Nursing - Midwifery
If you want a rewarding and respected career with great employment and travel opportunities, then the professional course in midwifery could be for you.
| Award Name | Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) |
|---|---|
| NFQ Classification | Major |
| Awarding Body | University of Dublin |
| NFQ Level | Level 8 NFQ |
| Award Name | NFQ Classification | Awarding Body | NFQ Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Degree - Honours Bachelor (Level 8 NFQ) | Major | University of Dublin | Level 8 NFQ |
Duration
4 years full-time
Specific Subjects or course requirements
Minimum Entry Requirements: Irish Leaving Certificate
To be considered for admission to a degree course at the University you must:
Present six subjects, three of which must be at grade 5 or above on higher Leaving Certificate papers or at least grade 5 in the University matriculation examination.
The six subjects above must include:
A pass in English.
A pass in mathematics (or foundation-level mathematics (see note 2)) and a pass in a language other than English
OR
A pass in Latin and a pass in a subject other than a language.
Special Entry Requirements
Leaving Certificate
O6/H6 Mathematics
O6/H6 In one of biology, physics, chemistry, physics/ chemistry or agricultural science
Students will have to undergo a health screening.
Students will be required to undergo Garda vetting.
This programme is not open to non-EU applicants.
Leaving Certificate General Entry Requirements
To qualify for admission to an honours degree course at the University you must:
1 meet the minimum entry requirements (see above).
2 satisfy course specific requirements (where applicable), see above.
3 where there is competition for places, have good enough examination results to be included among those to whom offers are made (see the Leaving Certificate scoring system or Advanced GCE (A Level) scoring system).
Minimum Entry Requirements: Irish Leaving Certificate
To be considered for admission to a degree course at the University applicants must:
› Present six subjects, three of which must be at grade 5 or above on higher Leaving Certificate papers or at least grade 5 in the University matriculation examination.
The six subjects above must include:
› A pass in English.
› A pass in mathematics (or foundation-level mathematics (see note 2)) and a pass in a language other than English OR
› A pass in Latin and a pass in a subject other than a language.
Notes:
1 A pass means grade O6/H7 or above in the Leaving Certificate and grade 7 or above in the University matriculation examination.
2 Mathematics at foundation-level is acceptable for minimum entry requirements only, for all courses except nursing or midwifery courses. Irish at foundation-level is not acceptable for minimum entry requirements, course requirements or for scoring purposes.
3 Students may combine grades achieved in different sittings of their Leaving Certificate/Matriculation examinations for the purpose of satisfying minimum entry and/or course requirements, but not for the purposes of scoring. This is not permitted for Medicine.
4 Combinations of Leaving Certificate subjects not permitted:
› Physics/chemistry may not be presented with physics or chemistry.
› Biology and agricultural science may not be presented as two of the six subjects required for minimum entry requirements, and they may not be presented together to satisfy course specific requirements. However, both may be used for scoring purposes.
› Art and music may not be offered as two of the three higher Leaving Certificate grades for minimum entry requirements, but both may be used for scoring purposes.
Bonus Points for Higher Level Mathematics
All students presenting H6 or above in higher level mathematics will have 25 points added to their score for mathematics. The bonus points will only be relevant where mathematics is scored as one of a student’s six best subjects for points purposes.
An applicant’s six best results from one sitting of the Leaving Certificate will be counted for scoring purposes. Applicants may combine results from the Leaving Certificate and the Trinity matriculation examination of the same year for scoring purposes.
The minimum entry levels (points) for Trinity in recent years are available at: www.tcd.ie/study/apply/admission-requirements/ undergraduate
Age Requirement
Applicants seeking admission in 2025 must have a date of birth before 15 January 2009.
Garda Vetting
Students on courses with clinical or other professional placements may be required to undergo Garda vetting procedures prior to commencing placements. If, as a result of the outcome of the Garda vetting procedures, students are deemed unsuitable to attend clinical or other professional placement, they may be required to withdraw from their course. Students who have resided outside Ireland for a period of 6 months or more will be required to provide police clearance documentation from the country (including different states) or countries in which they resided.
Students who accept an offer will be informed of the procedures to be followed to complete the vetting process (as part of the student orientation information).
Fitness To Practice
Professional courses demand that certain core competencies are met by students in order to graduate and practice professionally after qualification. Trinity has special responsibility to ensure that all students admitted to all professional programmes will be eligible for registration by the relevant professional body upon graduation. It is important to us that our students are able to fulfil the rigorous demands of professional courses and are fit to practice.
Health Screening
Offers of admission to the following courses are made subject to certain vaccination requirements and/or certain negative test results:
› Clinical Speech and Language Studies
› Orthodontic Therapy, Dental Science, Dental Hygiene, Dental Nursing, and Dental Technology
› Medicine › Nursing and Midwifery
› Occupational Therapy
› Pharmacy
› Physiotherapy
› Radiation Therapy
› Social Studies (Social work)
Full details are available at: www.tcd.ie/study/apply/admissionrequirements/ undergraduate
Leaving Certificate Vocational Progamme LCVP
These modules are accepted for scoring purposes only and are awarded the following points: Distinction 66, Merit 46, Pass 28.
QQI FET Applicants General Information
There is an entry route to a number of degree programmes in Trinity for applicants presenting appropriate QQI/FET Level 5 or 6 Major Awards. Applicants presenting distinctions in five modules can be considered for admission.
Full information on courses with QQI entry routes, requirements etc., can be found at the link below.
Careers / Further progression
Graduate skills and career opportunities
On completion of this course, the student will be eligible to apply for registration as a midwife on the midwives division of the Nurses and Midwives Register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. The course offers an excellent foundation for career advancement in midwifery and further health related studies. It facilitates learning across wide and varied experiences and promotes flexibility for employment within and outside the health services.
