This course is for 2025/26 entry.
Adult and Mental Health Nursing MSc Course overview
Benefits of this course
You will study a range of theoretical and practical modules covering key principles and practices in adult and mental health nursing, including:
- acute care, diagnostics and treatment
- long term care, recovery and rehabilitation
- leading and managing in healthcare practice.
You will learn alongside students from other nursing pathways and professional disciplines such as Speech and Language Therapy, encouraging a multi-disciplinary approach that reflects professional clinical practice.
Who is this course for?
If you are a graduate who wants to pursue a rewarding career in nursing, this unique three-year programme will equip you with the essential skills and knowledge you need, even if your first degree is in an unrelated subject.
Accreditation
This course is accredited by the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
Award
You can select to apply for one of the available exit points for this course.
- Master of Science (MSc)
Structure
Master of Science (MSc)
Duration:
- Full-time: 3 years
Modules:
Some modules may be subject to change depending on student numbers, tutor availability, or course updates. This may affect the overall number of modules.
Modules
You are given the opportunity to combine theoretical study with clinical experience.
At City, you will gain experience of care delivery across a range of settings and environments.
Practice experience within London will give you a unique opportunity to provide culturally sensitive care within a multicultural and multi-faith community, which reflects a diverse socioeconomic population. Your practice experience will take place in a variety of settings, such as acute hospital units and service users’ own homes.
To pass each part you must successfully complete both the theoretical and practice elements of the programme by the end of the part (NMC 2010).
Core modules
Through all core modules you will develop the Graduate Attributes, five core skillsets that will help you launch a successful, fulfilling career. Find out more about the Graduate Attributes.
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Health Promotion and Biopsychosocial factors across the life course (30 credits)
In this module you will examine professional values; applied biological sciences; human experience across the lifecourse and the historical, biological and socioeconomic aspects of people’s lives; communication and interpersonal skills; nursing practice and decision making and leadership, management and team working.
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Practice 1- Foundations for Nursing Care (15 credits)
This module will provide you with the opportunity to explore, experiment and engage in a range of practical nursing skills and enact scenarios in a realistic, but safe simulated environment, to help you prepare for the reality of practice
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Pathophysiology and Principles of prescribing (30 credits)
Through this module you will explore evidence-based interventions to maximise the therapeutic benefits and minimise adverse effects of medicines. You will gain an understanding of pharmaceutical knowledge; principles of medicine dosage, side effects, reactions and interactions; concordance; philosophy and psychology of prescribing.
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Acute condition (15 credits)
This module will equip you to recognise early signs of deterioration or vulnerability and take prompt action to reduce the risk of harm and promote recovery. It will enable you to work more independently and enhance your confidence and ability to deliver acute care and work with individuals, their families and carers.
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Integrated care to support health and well-being for individuals with long-term conditions (15 credits)
This integrated module will build on your previous learning to develop your nursing knowledge, skills and values so that you can effectively manage care for individuals with both acute and long term health and social care needs.
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Critical Use of Evidence to Inform Decision Making in Practice (15 credits)
This module will enable you to develop a critical understanding of research and its interpretation and implementation. This will enable you to propose new research questions and plan a future critical appraisal of the literature.
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Practice 2- Applying Knowledge and Skills for Person-Centred Care for Practice (Adult and Mental Health) (15 credits)
This module will prepare you to effectively provide safe, person-centred care within your field of practice. You will have an opportunity to explore, experiment and engage in a range of practical nursing skills and enact scenarios in a realistic, but safe, simulated environment.
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Leading and Managing Across Health and Social Care (15 credits)
This module will develop your ability to confidently lead, manage and challenge in professional practice. There will be a focus on clinical decision making; risk assessment and management; quality improvement and change management.
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Practice 3: Developing Advanced Knowledge and Skills for Professional Practice (Adult and Mental Health) (15 credits)
This module will provide you with the opportunity to explore, experiment and engage in activities for advancing nursing practice in a realistic, but safe simulated environment, to help you prepare to care for individuals with complex needs in different healthcare settings.
Dissertation
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Dissertation (30 credits)
This final project will enable you to choose a relevant topic of interest to you and demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of this. You will be expected to critically appraise the current body of knowledge on the topic you have chosen, synthesise it and make suggestions for future practice and research.
Programme specification
The programme specification contains more information on how the course is organised, the requirements for progression for each part and credits required for awards.
Download course specification:
Teaching and assessment
You will learn through a dynamic mix of direct, interactive and online methods, including:
- seminars
- laboratory practicals
- self-directed study
- practice experience
- simulated practice
- personal and professional development groups
- online activities.
Our Clinical Skills Centre is equipped with a simulated six bed ward and a range of specialist equipment where you will practice your skills in a realistic but controlled environment.
