Bachelor of Nursing Māori

Nau mai, haere mai ki Te Kura Matatini o Whitireia. The Bachelor Nursing Māori programme is kaupapa Māori orientated to support your learner journey to become a registered nurse with the Nursing Council New Zealand. Your learner journey traverses Te Ao Māori and Te Ao Tapuhi (Nursing). By the end of your three years of study you will be ready to sit your Nursing Council State Examination. You will have demonstrated that you're competent culturally and clinically, and will be able to practice as a Registered Nurse both in Aotearoa and overseas. Fluency in te reo Māori is not essential to apply for this programme.

Programme outline

For over thirty years nursing has been a major programme at Whitireia. During this time, Whitireia has developed a reputation for producing work-ready graduates who are highly regarded by industry.

Whitireia offers applicants the choice of three Bachelor of Nursing Degrees, all of which are approved by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority and meet the Nursing Council of New Zealand’s requirements for registration. These are the Bachelor of Nursing, Bachelor of Nursing Māori and Bachelor of Nursing Pacific.

All are three-year full-time programmes and offer a combination of theory i.e. classroom-based sessions at our Porirua campus and supported clinical experience, which is practical/hands-on work completed in a variety of community and hospital settings.

More detail about this qualification

Courses

There are five tenets (principles) that provide the philosophical foundation (kaupapa) for the curriculum framework Te Pae Mahutonga. These tenets are Kaitiakitanga, Manaakitanga, Pūkengatanga, Rangātiratanga and Whānaungātanga.

The values of Whitireia are the starting point for articulating the meaning of each tenet. The collective Māori ways of knowing also apply, and whilst they are not made explicit, it is an integral part of the approach taken to manage the practices and behaviours of all involved, both internally and externally to the programme, for example working closely with whānau where extra support is required.

Ngā pou o te whare - Year one

In the first year of the degree students connect with their own whakapapa and gain insight into their own identity and belonging within their own whānau, hapū, iwi, community of Aotearoa. The focus of student learning throughout year one is around the development and application of nursing skills and knowledge in assessing healthy people living at home, with reference to pēpi, tamariki and their whānau, kaumātua and people with a disability.

Ngā heke o te whare – Year two

During the second year, ākonga develop enhanced nursing practice capability, particularly in relation to providing nursing care for pēpi, tamariki and their families in community settings. They enhance their knowledge of mental health, mental illness and the health issues for people with a disability and expand their nursing assessment and intervention skills. By the end of the second year, ākonga can demonstrate that they can safely nurse in predictable and non-complex situations with minimal supervision.

Te Tāhūhū o te whare – Year three

In the final year, ākonga demonstrate that they are successfully transitioning into the role of Tapuhi/beginning practitioner and are able to confidently move between Māori communities and other health care services in ways that adds value to both.

Teaching and learning

The Bachelor of Nursing Māori is delivered by blended learning i.e., face to face and online learning. This means some of your lessons may be delivered via Moodle (our online learning platform), which will require you to have a computer and internet access at home. 

A variety of teaching processes are used in the programme including lectures, tutorials, learning packages, workshops, student presentations, online learning and practical sessions in the simulation suites where ‘hands-on’ skills are learnt and practiced. If there are no timetabled classes, students are expected to utilise this time working in study teams or on independent study. Students will also be required to complete independent study and work on assignments during weekends and term breaks.

Clinical

To gain a Bachelor of Nursing Degree, students must complete a minimum of 1,100 hours of clinical experience (praxis). We are proud of the excellent working partnerships we have with our clinical providers, which include both the Hutt Valley and Capital & Coast District Health Boards and private, iwi and community organisations. Their assistance enables us to provide students with a variety of high-quality clinical placements, which allows students to experience the range of opportunities available as a registered nurse.

In year 1, students learn clinical skills in our simulation suites (which are set up like hospital wards), as well as attending off-site clinical experiences in rest homes and the community.

In years 2 & 3, students will have 14–16 clinical weeks each year; these are divided into blocks of between 3–9 weeks. Please note these clinical weeks may include weekends. Hours during clinical blocks will vary according to the clinical placement, i.e. hospital shifts can include mornings 7:00am–3:30pm, afternoons 2:45–11:15pm and overnight.

Career options

Outcomes

Our Bachelor of Nursing qualifications enable graduates to work as a beginning staff nurse in all areas where registered nurses are employed, both nationally and internationally.

Nurses are present across the entire spectrum of health-service delivery and, with over 40,000 registered; they are the largest part of the professional health workforce. The most common image of the nurse is in a hospital ward or general practice but, in reality, nurses are found in much wider range of health and disability services settings.

There is a nurse at work in child-health services, residential-care facilities, mental-health services, community services, marae, independent-nurse clinics, public-health services, occupational health and safety, the defence forces, sexual-health services, ACC case management, prisons, policy development and implementation, health-service management, education and research – as well as in many other settings.

Becoming a registered nurse

Students who successfully complete a Bachelor of Nursing programme are required to sit the Nursing Council of New Zealand State Final Examinations. When these examinations are passed, the student applies to Nursing Council for registration as a Registered Nurse.

Future opportunities

On becoming a registered nurse, most graduates apply for new graduate programmes, which are run by Health New Zealand. Many graduates will also go on to complete postgraduate studies in nursing specialties i.e. Mental Health Nursing, Hospice Palliative Care and Primary Health Care. Some graduates will travel overseas, where a Bachelor of Nursing Degree from New Zealand is internationally recognised.