Nursing - Gerontology

Course Overview

This programme is for all nurses caring for older people in acute, community or long-term care settings. The programme recognises the need to enable and empower people to age with confidence, security and dignity. It also acknowledges the need for gerontological nurses to attain postgraduate specialist knowledge, skill and competence to effectively work with older people to achieve their individual goals and ambitions about their personal health and wellness. The programme aims to equip nurses with the broad skills needed to meet the needs of older persons across a wide variety of settings acknowledging older people as valuable active citizens who deserve the support and empowerment of service provision to enact a fulfilled life.



This programme is offered full-time over two calendar years. On completion of both theoretical and clinical modules in Year 1, you have the option of completing a Postgraduate Diploma or (if you have achieved the minimum 60% average mark across these modules) you may progress onto the second year to complete the MSc programme.



A blended learning approach is adopted in the delivery of this programme. Students are required to attend face to face workshops for an average of 12 days during the academic year. As a Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI) requirement students are required to complete a minimum of 500 clinical working hours caring for older persons in order to complete the programme.



Special Features

The course has a clinical focus, offering opportunities to develop specialist skills in gerontological nursing. The programme is offered through a blended learning format—a combination of online and face-to-face learning and teaching. Blended learning is an innovative and flexible approach to learning, making it possible to combine working full-time with studying. This course is approved by The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland.

Year 1 (60 Credits)

Required NU623: Clinical Governance: Supporting Safe Practice

Required NU921: Clinical Competence 1

Required NU6102: Ageing & Older People: Biopsychosocial Perspecti

Required NU6103: Contemporary Issues in Gerontological Nursing

Required NU6439: Service Improvement

Required NU634: Dementia Care: Transforming Practice

Required NU502: Advanced Research Methods

Required NU922: Clinical Competence 2

Year 2 (30 Credits)

Required NU6515: Research Dissertation

Be a registered nurse on the General Nurse or Psychiatric or Intellectual Disability division of the register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI); 



Have a minimum of one year of post-registration experience (exclusive of post-registration courses); 



Be currently employed as a nurse in a setting where he/she has opportunities to care for older people and have a minimum of 6 months experience in this specific clinical setting; 



Satisfy the selection panel of ability to complete the programme;



Provide written evidence of support from their Director of Nursing and Clinical Unit Manager guaranteeing practice placement in a setting where he/she has an opportunity to care for older person patients/clients for the duration of the programme. Alternatively, where necessary, agreement that the applicant is facilitated to undertake additional practice in a suitable placement setting focused on care of the older person.; 



Have an honours bachelor’s degree at NFQ Level 8 in nursing or a comparable qualification. Applicants who do not hold an Honours degree or Higher Diploma (Level 8) or Postgraduate Diploma (Level 9) must demonstrate that they have successfully completed (in the previous four years) a module at Level 9. Please consult the professional credit awards at Level 9 at: www.universityofgalway.ie/pca/pca.html. 

2 Years Full Time

Next start date September 2025



Closing Date 30 June 2026

In the educational preparation of nursing colleagues who complete the PGDip/Masters of Health Science (Gerontology) programme the ethos of viewing “later years as a time of new beginnings and new possibilities” is paramount.



This programme develops your skills and knowledge to support the achievement of individual optimum health and well-being in older age adapting a biopsychosocial focus moving beyond the considerations of absence of disease and infirmity while embracing the older person’s complete physical, mental and social well-being.



The PGDip/Masters of Health Science (Gerontology) equips you with the broad skills needed to meet the needs of older persons across a wide variety of settings acknowledging older people as valuable active citizens who deserve the support and empowerment of service provision to enact a fulfilled life. 



Graduates of this programme have gone on to complete further studies as clinical nurse specialist, advanced nurse practitioners and PhDs. Graduates have also developed their professional careers becoming clinical nurse managers, directors of nursing, clinical nurse specialists, advanced nurse practitioners and community nurse practitioners.