and continuation on the programme will be conditional on a satisfactory Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) check by Disclosure Scotland (which will include a criminal record check), an acceptable Good Health and Good Character assessment as required by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, and that you are passed as fit to practice following an Occupational Health review.

This programme requires a high level of digital literacy to enable engagement with learning materials, using a variety of digital platforms and databases to search for information and evidence, and collaboration as a member of a community of learning during tutorials in a digital space.

 

Can I make an appointment with an advisor to discuss further about the admission process?

If you want to get more information on the admission process, please get in touch with the Postgraduate admissions team by submitting an enquiry form above.

IELTS 7.0 with no less than 7.0 in each component, excluding Writing which requires 6.5.

We welcome applications from students studying a wide range of international qualifications.
Entry requirements by country

Please note that international students are unable to enrol onto the following courses:
  • BM Midwifery/MM Midwifery
  • All Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

See who can apply for more information on Graduate Apprenticeship courses.

We’re committed to admitting students who have the potential to succeed and benefit from our programmes of study. 

Our admissions policies will help you understand our admissions procedures, and how we use the information you provide us in your application to inform the decisions we make.

Undergraduate admissions policies
Postgraduate admissions policies

Fees & funding

The course fees you'll pay and the funding available to you will depend on a number of factors including your nationality, location, personal circumstances and the course you are studying. We also have a number of bursaries and scholarships available to our students.

Tuition fees
Students from 2024/25 2025/26
Scotland £1,820 £1,820
England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Republic of Ireland £9,250 £9,535
Overseas and EU £16,680 £17,520
Please note tuition fees are subject to an annual review and may increase from one year to the next. For more information on this and other tuition fee matters, please see our Fees and Funding

If additional compulsory costs other than the tuition fees are applicable, these will be detailed in the course details.


Please note:

The discount for Edinburgh Napier alumni can only be applied to year one of a full-time Postgraduate degree, any additional years are exempt from the discount.

For part time Postgraduate degrees the discount will apply to years one, two and three only and any additional years will be exempt from the discount.

Please read our full T&C here

Careers

Student mental health nurse playing with patient

What can you do with a Nursing Mental Health Masters Degree? 

  

By studying mental health nursing at Edinburgh Napier University, you will be able to provide practical recommendations and solutions to promote patients’ recovery through the knowledge you have gained.  You will have developed effective interpersonal communication skills which are required within mental health nursing, enabling you to deliver care to those in hospitals and the community as a registered mental health nurse. On completion of your degree numerous opportunities will become available such as work within a hospital setting, in community units, in child and adolescent mental health services, in dementia services, in prison services, within forensic psychiatry and drug rehabilitation, in third sector organisations or research settings to name a few.

  

  

What does a Mental Health Nurse do?

  

As a mental health nurse, you will build therapeutic relationships with your patients after identifying their requirements in terms of mental health support. You will have high professional standards, leadership and decision-making skills, and be able to make links to areas such as physical and mental health in planning and delivering care.  

  

Daily tasks you might carry out in this role include:  

  • Promoting positive mental health to your patients through nursing practice
  • Championing equality and diversity and challenging stereotypes and stigma in mental health
  • Work to address the physical health inequalities experienced by people who have a severe mental illness
  • Diagnosing mental illnesses and creating a care and treatment plan
  • Delivering and evaluating care
  • Administering medication and adjusting dosages.
  • Assess people experiencing a mental health crisis, and working with multidisciplinary colleagues to plan care and support, including inpatient and community-based treatment Increasing quality of life in patients with a mental illness. 
  • Keep and update medical records.  

 

 

People talking at a table