Program Overview

Overview of the Midwifery Program

The Midwifery program at Trinity College Dublin is a four-year, full-time course that leads to a B.Sc. (A.Obs.) Honours Bachelor Degree (NFQ Level 8). The program is designed to provide students with the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary to become a midwife.

Program Details

• Duration: 4 years full-time
• Degree: B.Sc. (A.Obs.) Honours Bachelor Degree (NFQ Level 8)
• Places: 44
• CAO Points: 487 (2024)
• CAO Code: TR913

What is a Midwife and Midwifery?

Midwifery is a profession that involves caring for women and their families during pregnancy, childbirth, and the post-natal period. Midwives play a vital role in promoting and maintaining health, facilitating normal childbirth, and helping women make informed choices about their care.

Core Concepts of Midwifery

The core concepts of midwifery include:

• Normality: Childbirth is viewed as a normal event in the life cycle.
• Woman-centred: The focus of midwifery practice is on pregnant women and their families.
• Respect: Midwifery care is delivered in a manner that respects the uniqueness and dignity of each person.
• Partnership: Partnerships between the woman and the midwife are fundamental to midwifery practice.
• Client first: Decisions about an individual midwife's scope of practice should always be made with the woman's and her family's best interests foremost.
• Evidence-based: Midwifery practice is based on the best available evidence.
• Advocacy: Midwifery practice involves advocacy for the individual woman and her family.

Midwifery at Trinity

The School of Nursing and Midwifery at Trinity College Dublin has a world-renowned reputation and courses are taught by academics at the top of their profession. The School is ranked first in the Republic of Ireland and 26th in the world in the QS World University Subject Rankings 2024.

Course Structure

The course covers areas such as:

• Midwifery practice
• Communication and interpersonal skills
• Professional, personal, ethical, and legal issues
• Biological sciences
• Psychology
• Pharmacology and non-pharmaceutical approaches
• Social theory for midwifery practice
• Research
• Health promotion
• Maternal and social care services in Ireland

Clinical Placements

Students will begin their first midwifery clinical placement in October of the first year of the course. The first three years combine learning in university and clinical midwifery practice in the maternity hospitals. The final year includes a 36-week period of internship in midwifery practice.

Assessment

Assessment of learning in midwifery practice is an important component of the course and will take place throughout the course.

Study Abroad

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.

Admission Requirements

• Leaving Certificate: O6/H6 in Mathematics and O6/H6 in one of Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Physics/Chemistry, or Agricultural Science
• GCSE: Grade C/5 in Mathematics and Grade C/5 in one of Biology, Physics, or Chemistry
• International Baccalaureate: IB SL Grade 4 Mathematics and IB SL Grade 4 in one of Physics, Chemistry, or Biology
• Mature Students: Applicants are not required to submit a mature-student supplementary application form to Trinity
• English Language Requirements: All applicants to Trinity are required to provide official evidence of proficiency in the English language

Course Fees

For a full list of undergraduate fees, please refer to the relevant section of the university's website.

Graduate Skills and Career Opportunities

On completion of this course, the student will be eligible to apply for registration as a midwife on the midwives division of the Nurses and Midwives Register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. The course offers an excellent foundation for career advancement in midwifery and further health-related studies.