Further information
Mature Students
Applications must be received by the CAO by 1 February of the proposed year of entry.
You are not required to submit a mature-student supplementary application form to Trinity.
Students will have to undergo a health screening.
Students will be required to undergo Garda vetting.
This programme is not open to non-EU applicants.
For information on Alternative Entry Routes go to: https://www.tcd.ie/study/apply/alternative-paths-to-trinity/
Places 2024: 44
Entry 2025
Early online application (discounted): Fee €30 Closing Date: 20 January 2025 at 5pm
Normal online application: Fee €45 Closing Date: 1 February 2025 at 5pm
Late online application - restrictions apply (see page 3 2025 CAO Handbook): Fee: €60 Closing Date: 1 May 2025 at 5pm
Change of Mind - restrictions apply (see page 3 2025 CAO Handbook): Fee: Nil Closing Date: 1 July 2025 at 5pm
Be sure to complete any action well in advance of closing dates. You should avoid making an application close to a closing date. No extensions to closing dates will be allowed and all application fees are non-refundable.
LATE APPLICATIONS
Late Applications are those which are received after 5pm on 1 February 2025. The closing date for late applications is 5pm on 1 May 2025, subject to the restrictions listed on page 3 of the 2025 CAO Handbook. The online facility for late applications opens on the 5 March 2025 at 12:00 noon - a fee of €60 applies.
Restrictions
As a CAO applicant you may experience one or more of the following restrictions based on your course choices, your category of application, or restrictions imposed by the HEIs that you wish to apply to. Please read the section on 'Restrictions' on page 3 of the 2025 CAO Handbook carefully. This section includes information on:
General Restrictions
1. Making a late application
2. Making changes to your course choices
Restricted Courses
3. Applying for a restricted course
Mature Applicants
4. Mature applicants
Supplementary Admissions Routes
5. Applying for DARE and/or HEAR
What is a Midwife and Midwifery?
The term ‘midwife’ means ‘with woman’. As a midwife, you will be helping women and their families at one of the most crucial times of their lives, supporting the woman during pregnancy, childbirth and the post-natal period. Midwives play a vital role in promoting and maintaining health, facilitating normal childbirth and helping women make informed choices about their care. The midwife is the key professional providing continuity of care and promoting choice and control to women in pregnancy and birth, and to women and their babies following birth. The core concepts of the midwifery profession are of:
Normality: Childbirth is viewed as a normal event in the life cycle, a normal healthy event.
Woman-centred: The focus of midwifery practice is pregnant women and their families and delivering care in woman-centred maternity services.
Respect: Midwifery care is delivered in a manner that respects the uniqueness and dignity of each person, regardless of culture or religion.
Partnership: Partnerships between the woman and the midwife is fundamental to midwifery practice. It is based on mutual trust, support and collaboration, which facilitates informed choice and decision-making and the empowerment of both the woman and the midwife.
Client first: Decisions about an individual midwife’s scope of practice should always be made with the woman’s and her family’s best interests foremost and in the interest of promoting and maintaining best quality maternity services for women and their families.
Evidence based: Midwifery practice is based on the best available evidence.
Advocacy: Midwifery practice involves advocacy for the individual woman and her family.
Midwifery: The course for you?
Midwives often describe their job as ‘privileged’. The role they have in preparing women for the birth of new life makes them a vital presence during all stages of pregnancy, labour and the early post-natal period.
If you want a rewarding and respected career with great employment and travel opportunities, then the professional course in midwifery could be for you.
Your degree and what you’ll study
This four-year course will cover such areas as: midwifery practice; communication and interpersonal skills; professional, personal, ethical and legal issues; biological sciences; psychology; pharmacology and non-pharmaceutical approaches; social theory for midwifery practice; research; health promotion; and the maternal and social care services in Ireland.
You will begin your first midwifery clinical placement in October of the first year of the course. The first three years combine learning in university and clinical midwifery practice in the maternity hospitals and will take place during the academic year with the usual academic holidays. The final year will include a 36-week period of internship in midwifery practice.
The majority of the theoretical component of the course will be taught in the Trinity School of Nursing and Midwifery building, which is located on D’Olier Street, minutes from the main campus. Classes are also held on other sites including the main Trinity College and in the Trinity Centre for Health Sciences in St. James’s Hospital. Teaching methods include lectures, small-group teaching, tutorials and practice classes.
The course is offered in partnership with two linked maternity care providers: The Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital and The Rotunda Hospital. Each midwifery student will be allocated all of their midwifery clinical placements throughout the four years at one of these maternity hospitals. Some placements may also occur in other sites including the Midlands Regional Hospital, Portlaoise.
You will be required to complete clinical placements each year, which will consist of 30-35 hours (approximately) supernumerary practice per week in a practice setting. Midwifery students will also undertake other clinical placements, for example, community midwifery, mental health, high dependency care and care of the critically ill woman and neonatal unit.
Assessment of learning in midwifery practice is an important component of the course and will take place throughout the course.
There are QQI/FET routes available for this course. Please see www.cao.ie for details.
Study abroad
The Erasmus programme enables students to study at another European university as part of their university degree. This is an exciting opportunity for students to experience a core clinical placement in another European Union healthcare system for a maximum period of eight weeks duration. Erasmus exchange takes place in semester two of second year and semester one of third year. Current Erasmus partners include; University of Malta; LUND University, Sweden; University College of Northern (UCN) Denmark Aalborg, Denmark; Maastricht University Netherlands.
There are also summer international opportunities students can apply for such as volunteering in Africa. We currently offer a Scholarship for a short summer programme in the United States. Collaborative online international learning opportunities are also provided for our high achieving nursing and midwifery students.
http://www.nursingmidwifery.tcd.ie/
Email: nursing.midwifery@tcd.ie