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Build on your qualifications and experience as a Registered Nurse and become a Midwife with JCU’s ANMAC-accredited Graduate Diploma of Midwifery.

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#1 in Australia

for median graduate salary 2024 Good Universities Guide, PG Nursing

#1 in Queensland

for skills development and teaching quality 2024 Good Universities Guide, PG Nursing

5 Stars

for student support and overall educational experience 2024 Good Universities Guide, PG Nursing

Online

This course requires some on-campus attendance

Online: February

$4,124.00⁺

$23,240.00^{^}

⁺estimated annual Commonwealth Supported Fee for a full-time study load

^{^}estimated annual tuition fee for a full-time study load

Plus Student Services and Amenities fee
Fee deferral and scholarships available if eligible

Fees currently displayed are indicative only. 2024 fees will be uploaded by October, 2023.

1.5 years part-time

AHPRA registration as a nurse; AQF level 7 degree in a health-related field or equivalent; minimum 12 months clinical experience; concurrent 0.4 FTE employment in a Midwifery unit

73907

What to expect

Combine core subjects with practical experience unique to JCU in this 1.5 year part-time course. Undertake continuous placement in a facility of your choice in Australia. Benefit from first-hand experience working with midwives in your local birthing suites, community midwifery services, private practice midwifery, maternity wards and special care nurseries.

Engage in your own continuity of midwifery care experience program. This will require you to follow women through attendance at antenatal appointments, labour, birth and the postnatal period throughout the course.

Complete two compulsory five-day residential schools at JCU's Townsville campus. These provide valuable opportunities to network and learn in a collaborative environment. You will also undertake focussed studies of Indigenous health and midwifery practice in rural, remote and tropical northern settings.

Enhance your current qualifications and pursue your passion. JCU Midwifery graduates are highly-skilled and valued health professionals.

View the Handbook for a detailed overview of core subjects, as well as pre-placement requirements.

Inherent requirements

Inherent requirements are the identified abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours that must be demonstrated, during the learning experience, to successfully complete a course. These abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours preserve the academic integrity of the University’s learning, assessment, and accreditation processes, and where applicable, meet the standards of a profession. For more information please review the inherent requirements for the Graduate Diploma of Midwifery.

Career Opportunities

JCU midwifery graduates work as midwives in a variety of settings, including public and private hospitals, birth centres and clinics, midwifery group practice, aeromedical services and neonatal care, education and rural and remote facilities.

Undertaking a Graduate Diploma may be credited towards further postgraduate studies for a degree at Masters level.

Handbook

Handbook year	Information valid for students commencing in 2024
Course code	73907
Course type	Graduate Diploma (AQF Level 8)
Professional Accreditation Status	This course is accredited by the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Accreditation Council (ANMAC). Graduates of this course will be eligible for registration as a Midwife with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA).
Division	Academy
College	Healthcare Sciences

Award Requirements

Admission Requirements

Course pre-requisites	Applicants must be registered as a nurse in Australia, and have completed an AQF level 7 bachelor degree in a health related field at this or another university; or have completed qualifications recognised as equivalent to the above; or submit as an exceptional case, evidence of professional attainments including professional experience in nursing. have completed a minimum of twelve (12) months clinical experience as a registered nurse. have concurrent placement arranged for a minimum 0.4FTE in a Midwifery unit.
Minimum English language proficiency requirements	Applicants of non-English speaking backgrounds must meet the English language proficiency requirements of Band 3a – Schedule II of the JCU Admissions Policy.
Additional selection requirements	Students must submit the following additional registration forms with application: Graduate Diploma of Midwifery Student Registration form Graduate Diploma of Midwifery Clinical Placement Agreement For more information, please see How to apply Information published by JCU or otherwise made available to students when applying, may specify additional criteria to be considered in ranking applicants in order of merit if the number of applications exceeds a quota or other limit on the places made available for the course. Information provided by applicants during the application process and any other information obtained by JCU in the application process may be used by JCU to rank applicants in order of merit by reference to those additional criteria.
Post admission requirements	Students must complete all professional experience placement requirements by the prescribed deadlines and maintain currency of these requirements in order to stay admitted in the course. You will find your course requirements here: https://www.jcu.edu.au/professional-experience-placement/preparation-checklists

Academic Requirements for Course Completion

Credit points

24 credit points

Additional completion requirements

Students are required to undertake a portion of the course via intensive and/or mixed attendance mode delivery (two 5-day residential schools at Townsville Campus). Students not resident in the Townsville region are required to arrange accommodation at their own expense.

This course includes extensive professional or clinical placements. Students are required to initiate their clinical placement arrangements at their chosen clinical site. To successfully complete the Graduate Diploma of Midwifery degree, students are required to recruit pregnant women who consent to the student attending and observing aspects of their care provision in a continuity of care model. Clinical agencies may require students to attend continuity of care experiences as additional to planned professional or clinical placements. Aspects of continuity of care experiences are likely to occur outside business hours.

Further information about placements can be found at

Coursework Enrolment Procedure.

Course learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, graduates will be able to:

Reflect critically on the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia standards for practice, behaviours, ethical frameworks and professional responsibilities of midwives
Design, implement and evaluate midwifery care that is evidence based and recognises every woman’s right to self-determination and autonomy in familiar, complex and challenging environments across the pregnancy continuum
Apply primary health care principles and knowledge of social determinants of health to develop and communicate culturally safe strategies to promote and optimise health, welfare and autonomy of childbearing women in Australia with specific reference to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families
Provide culturally appropriate care that is collaborative and in partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander childbearing women and their families across the pregnancy continuum in Australia
Evaluate and apply established and emerging evidence and concepts in midwifery practice with a woman centred approach
Demonstrate a high level of personal autonomy and accountability in managing own professional development, and contribute to the professional development of others.