You will also learn how to use the latest telehealth technologies that support home-based care through our unique Technology Enabled Care Studio.
You will spend around half your time on clinical placements in a variety of settings including:
- specialist units
- hospital wards
- primary and community care settings
- patients’ homes.
Placements
Most placements are within our 'community of practice', a partnership of healthcare providers within Central, East and North East London, which will enable you to gain a detailed understanding of the local community and how services are structured.
Assessments include the following:
- Research Proposal
- Examination
- Seminar Presentation and Report
- Care Study
- Critical Reflection
- Leadership and Management
- Dissertation in the form of a Critically Appraised Topic (CAT)
- Clinical Practice Assessment – Pass/Fail
Fees and funding
Fees for academic year 2025/26
Master of Science
(MSc)
Full-time
per year
Home/UK: £9,250
Full-time per year
Home/UK: £9,250
Where applicable, tuition fees for City's programmes will be subject to inflationary increases in each year of study. Our policy for these increases is set out in our terms and conditions of study.
Funding
NHS Learning Support Fund: Non-repayable grants of at least £5,000 a year for eligible healthcare students.
Loans
If you have already received a student loan for a previous undergraduate course, you are eligible to apply for a second undergraduate loan for this course.
Additional expenses
Some of our degrees may involve additional expenses which are not covered by your tuition fees. Find out more about additional expenses.
Career
On successful completion of the course, you will be eligible to register with the NMC, which provides an internationally recognised professional qualification, enabling you to practice as both an adult and mental health nurse in the UK and overseas.
As a nursing student at City, University of London you will be part of the CapitalNurse programme, which provides career development support to nursing students in London.
Through CapitalNurse, you will have access in your final year of study to a special streamlined employment scheme across all NHS Trusts in North Central London, helping you to move quickly into your first professional nursing role.
Following registration, a range of opportunities and career pathways will be open to you, such as:
- clinical management
- advance nurse practitioner
- education
- research
- clinical specialisms
- community nursing.
Placements
Clinical placements are an essential part of this programme.
How to apply
Entry requirements
UK
To apply for this course, you must have:
- a lower second-class honours degree or above.
- an awareness of health or health-related care issues and have worked at least 500 clinical hours to be eligible for the MSc programme.
- a grade C (4) in GCSE English and Mathematics or an overseas equivalent.
You also will be required to have occupational health and enhanced disclosure and barring service clearance. Academic and character references will also be requested. Please see the Entry Requirements page for full information.
You must complete 2 written RPL assignments as well as achieve and demonstrate 500 hours of clinical practice. If you are successful at interview you will have 6 weeks from offer to complete the RPL Theory Challenge and until July to complete the 500 hours of clinical practice and RPL practice claim. Clinical experiences from employment roles in a Health & Social background will be accepted,.
As well as meeting the stated academic entry requirements, applicants will be required to attend an online interview as part of the selection process, to ensure that your values match those of the NHS Constitution.
Information regarding COVID-19 vaccination
Clinical placements are an exciting and essential part of the training required to become a qualified Nurse.
To protect students, staff and patients during these experiences, we strongly encourage our students to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (unless medically exempt).
English language requirements
GCSE English Language grade C or IELTS score 7 with 7 in each component is required.
Applicants educated outside of an English speaking country, without GCSEs are required to hold:
TOEFL iBT: 94 overall with at least 27 in Writing, 24 in reading and Listening and 23 in Speaking sections.
For more information you can visit TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition.
English language programmes
Don't meet the English language requirements? INTO City, University of London offers English language programmes to help prepare you for study at university. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for entry to degree courses.
Application process
Applications are made through UCAS using the UCAS code: 3412.
For operational reasons, applications should be made through the undergraduate section of UCAS, and not UKPASS, using the course code "3412". City's institution code on UCAS is "C60".
When submitting an application please ensure you list all your educational qualifications including those achieved at GCSE (or overseas equivalent) as these form part of the entry criteria.
The School of Health & Psychological Sciences Admissions team have put together some handy tips and advice about the application process. You can also contact them to organise a drop-in session for additional advice and support.
September 2025 entry
Contact the postgraduate team
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7040 5000
Email: health@city.ac.uk
Our academics
Your studies are supported by a team of committed and enthusiastic teachers and researchers, experts in their chosen field. On occasion we also work with external professionals to enhance your learning and appreciation of the wider subject.
Facilities
Our students
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Housing and student life
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Accommodation and housing
We offer accommodation options and support for all postgraduate students. Our dedicated Accommodation Service can help you to find private accommodation in London if required.
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Student wellbeing
Our extensive support network spans from learning support and disability support through to counselling, financial advice and career advice. Please do tell us if you need our help.
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Living in London
We are based in the heart of one of the most vibrant and colourful cities in the world. London offers a rich variety of cultural experiences far beyond your studies.