Nursing - Intellectual Disability Nursing
If you want a rewarding and respected career with great employment and travel opportunities, then the professional course in nursing 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.
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
Graduates from the Trinity School of Nursing and Midwifery will be competent, innovative and caring professionals who are capable of leading change, shaping policy and responding to an ever evolving healthcare environment. The university-wide set of Graduate Attributes shape and support the kind of education we offer; to act responsibility, think independently, communicate effectively and to develop continuously.
You will be qualified to continue your education and further specialise should you wish to do so. The Trinity School of Nursing and Midwifery offers a wide range of postgraduate courses for furthering your studies.
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. However, you will be invited to attend a written assessment by the Nursing Careers Centre.
Students will have to undergo a health screening.
Students will be required to undergo Garda vetting.
For information on Alternative Entry Routes go to: https://www.tcd.ie/study/apply/alternative-paths-to-trinity/
Places 2024: 30
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 Nurse?
The role of the nurse is to provide evidence-based, culturally-sensitive care in order to assist the individual to lead an independent healthy lifestyle, overcome ill health or experience a peaceful death. The nurse achieves this through working as part of a professional multidisciplinary team to provide primary healthcare, acute hospital care, community and home and continuing care, based on individual and population health needs across the lifespan.
Students of nursing learn about caring and the complexities of health and illness through interactive teaching and learning strategies in the classroom and the healthcare environment. Practice (clinical and community) experience provides the student with opportunities to integrate the art and science of nursing and promotes the development of caring relationships with patients and their families and significant others.
Intellectual disability nursing
Stewart’s Care, Palmerstown
Nursing: The course for you?
Do you love working with and for the benefit of people of all ages and from diverse backgrounds?
If you want a rewarding and respected career with great employment and travel opportunities, then the professional course in nursing could be for you.
A genuine interest in people and a desire to care for others are core requirements for any individual who wishes to become a nurse. In addition, you will need to have a keen interest in healthcare and be capable of working as part of a team. Like all professional courses in health sciences, nursing places extra demands on students’ time. It can be demanding, both physically and emotionally and so you should ensure that you are in a position to fully engage with the course during your time in Trinity.
Your degree and what you’ll study
This course will provide you with the knowledge, skills, attitudes and, professional values necessary to provide high-quality, competent and caring practice in your chosen discipline of nursing. There are two components to the nursing degree course; a theoretical component and a practice (clinical/community) component.
Theoretical component
The theoretical component will be taught in the Trinity School of Nursing and Midwifery building, the main Trinity campus and in the Trinity Centre for Health Sciences in St. James’s Hospital. Teaching methods include lectures, tutorials, practical classes, clinical skills laboratories, group teaching, web-based learning and reflective workshops.
Practice (clinical/community) component
For the practice component you will be linked with one of the health service providers and also have clinical/community placements in a variety of settings. During the fourth year of the course you will undertake a 36 week roster of continuous placement. This placement spans the fourth and fifth years of the integrated children’s and general nursing integrated course.
Intellectual disability nursing
The intellectual disability nurse is a professional who works autonomously and collaboratively to provide person-centred care and support to persons of all ages, with a variety of abilities and capabilities. The intellectual disability nurse employs skilled interpersonal approaches and therapeutic interventions to provide this care across various states of health and well-being and promoting wellness. The values and skills inherent in the nursing programme enables the intellectual disability nurse to support and empower people with an intellectual disability across their lifespan, building relationships with the person and their families grounded in human rights, inclusion, advocacy and support to live as independent a life as possible.
Students who successfully complete the theoretical and practice component of the course will be eligible to apply to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland as a Registered Nurse Intellectual Disability (R.N.I.D.)
Which health service provider will you train with?
When you accept an offer for one of the nursing courses you will receive orientation information from Trinity. This information contains a form asking you to indicate which health service provider you would prefer to be linked with. Requests are dealt with on a first-come, first-served basis. Where possible you will be assigned your first choice. If the number of applicants exceeds the number of places available, you will be assigned your second choice. A reserve list is held and if a vacancy arises it may be possible to transfer to your first choice. Most students are allocated their first choice of health service provider.
A combination of examinations, essays, clinical projects, clinical skills, laboratory techniques, literature reviews, reflective practice and clinical assessments are used.
Optional international placements/ opportunities during training
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 (dependent upon profession or nursing discipline): Turku University of Applied Sciences, Finland; University of Malta; LUND University, Sweden; University College of Northern (UCN) Denmark, Aalborg, Denmark; Hanze University of Applied Sciences, Groningen, Netherlands; Maastricht University, Netherlands.
Students can apply for summer international opportunities such as volunteering in Africa. Second year general nursing students may also apply to undertake four weeks clinical practice in the University of Sydney or the University of Queensland, Australia.
Collaborative online international learning opportunities are also provided for our high achieving nursing and midwifery students.
www.nursing-midwifery.tcd.ie
E nursing.midwifery@tcd.ie