Inherent Requirements

Inherent Requirements	Inherent requirements are the identified abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours that must be demonstrated, during the learning experience, to successfully complete a course. These abilities, attributes, skills, and behaviours preserve the academic integrity of the University's learning, assessment, and accreditation processes, and where applicable, meet the standards of a profession. For more information please visit: Postgraduate Midwifery.
Reasonable adjustments	All JCU students have the opportunity to demonstrate, with reasonable adjustments where applicable, the inherent requirements for their course. For more information please visit: Student Disability Policy and Procedure.

Course Structure

CORE SUBJECTS

NS5131:03 Foundations of Midwifery Practice

NS5132:03 Midwifery Care of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Families

NS5133:03 Healthy Labour, Birth and the Puerperium

NS5134:03 Challenges to the Pregnancy, Birth and Postnatal Continuum

NS5135:03 Complex Midwifery Care

NS5201:03 Research Design: Theory and Application

NS5214:03 Professional Midwifery Care

NS5225:03 Care of the “At Risk” Newborn

Location

COURSE AVAILABLE AT	NOTES
JCU Townsville

Candidature

Expected time to complete	1.5 years part-time
Maximum time to complete	4 years
Maximum leave of absence	1 year

Progression

Course progression requisites	Nil
Course includes mandatory professional placement(s)	Yes
Special assessment requirements	At the discretion of the College Dean, students may be required to undertake a prescribed English language test to ensure that they have an acceptable level of English language proficiency, including at least at the level required to be admitted to the course, to safely participate in professional experience placements.
Professional accreditation requirements	Must be registered as a Registered Nurse with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia. Under the National Law, JCU has a responsibility to notify the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) if a student undertaking midwifery practice experience has an impairment that may place the public at risk of harm.
Supplementary exam for final subject	Not applicable

Credit

Eligibility	Students may apply for a credit transfer for previous tertiary study or informal and non-formal learning in accordance with the Credit Transfer Procedure
Maximum allowed	Maximum 12 credit points (for formal study, or RPL, or a combination of formal study & RPL)
Currency	Credit will be granted only for studies completed in the 5 years prior to the commencement of this course.
Expiry	Credit gained for any subject shall be cancelled 9 years after the date of the examination upon which the credit is based if, by then, the student has not completed the course of study prescribed for the degree.
Other restrictions	Not applicable

Award Details

Award title	GRADUATE DIPLOMA OF MIDWIFERY
Approved abbreviation	GDipMid
Inclusion of majors on testamur	Not applicable, this course does not include majors
Exit with lesser award	Not applicable
Special awards	Students may receive an Award of Recognition in accordance with the Recognition of Academic Excellence Procedure

Fees and scholarships

Estimated annual Commonwealth Supported fee: $AUD4,124.00

Estimated annual tuition fee: $AUD23,240.00

A Student Services and Amenities fee is payable per subject up to a maximum amount per year.

A variety of Scholarships are available to suit different student types.

Pathways to JCU

Consult the admission requirements section in the Handbook for prerequisites and pathways into this course.

How to apply

Complete an online application through our Online Application Portal.

You are eligible for this course if you meet the following criteria:

Applicants must be registered as a nurse in Australia.
Have at least twelve (12) months clinical experience as a registered nurse as evidenced in a detailed curriculum vitae with description of roles.
Completed an AQF level 7 bachelor degree in a health related field at this or another university; or have completed qualifications recognised as equivalent to the above; or submit as an exceptional case, evidence of professional attainments including professional experience in nursing.
Have concurrent employment minimum 0.4 FTE in a Midwifery unit.

GDip Midwifery applicants are required to upload the following completed forms and required documentary evidence:

Graduate Diploma of Midwifery Student Application Form
a. Current NMBA RN Registration
b. Degree testamur or official academic transcript
c. Curriculum Vitae
Graduate Diploma of Midwifery Student Placement Agreement

Professional experience placement

Applicants are required to read the Graduate Diploma of Midwifery PEP Handbook prior to application.

Clinical requirements

Professional experience in the form of clinical placement is sought by the student. It is a requirement of the GDMid that all students secure a minimum of a 0.4 FTE clinical placement (either paid or supernumerary) at an approved clinical facility, for the duration of the course (18 months), prior to application.

How to secure a clinical position

Clinical Facilities usually advertise clinical positions for postgraduate midwifery students. You could also approach the midwifery educator at each facility and ask if they employ or support postgraduate midwifery students with clinical placement. We currently have Midwifery students in clinical positions in Central/Northern Queensland, Northern Territory (NT), New South Wales (NSW) and Western Australia (WA).

student

Hannah Read

Graduate Diploma of Midwifery

As a soon-to-be Midwifery graduate, I will forever be grateful for the support, guidance and world class education afforded to me. I am confident that because of my JCU Graduate Diploma of Midwifery I will be able to offer women and their families safe, evidence-based care.
Alumni

Zoe Robson

Graduate Diploma of Midwifery

Studying the Graduate Diploma of Midwifery through JCU has made the process of transitioning from a Registered Nurse to a Midwife truly enjoyable, and I recommend it to anyone that is eager to further their clinical skills and progress their career.
Lecturer

Helen Coxhead

Course Coordinator, Graduate Diploma of Midwifery

The JCU Graduate Diploma of Midwifery has a strong rural focus, with an emphasis on caring for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in order to improve maternal and neonatal outcomes. The course is designed for students to be able to build strong relationships and support the needs of their own communities.
Employer

Helen Weisemann

Midwifery Unit Manager, Mater Health Services NQ

I hire JCU graduates because they’re very resilient and resourceful, and they understand the requirements of working in rural and remote environments. They’re real assets to the team.