Would an access course or GCSE be more helpful?

[orangesa]

Hi,

I want to do midwifery but I don't have a GCSE science (I do for maths and English). I can either do an access course online for £1300 or a GCSE biology for £500. I work full time so haven't got the time to do both or the money. Which one would be better to get onto a midwifery degree? TIA

I would look into midwifery courses to see what they require and if poss talk to those on courses. (Don,t you need to do basic nursing first then specialise.). I would have thought an Access course as this is above GCSE level isn,t it.

Don,t you need to do basic nursing first then specialise

No, Midwifery via the direct entry route has been around for years.

I would second speaking to the university/ies to which you intend to apply, though.

Entry requirements will be on the unis website and you can email them.

Ask the admissions teams at the schools of midwifery you would want to apply to. There's no point in guessing.

Do you not need a science at A Level too? The standard for university is your maths English and science GCSE so personally I'd take that route, no point wasting money, but do you not need a level 3 qualification which is essentially A Levels or a college course

An access course would be better in content and teaching study skills in preparation for the Midwifery course.

I'd check the entry requirements for your preferred uni, an access course would be good to get you used to writing assignments and researching again if you haven't done this for a while?

I've recently completed an access course through college which was run a couple of nights a week to fit around work. I was given an advanced learner loan (I think it was called) through student finance which if you go on to uni afterwards doesn't have to be paid back. I would speak to your local college to discuss your options and requirements to get into midwifery.

I'm currently doing an access to midwifery course at my local college.

GCSE alone will not be enough you will need level 3 qualifications and they need be of a high grade too. Most of the universities I have applied to require 120 UCAS points. Some also specify a science GCSE even if you have a level 3 science.

You'd be best of going to speak to someone at your local college.

Someone has already mentioned this I think but you can get a loan that covers the cost of the access course and if you complete your degree within a certain time frame it is written off.

Maths and English GCSE's are free not sure about science though.

I'm doing my maths GCSE as a night class alongside my access course. I work part time and have 4 DC too so it's definitely doable to do both at the same time.

Please be very careful about on-line access courses. I know someone who paid for one with similar aims to you and found it far too difficult because she didn't have Science GCSEs - they expected either Double science or all 3 Science GCSEs. The college took the student on and wouldn't refund her fees when she found out the course wasn't suitable for her.
If you take an Access to Health/nursing course at a local college (part-time may be possible) then you are OK with just Maths and English. Local colleges can also help with work experience and other aspects of a university application.