Course information
Taught by School of Healthcare
Course description
Course description
Please note, this course is being advertised subject to approval.
Effective and efficient leadership is crucial to the smooth running of healthcare. On this international postgraduate Masters, you will gain enhanced clinical and academic skills, including but not limited to NHS leadership skills. It offers a potential route to NMC registration via OSCE to practice as a mental health nurse.
Led by the School of Healthcare, our nursing degrees draw on the experience and expertise of 50 years of health education at the University of Leicester, partnerships with regional National Health Service (NHS) trusts.
Our Mental Health Nursing Practice with Leadership MSc for international students enables you to progress your nursing career in the UK. As a Masters programme the course will provide you with opportunities to engage in research, leadership, strategy and transformation within the NHS, including provider collaboration.
You will graduate with a high-level qualification and the leadership skills to support you with UK and international employability options, along with an international career progression plan.
For the first half of the course, you will study compassion-focused care for vulnerable people experiencing mental health conditions. Content will cover biological, psychological and social factors that can impact mental health and recovery.
Leadership teaching will enable you to develop your own leadership knowledge and skills, with a focus on lifelong learning and professional practice, including specific interview preparation, presentation skills and numeric skills.
While at Leicester, you will have access to our superb facilities, which include a state-of-the-art Clinical Skills Unit with high-tech simulated mannequins to enable you to practise procedures in a safe environment.
However, practical real-world experience is a vital part of your training. You will spend the second half of the course on a nursing placement with a mental health NHS Trust or private provider, working alongside experienced nurses and the multidisciplinary team. Through these placements, you will develop skills that enable you to act compassionately and professionally in a wide variety of clinical situations.
The University of Leicester has close connections with both Acute and mental health provider Trusts in the Leicester.
Entry requirements
Entry requirements
- Bachelor degree in Nursing
- Applicants should also be a registered nurse and will be on the Indian nursing register
English Language Requirements
- IELTS Academic: 7.0 overall and at least 7.0 in Reading, Listening and Speaking, and 6.5 in Writing.
- Cambridge OET: B/350 overall and at least B/350 in Reading, Listening and Speaking, and C+/300 in Writing.
Tests must have been taken within two years of the course start date.
Selection process
When considering your application, we will look for evidence that you will be able to fulfil the objectives of the course and achieve the standards required. We will take into account a range of factors including academic achievement. Suitable applicants will be invited for a values based Multiple Mini Interview (MMI).
Fees and funding
Careers and employability
Careers and employability
This course enables you to kick-start your nursing career in Leicester and the UK. You will graduate with a high-level qualification and leadership skills to support an international career progression plan.
Once you graduate, you will have access to employability options around the UK and Internationally. Mental health nursing is a rewarding and progressive career pathway and there is a high demand for mental health registered nurses.
There will be opportunities for employment within NHS mental health trusts, private mental health providers, as well as international career development opportunities.
Our Careers and Employability Service is here to support you, with advice on interviews, CVs, work experience, volunteering and more. From Freshers’ Week to Graduation and beyond, they are here to help you reach your professional goals.
Course structure
Semester 1
Semester 1
- Preparing for safe and evidence-based clinical practice
- Preparing for mental health nursing practice
- Preparing to manage and lead care in mental health
- Managing and leading care in mental health practice (year long)
The modules listed reflect those currently available to students. Every year, we review our modules and their content to ensure that our courses maintain the best academic and student experience possible. Whilst this does mean elements of your course may change in future academic years, it ensures your course is giving you a research-inspired education and preparing you for your future.
Semester 2
Semester 2
- Mental health nursing in practice
- Evidence into practice
- Managing and leading care in mental health practice (year long)
The modules listed reflect those currently available to students. Every year, we review our modules and their content to ensure that our courses maintain the best academic and student experience possible. Whilst this does mean elements of your course may change in future academic years, it ensures your course is giving you a research-inspired education and preparing you for your future.
Placement
Placement
You will have a placement in a mental health provider NHS Trust or private mental health provider within the East Midlands. You will be expected to learn and develop your clinical skills during your placement, but you will also receive regular support from the University lecturers and academic assessors.
You will undertake self-directed learning in preparation for assessments, leadership portfolios and projects with virtual learning sets, where you share clinical, leadership and research experiences, present your work on your modules for feedback and meet with personal tutors.
The modules listed reflect those currently available to students. Every year, we review our modules and their content to ensure that our courses maintain the best academic and student experience possible. Whilst this does mean elements of your course may change in future academic years, it ensures your course is giving you a research-inspired education and preparing you for your future.
Why Leicester
Healthcare education at the University of Leicester has been established for 50 years. This means you'll learn from a dedicated team of experts with a huge amount of experience in training you to succeed. You'll have the opportunity to study inter-professionally alongside students from other healthcare areas, including physiotherapy, midwifery and medicine.
Get all the practical experience you need. Nursing placements allow you to develop your clinical skills, enhance your professional competencies and experience a whole variety of real-life scenarios.
Enhance your skills with superb facilities, including our state-of-the-art Clinical Skills Unit, which offers high tech simulated patients to enable you to perfect your clinical procedures.
We were the first UK university offering nursing degrees with an integrated leadership component. Develop the skills and knowledge to be a healthcare leader.
Teaching and learning
Our priority is to ensure that you can function safely, competently and effectively in the core areas of nursing practice immediately after you graduate. On all modules, you will receive core teaching to introduce the module and expected learning outcomes aligned to the assignment.
We use a wide range of teaching and learning methods, including lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops, group tutorials, pre-recorded lectures, pre-reading research papers, pre and post session activities, practice placement supervision, virtual seminars, academic assessor support and simulations.
Assessment
We employ a variety of assessment methods to evaluate your ability to apply both knowledge and skills to real-world clinical problems and patient care. These methods are tailored to the specific subject matter and the practical demands of a nurse's role. Assessment methods include:
- Mental health simulation
- Group presentation
- Research papers, portfolio and poster
- Practice portfolio
- EPAD
- Case-based discussion
- Evidence-based practice presentation
- Personal development plan
- Management and leadership plan
- Critical evaluation of management and leadership experiences
- Open book clinical assessment paper (case studies)
- Complex patient presentation and discussion
- Leadership portfolio
- Clinical leadership discussion
- Mental health leadership/change management assignment
Placement
Students will need to complete a written assessment for registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC). All students will be supported to take the NMC OSCE assessment prior to starting their mental health hospital placement.
Key dates
April 2026 start
- Application deadline: TBC
- Deposit payment deadline: TBC
- CAS request deadline: TBC
Apply now
| Course | Qualification | Duration | Start Dates | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Course Mental Health Nursing Practice with Leadership | Qualification MSc | Duration 1 year, full-time | Start Dates April 2026 |
Availability
This course is being advertised subject to approval. |
