Master of Advanced Nursing Practice

Graduates of the Master of Advanced Nursing Practice, will demonstrate specialist knowledge of:

1. The role of the nurse in advanced practice in various professional and political contexts, taking into consideration the legal, social, and ethical factors that underpin professional role development.
2. The scientific and theoretical basis for the health assessment of, and health management and health promotion with, patients and their families within a specific practice context.
3. The principles of transformational leadership and effective communication to participate in systems that support safe care, partnership and professional growth of themselves and others.
4. Research processes and methods including study design, data collection and analysis as well as scholarly writing for application to practice. 
5. Contemporary concepts of health leadership and management relevant to health services including standards, policies and legislation associated with specific practice contexts to promote safety and quality in healthcare.

The Master of Advanced Nursing Practice has been designed to meet the core skill requirements for advanced nursing practice. The program develops nursing competence, skills and knowledge in assessment, planning, implementation, diagnosis and evaluation of care from a specialist capacity.

Specialisations

• Acute Care Nursing 
• Critical Care Nursing
• Emergency Nursing
• Paediatric Nursing
• Professional Nursing.

Recommended study pattern

As a guide, core subjects in this degree can include:

• Advanced Health Assessment
• Quality and Safety in Healthcare
• Foundations of Research Inquiry
• Transforming and Leading Healthcare

Plus there’s a selection of specialisations to choose from. As part of your application, you’ll be guided through how to get the right degree structure in place for you.

Award requirements

Your program requirements are the set of academic requirements that are mandatory for the award associated with your program of study. If you do not adhere to your degree requirements, you may not be eligible to graduate.

For the award of Master of Advanced Nursing Practice (MAdvancedNPrac), you must successfully Complete 120 credit points for either of the following:

• 120 credit points for all Pathway 1 - duration 1 year (80CP of study and 40CP for prior learning), or
• 120 credit points for all Pathway 2 - duration 1.5 years (120CP of study)

The following requirements apply: 

• you are only eligible to graduate from the Master's program in the specialisation in which you are enrolled.

This degree may be awarded with Distinction where a student achieves a minimum program GPA of 6.5 with no failed courses. 

Open Universities Australia is a not-for-profit organisation. You will not pay any fees for using our services.

Indicative total fee $10,800

The amounts shown here are indicative for an Australian citizen studying full-time, which is typically 8 subjects per year.

Fees may vary depending on:

• the subjects you choose
• credit from previous work experience
• your eligibility for government funding loans or subsidies such as HECS-HELP or a Commonwealth supported place.

To learn more, go to Fees or contact a student advisor.

With a network of campuses spanning three cities in South East Queensland, Griffith University is committed to progressive multidisciplinary teaching and research and a valuable online provider with Open Universities Australia. Already attracting students from over one hundred countries, Griffith's dedication to academic excellence is available across Australia through OUA.

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QS World University Ranking 2025, within Australia:

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21

You can complete this program in 1 year or 1.5 years. The requirements for both durations are the same, if you wish to undertake a dissertation you should choose the 1.5 year duration

To be eligible for this program you must meet all of the following criteria:

1 year duration (80CP) and 1.5 year duration (120CP)

• a recognised Bachelor of Nursing degree (or higher)
• current or temporary, unrestricted registration as a registered nurse with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) or the professional registration body in your country of origin
• one year work experience as a registered nurse

Degrees from overseas institutions must be assessed as equivalent to a recognised Australian accredited qualification

Additional admission requirements

Critical Care Nursing specialisation:

• Current employment as a registered nurse, working with critical care presentations for a minimum of two days per week. A currently dated confirmation letter from your Nurse Unit Manager or Educator on your hospital letterhead must be submitted with your application

Emergency Nursing specialisation:

• Current employment as a registered nurse, working with emergency presentations for a minimum of two days per week. A currently dated confirmation letter from your Nurse Unit Manager or Educator on your hospital letterhead must be submitted with your application

Please be aware that Griffith University does not arrange registration or employment

English language requirements apply to International applicants and other applicants whose previous study was undertaken in a language other than English. The minimum English language requirements for such applicants for entry to this program are as follows:

• A minimum overall band score of 6.5 on IELTS (Academic) with no sub-score of less than 6.0
• OR a minimum score of 575 on TOEFL
• OR an internet-based (iBT) TOEFL score of 79 (no sub-score less than 19)
• OR no score less than 3+ in each skill of the ISLPR (conducted by ISLPR Language Services only)
• OR a minimum overall score of 176 (no score less than 169) on C1 Advanced (formerly Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English) or C2 Proficiency (formerly Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English)
• OR an overall score of 58 in the Pearson Test of English (Academic) with no score less than 50.

All applicants who hold current unrestricted registration as a Nurse with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) are deemed to have met the English language requirements for admission to the program due to the requirements outlined in the Registration Standard (English Language Skills) set by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA).

English test results must be no more than two years old.

The Direct Entry Program (DEP) pathway is not accepted for this program.

Applicants should refer to the English language requirements section of the following University procedure for exceptions to these overall requirements:

• Admission Procedure

Reduce the time it takes to finish your degree. You can apply to Griffith to recognise your prior learning, including: 

• Formal learning through courses completed at uni and TAFE. 
• Informal learning through workplace experience or volunteer training. 
• Non-formal learning through social experiences and hobbies.