Bachelor of Health Care - Nursing (Daytime Studies)

Centria University of Applied Sciences educates qualified nurses who care for patients, support them and maintain rehabilitation for people of various ages. Our objective is to train nurses who can work both in Finland and in international positions around the world. During your nursing studies, you will learn interpersonal and interactional skills, guidance skills, decision-making skills, as well as diverse caretaking skills. Your main task as a registered nurse is to ensure clients' health and safety, which means you need to be responsible, cautious, and accurate. Nurse work is usually done in multi-professional teams. The ability and skills to work independently are required in nurse work as well.

The nursing studies at Centria are very practical, and from the first year onwards, you get to dive deep into the different fields of nursing. The studies are conducted in English on weekdays. Theory courses are carried out as contact teaching, online studies, and independent studies. Nurses must be familiar with different treatments, so part of the teaching happens in workshops and simulations. In simulations, you get to practice real-life care situations as part of a team or a group. We also have experts from the working life visiting our lectures. Nursing studies include several practical work placement periods in different environments, such as hospitals and health centres. During the work placement, you get to familiarize yourself with various work assignments with the support of the instructors from the workplace and your Centria teacher.

The nursing teachers at Centria University of Applied Sciences have extensive experience in different sectors of nursing. We are proud of the fact that we know our students and can give them very individual teaching. We also have modern study spaces and a diverse variety of different teaching equipment – during your studies, you get to use the same equipment that nurses use in clinical settings.

Our students come from all around Finland and the world. During your studies, you get to experience a multicultural atmosphere.

Internationalization

The nurse’s work is becoming more and more international, which is why in addition to the occupational skills, language and communication skills are emphasised in the studies. At Centria, nursing studies include communication studies and Finnish language studies. In addition, you can choose more language studies as optional courses. You will also learn to utilise international research results in different written assignments and in your bachelor’s thesis.

You can complete some of your studies abroad. Short, as well as longer, work placement periods can be spent in many different countries. Nursing students are offered options for exchange studies example in the Nordic countries, Belgium, Portugal, Poland, Italy, China, Kenya and Uganda and many other countries. All our students have the chance to study in a genuinely international environment and we recommend that you take full advantage of the possibilities Centria UAS offers.

Study Structure

The scope of the Bachelor’s degree programme in Nursing is 210 ECTS, and the studies last 3,5 years. Nursing studies consist of core studies, profiling studies, work placement and a bachelor’s thesis. The teaching takes place at our Talonpojankatu campus in Kokkola on weekdays.

During the nursing studies, you go through the basics of health care. You learn how the human body functions and how to advance the health and capability of the patient. You will also study ethics and learn customer service skills and communication skills. You get acquainted with the operational environment of the social and health sector, patient safety in different clinical environments and research and development operations.

The studies of clinical nursing begin from the basics. During your studies, you will dive into internal medicine, pharmacology, surgical nursing and acute care. You will study the nursing of children and families, as well as mental health nursing. All the different sectors of clinical nursing will be covered during your studies.

Thesis

At the end of your studies, you will carry out your own thesis project on a topic that interests you. The thesis is a bridge between studies and work life, and it will advance your transition to specialist positions. The objective of the thesis is to develop and demonstrate the student’s ability to apply the evidence-based knowledge and skills they have learned to practical specialist tasks.

The scope of the thesis is 15 ECTS. On the online library Theseus all the previously completed bachelor’s theses are available for everyone.

Career opportunities

Registered nurses who graduate from Centria University of Applied Sciences have excellent employment possibilities locally, as well as around Finland, but also internationally. Nurses who have graduated from Centria are currently working in hospitals, health centres, first aid, medical centres, home care, nursing homes, patient associations and other third sector organisations. In addition to these, some graduates work in different development and project positions.

Some of our work-life partners are Central Ostrobothnia Federation on Municipalities for Social and Health Care Services Soite, the City of Kokkola, The Regional Council of Central Ostrobothnia, The Jakobstad Region, municipalities of the Ylivieska region, local associations, congregations and private sector companies of social and health care services. Centria University of Applied Sciences is involved in many national UAS networks. We are also active in international university cooperation. The title Registered Nurse (BHC) may only be used and practised by a registered nurse who has completed the degree of Bachelor of Health Care. The National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health (Valvira) grants, upon application, the right to practice as a licenced or authorised professional and authorises the use of the occupational title of "health care professional " according to the Act on Health Care Professionals (559/949). The degree programme fulfils the European Union’s Directive (2013/55/EC) on the requirements for recognition of professional qualification.