Advanced diploma or degree?

23-Aug-2009 12:08 pm

One thing I would say is look at what you want your career path to be. Bear in mind, that eventually, to progress to the more senior roles, you will need to have a degree. Would it be easier to get this all over and done with in 3 years? instead of doing it after qualifying when you are working full time and having other pressures?
I agree you get more of a bursary when doing the diploma, but I would strongly suggest that if you can find a way to afford it, then do the degree first as you will have more time and it will make things easier on later in your career.

30-Oct-2009 5:15 am

I am new in this field. I don't know much about the topic but what I have learned from your post is that degree course is better.

10-Nov-2009 10:51 am

Hi Ruth,

Although I can't advise directly we are holding a Live online Q&A session tomorrow with a panel of experts from within the NHS and from Universities around the country - they might be able to offer you some useful information.

Check it out here - http://tiny.cc/KuidE

Although it goes live tomorrow between 1-4pm you can post early as it's open now.

Hope this helps

Guardian Careers

14-Feb-2010 2:25 pm

Personallyi think the best option is to do the diploma in years one and two as you get the bursery (non means tested) and work is identical to degree students and then in year three change to degree.
This is not a problem and easy to do in most universities as long as the university thinks you have the ability- and normally they encourage this change over,so should support you even if you didnt have the grades to enable you to swap to degree.

The qualification you get at the end is identicle to those students who were on the degree program the whole three years.

The only thng i should point out,is that if you take this route bare in mind that you will no longer be eligeble for the non means tested bursery in this third year.

16-Jan-2013 9:07 pm

In my country Malta, to enter the Nursing course, for degree you need to have the Matriculation certificate that is around 6 O levels if I' m not mistaken but then you need to have A levels one specific of course ... A level pass in Biology. However for diploma course only O levels around 6 you need one of them needs to be a science subject obviously. Currently I am enrolled in the degree programme, my final year cause both courses are based on 3 years of both theory and practice. However, here, students who are doing the diploma course get the opportunity to do an online 2 year conversion course from diploma to degree once they are working full time nurses. so they continue learning etc.. mainly the difference in our courses is the dissertation and some material like for example diploma students don t go in certain details etc... however having said that both of these courses are important, nurses in my country and everywhere are always on the need :) Thanks for the opportunity to write in these forums and looking forward to hear from many other students. Good luck with your course guys and take care :)