Access to Nursing & Healthcare Professions - Level 3

This is an established course which has been running since the 90's, during this time we have supported hundreds of students to progress onto a degree relating to professional healthcare and start the process of successfully obtaining a career in a variety of healthcare professions.

Specific healthcare degrees which our students have progressed onto, include; Adult Nursing, Midwifery, Paramedic Science, Child Nursing, Operating Department Practitioners, Mental Health Nursing, and Social Work. There are many more professional healthcare degree options as a result of the successful completion of the course, and additionally vocational opportunities, such as, Mental Health Practitioners and a direct supported pathway to the Trainee Nursing Associates course. Averagely 85% of our students receive offers to study a degree in the healthcare professions, with the remaining 15% progressing onto vocational aspirations.

The core subjects which will be studied on the course are Human Biology, Health and Community Studies and Psychology. In addition, there will be supporting modules in Study Skills and Applied Maths, and an independent project module which provides opportunity to examine a self-selected topic area within the scope of Nursing and Healthcare Professions.

The course provides a thorough grounding in the key concepts and theories you will meet during your further studies or training. Teamwork and oral skills are promoted through group discussion and seminars, which helps prepare for next steps both in an academic and vocational context. All students have the opportunity to develop practical skills in the laboratories, and medical practice using the state-of-the-art school of nursing facilities.

What will I do on this course?

You'll complete the following units on this course:

• Human biology
• Health and community
• Psychology
• Study skills and applied maths
• Project
• Tutorial

Access to Nursing & Healthcare Professions is a daytime provision.

We also offer this as an evening course here.

The College of West Anglia is a longstanding and successful provider of Access to HE courses.

You will need:

• GCSE grade 4 (C) or higher in English or maths. If you only have one of those you must be prepared to complete the one you do not have.

If you do not meet the above entry requirements, you should consider our Pre-Access course in Science and Nursing.

How long is this course?

1 year

When does this course start?

01/09/2025

How many hours / days per week is this course?

This course will run 3 days per week in the day time through face-to-face delivery; Wednesday, Thursday and Friday

What can I do after this course at CWA?

Learners who have studied one of the Diplomas within the Healthcare and Medicine subject area have progressed onto a variety of degree programmes including:

• Adult Nursing
• Child Nursing
• Mental Health Nursing
• Midwifery*
• Occupational Therapy
• Operating Department Practitioner
• Paramedic Science*
• Pharmacy
• Physiotherapy
• Public Health
• Radiography*
• Speech Therapy

*For these courses a 6 in GCSE Science is required by most universities. Please see our GCSE Science offering here.

Age	Cost
19+	£5,000

Fee information

All our Access to Higher Education courses have a course fee which could be waived if you are aged 19-23 at the start of your course and have not completed a level 3 (or above) course before.

Otherwise, you could also consider applying for the Advanced Learner Loan to cover the cost of the course. If you complete an Access course and then progress onto and complete a degree (with us or elsewhere), you will not be required to pay back the remaining amount of your Advanced Learner Loan!

Advanced Learner Loan Information

Adult (19+) learners

Depending on your age, course, educational history and personal circumstances, there may be options available for you to receive a course fully-funded by the government. Our fee calculator will help give you an idea on whether you'll be able to have your course fee waived or covered by an Advanced Learner Loan.

Complete our fee calculator

Learners with an active Education, Health & Care Plan

If you are aged 19 - 24 at the start of your course and have an active Education, Health & Care Plan (EHCP), any course up to and including level 3 will be fully-funded by the government. This means you will not have a course fee to pay and any equipment considered essential to complete your course will be provided by the college.

What qualification will I achieve?

The Access to Higher Education course (depending upon the final qualification) is equivalent to A-Levels. It is recognised by higher education institutions, advanced apprenticeships, business, retail and appropriate professions. Our Access to Higher Education courses are validated by the Cambridge Access Validating Agency and the qualification is universally recognised as demanding and rigorously assessed.

How is my course assessed?

The course will be split into modules which are individually assessed. Later modules build on the skills developed in the earlier ones. Some modules use exams in the assessment process but only as part of the overall assessment some others use coursework only. The course director will give you further information about assessment on the pathway you choose.

How many UCAS points will I achieve on this course?

The number of UCAS tariff points for an Access to Higher Education diploma varies between 48 and 144 points, depending on your grade for each module.

Access to Higher Education qualifications are split into a total of 45 graded credits and each module will have a different credit weighting (for example, one module may be worth 3 units and another may be worth 6). For each graded module, you'll achieve a pass, merit or distinction and these each carry a different amount of UCAS points (with pass being the lowest and distinction being the highest).

For example, if you pass each graded module, you will achieve 48 UCAS points. If you gain a distinction in each graded module, you will achieve 144 UCAS points (equivalent to three A grades at A Level).

We've included some examples below of what grades you need to achieve common UCAS tariff point entry requirements:

UCAS Points	Grades required
64	15 credits at merit, 30 credits at pass
74	24 credits at merit, 21 credits at pass
80	30 credits at merit, 15 credits at pass
96	45 credits at merit
120	24 credits at distinction, 21 credits at merit
144	45 credits at distinction

You can find more details on the UCAS Tariff points calculator here.