Nursing (Palliative Care) - MSc

During this programme, you will:  

• Explore how palliative care can underpin practice in areas such as disease and symptom management, communication, grief and loss, spirituality and sexuality - enhancing your ability to deliver holistic, person-centred care. 

• Acquire in-depth knowledge and understanding of therapeutic interventions used in a palliative care to deliver disease and symptom management. 

• Undertake 500 hours of supervised clinical practice and develop your specialist palliative care competencies, applying your learning in real-world settings and developing specialist palliative care competencies under expert guidance. 

• Understand the value of multidisciplinary collaboration, working alongside healthcare professionals to deliver high-quality, evidence-based care tailored to the needs of patients and their families. 

Key information:   

• Complete full-time over two years. Taken on a part-time basis. 

• Blended delivery – on campus and online.   

• Modules taught during autumn and spring semesters. You can click here for a schedule of lectures.       

• Undertake six modules in Year 1, including two specialist modules in palliative care and therapeutic interventions and two clinical practicum modules.  

• As part of the clinical practicum modules, you will complete 500 hours of clinical practice across both semesters. 

• Option to exit with a Postgraduate Diploma in Nursing (Palliative Care) at the end of Year 1.  

• Students who achieve a minimum QCA grade of 2.00 at the end of year one may progress to the second year for the MSc award. 

• Complete a systematic/integrated review at the end of the final semester. 

• Modules with (M) beside them can be taken as independent micro-credentials. 

You will learn through a blend of:    

• Lectures, workshops, and hands-on activities   

• Reflective practice and guided research   

• Regular feedback from faculty and peers

Year 1 

Autumn Semester  

• Health Research – Methods & Methodology (M)(NS6036) develops an understanding of the social, political, ethical and personal context of the research process. 

• Principles of Palliative Care in Practice (M)(NS6081) examines the philosophy of palliative care and the influence of policy to inform the provision of a quality, person-centred service. 

• Clinical Practicum 1 (NS6401) facilitates the consolidation, integration and application of theory within practice. 

Spring Semester 

• Promoting Quality & Safety in Health Care (NS6038) explores the concept of quality and safety in healthcare in promoting quality patient outcomes. 

• Therapeutic Interventions in Palliative Care (M)(NS6072) develops knowledge informing therapeutic interventions in the provision of holistic palliative care. 

• Clinical Practicum 2 (NS6402) facilitates the consolidation, integration and application of theory within practice.  

Year 2 

Autumn Semester  

• Dissertation 1 (NS6004) facilitates students to conduct work on a systematic/integrated review. 

Spring Semester 

• Dissertation 2 (NS6005) facilitates students to organise, prepare and present final research dissertation. 

Books and journal articles needed for the course will be available online through the UL Glucksman Library. 

For more information on each module, you can search the faculty, school and module code on UL’s Book of Modules 

• Applicants should hold a bachelor’s degree (NFQ Level 8) with at least a second-class honours, grade 2 (2:2) in any discipline.    

• Be a registered nurse on the current register of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. 

• Be engaged in practice as a registered nurse for at least one year. 

• Students are expected to work in a practice setting throughout the programme. 

• Successful applicants must have Garda clearance, health screening, CPR certification and vaccinations before placement (any costs will be covered by the student). More information on student vetting 

• If you don’t meet the standard entry requirements, see Other Entry Considerations below.    

Other Entry Considerations: 

We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet the standard entry requirements, as long as you can show that you have the knowledge, skills, and experience needed for the programme. 

At UL, we value all kinds of learning and support different ways to qualify through our Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy.  

International students:  

• For details on country-specific qualifications visit postgraduate entry requirements for international students. 

Checklist of documents:  

• *Academic transcripts and certificates – Translated if needed
  • UL graduates only need to provide their student ID number
• Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland current registration certificate
• Clinical Practice Environment Self-Assessment Audit Declaration
• Copy of your birth certificate or passport
• RPL form, if applicable. 

English Language: 

• English Language Competency certificate
• For details on accepted language qualifications visit English Language Requirements 

Guidelines on Completing your Application   

• To make sure we can review your application quickly, please:
  • Upload all documents. Your application can’t be reviewed until we have all the documents on the checklist. 
  • Title the documents you are uploading. For example, "Personal Statement", “Formal Identification”, “NMBI Registration”, "Undergraduate Transcript", "Postgraduate Transcript", “Clinical Practice Environment Self-Assessment Audit Declaration”, “Recognised Prior Learning", “English Language Certificate", etc. 
• *If you are waiting to graduate, submit your application with the documents you have to date, you don’t need to have finished final exams before applying. 

EU - €7,700 per annum*

Non-EU €7,700 per annum*

* Year 2 fees are subject to change 

Please note that international study visas are only available to students studying full-time in Ireland. Only the full-time version of this programme qualifies for a study visa.    

Annual fees are billed by semester. Once registered, students may be eligible to apply for a monthly payment plan.  

Further information on fees and payment of fees is available from the Student Fees Office  website. All fee related queries should be directed to the Student Fees Office (Phone: +353 61 213 007 or email student.fees.office@ul.ie).  

 
Funding 

Find further information on funding and scholarships.

The MSc Nursing (Palliative Care) can lead graduates to  become eligible for specialist and advanced practice roles across a variety of health care settings, supporting people with palliative care needs, as:  

• Clinical Nurse Specialist
• Advanced Nursing Practice  

Martina Barry, a graduate of the MSc Nursing (Palliative Care) shared her experience   

"I chose the MSc in Palliative Nursing to enhance my nursing knowledge and develop my critical thinking skills. Friends and colleagues of mine had previously studied at UL and had highly recommended the course.  

When I initially looked at the prospectus on MSc in Palliative Nursing, I was a little apprehensive. It appeared there was a lot of time commitment to complete the course. However, it is doable, it is achievable. It just takes time and scheduling, and a commitment to work/life balance to complete it. What I found most useful was the support of the library. My advice is to engage with them early during your time at UL. It has a very good writing centre and online database to help you resource the information that you need.   

All modules were relevant to my work in one form or another. One module that stands out in particular is the quality module which helped me use evidence based practice in developing a policy with regard to patient safety in the palliative unit.  

I would highly recommend the course."  

Still Curious?  

The team regularly host and take part in webinars to support future students. If you would like to learn more or ask questions at an online information session, click below.     

Online Information Sessions