Qs about Graduate Entry Vs regular 3-year Bachelor

[straight4]

Hi everyone,

I have a non-nursing B.A. from the US, and have been considering pursuing my nursing degree in Australia.

But I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me about the differences between the Graduate Entry program and regular 3-year Bachelor degree. I realize that the length of the program is different, and that only those with a university degree could apply to the Graduate Entry program, but what would be the advantages/disadvantages?

For example, would employers view me differently if I graduated from either one?

Also, would doing an Honours year (at the end of either the Graduate Entry degree or Bachelor degree) make a difference in terms of career prospects, further educational opportunities, etc? Is it a popular choice to do an Honours year?

I have posted a different thread Under the "International Nursing" Forum, with the title "Versatility of an Australian Degree: PR, working abroad, accelerated degree, etc"

So if you could also help answer some of the questions there, it would be a huge help!!

Thank you all in advance.

[SisterKate]

Hi

The graduate entry course in WA is just about to start so we don't have any students/grads to compare with the regular undergrad course. However, the undergrad course has a fair amount of generic material that you would undertake whatever degree course you did, and I would assume that the grad entry course would not have that content - you would be considered to already have done it. So the actual nursing content will probably be very similar, so you should not miss anything.:wink2:

As an employer I am only interested in the fact that a nurse is Registered with the Nurses Board - this means they have undertaken an accredited training course and are deemed competent to work. The fact that it was a grad entry or otherwise would not be relevant. Honours would not count for anything either when applying for a position. My opinion is that you are much better getting out there and working. Honours is really a purely academic exercise. A post -grad program specialising in a particular area of interest would do you more good unless you particularly want to go down the academia road. If do you want to go onto Masters, you don't need Honours even then, although if you have it it may cut out a couple of units. In the long run though, doing Honours you will probably end up having done more study to get your Masters than if you had gone straight out into the workforce. (hope that makes sense!)

[gogirlgo]

Hi,

I faced the same dilemna when choosing a course in Melbourne a few years ago. I decided to do the 3yr course in the end and I got 3 credits for my previous business degree (so I dont have to do electives).

The 3 year course I chose was at my preferred uni (close to home) which was a factor. Also, the 2 year course at La Trobe seemed to require me to do a crash course in anatomy etc in the January prior to starting, which would have been difficult during school holidays. And also not quite a 2 year program.....

I think if my previous degree had been a science based one I would have been more inclined to go for the quicker option, but I lacked the confidence science wise.

Have a look at what the difference is between the 2 courses at the same institution. Which subjects are you missing out on? If they are more humanities based looking at social factors of health etc, you probably aren't missing much.