University of Notre Dame Australia

Master of Nursing (Coursework) Online

  • Delivery: Online
  • Study Level: Postgraduate
  • Duration: 18
  • Course Type: Master's

Advance your nursing practice through postgraduate study, independent research and flexible pathways to specialist expertise.

Course overview

The Master of Nursing (Coursework) from The University of Notre Dame Australia is designed for practising registered nurses progressing from a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma in Nursing who wish to extend their professional expertise through postgraduate study. Delivered online over 1.5 years full-time (or the equivalent part-time), the program supports nurses to build advanced knowledge while preparing to practise at an advanced level.

Throughout the program, you will explore clinical governance, professional role development, healthcare management, evidence-based practice and ethical decision-making while tailoring your studies through approved postgraduate elective courses. A key component of the program is the opportunity to undertake an independent thesis focused on a topic relevant to your specialist area of nursing practice, allowing you to investigate an area aligned with your professional interests.

Supported by a dedicated research supervisor, you will develop the knowledge and research capabilities to complete your dissertation while applying research to contemporary nursing practice. The program also provides the opportunity to complete a specialisation in Clinical Nursing, Executive Leadership, Mental Health or Perioperative Nursing, enabling you to align your postgraduate studies with your professional goals.

Key facts

Delivery
Online
Course Type
Master's
Duration
More Information
Can be studied part time
18 (Full time)
Price Per Unit
From $3,225
More Information
The estimated fee is determined by individual units of study and the year the course was commenced.
Intake
8th February, 2027
12th July, 2027
Units
More Information
You may be required to complete 0 credit point units throughout your course. The university will confirm this as part of your enrolment.

The unit total reflects the number of units required for course completion, not the total credit point weight. Some units may be double- or triple-weighted, so the number of units you complete may be lower.
12
Fees
More Information
FEE-HELP loans are available to assist eligible full-fee paying domestic students.
FEE-HELP

What you will study

To earn the Master of Nursing (Coursework), you must successfully complete units totalling 300 credit points, as detailed below. Unless otherwise noted, each course is worth 25 credit points. 

Core units
  • Clinical Governance
  • Professional Role Development
  • Management
  • Evidence-Based Practice
  • Ethical Issues in Professional Life
  • Supervised Dissertation Nursing (50 credit points)
  • Project Proposal Development (50 credit points)
Elective units

Entry requirements

The program is open to registered nurses with a previous degree in nursing or equivalent and a minimum of one year of relevant post-registration nursing experience.

Recognition of Prior Learning

You may be eligible for recognition of prior learning if you have previously studied or have relevant work experience. This will help reduce the number of units you need to study to finish your course. Contact the university for more information.

Outcomes

Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of the Master of Nursing (Coursework), graduates will be able to:

  • Analyse and interpret nursing scenarios to provide evidence-based quality practice.
  • Use reflective practice techniques in various learning activities to promote professional practice.
  • Apply leadership and collaborative skills within an interprofessional health care environment.
  • Apply concepts of global, medico-legal, social and cultural diversity.
  • Identify the distinguishing characteristics of nursing research in terms of purposes, underlying assumptions and available methodologies.
  • Explore the principal paradigms employed in health and nursing research and differentiate between them in terms of their epistemological bases and their respective strengths and limitations in addressing different types of research.
  • Formulate research-friendly questions and align those questions with appropriate research designs, data collection procedures, techniques and data analysis.
  • Critique examples of research studies and models, identifying strengths and limitations of design that might threaten the findings' internal validity and generalisability (external validity).
  • Identify important ethical or other issues when conducting nursing research and apply value-appropriate safeguards to the interests of all stakeholders involved in a research project.
  • Apply advanced technical skills and reflective practice within the domain of nursing research.

Career outcomes

With a Master of Nursing (Coursework), you can pursue careers as a nurse unit manager, nurse practitioner, nurse educator, acute care nurse and clinical nurse.

Fees and FEE-HELP

Indicative annual fee in 2026: $38,700 (Full-fee paying place)

Indicative annual fees are based on your first year of study.

A student’s annual fee may vary by:

  • The number of units studied.
  • Choice of units.
  • Credit from previous study or work experience.
  • Eligibility for government-funded loans.

Student fees shown are subject to change. Contact the university directly to confirm.

FEE-HELP loans are available to assist eligible full-fee paying domestic students with the cost of a university program.