Nursing is estimated to be a subject that many people want to study when they are children because professions such as nurses and doctors have always felt very sacred and great. Many schools offer Hong Kong Top Masters courses for interested students to enroll.
When I was young, I believe that everyone has the experience of going to the hospital. Watching those doctors and nurses in white clothes walking by your side, or the nurses gently giving you injections, disinfecting, and calming your emotions. Even if your physique is different from that of ordinary people, and you rarely have the experience of going to the hospital, you can’t escape watching TV dramas about medical staff on TV. These experiences have planted seeds in everyone’s hearts and made your idea of becoming a nurse take root.
Nursing department background and purpose
The first impression of the nursing department is similar to that of a doctor. It is to provide services to treat patients. But after careful consideration, nurses are actually the profession closest to patients. When it comes to nurses, one has to know Nightingale, who laid the foundation for the development of modern nurses. If you don’t want to study nursing, then you can also take a masters in Japanese translation and a degree in Chinese.After you work in the future, you can work as a translator in a company or CUHK Teaching Assistantship.The Department of Nursing is constantly changing as society develops, training high-quality nurses for society. At the same time, the global population is experiencing an aging problem, and Hong Kong is no exception. Therefore, the Department of Nursing now has an additional PhD program called the Bachelor of Science in Gerontology, which specifically addresses the nursing problems encountered under the changing social demographic structure. Some schools also provide Hong Kong Postgraduate Scholarship, so that students have more opportunities to study.The goal of the Department of Nursing includes training nursing staff and promoting the development of nursing science.
How do I know if I am suitable for the nursing department?
Some people choose the nursing department because of their passion for nurses, some choose the nursing department because of the better salary of nurses, and some people choose the nursing department because of family reasons. But are those who choose the nursing department for these reasons really suitable for the nursing department? The answer is unpredictable.
First of all, it must be understood that after studying in the Department of Nursing, the first thing to bear is to become a nurse and medical staff. At the same time, you are faced with various problems that follow. This is not just the injection and disinfection work you expected. In the work of a nurse, you must face all the emotional and psychological problems of the patient and his family. In work tasks, you also need to clean up the wounds of the patient. It may be that bloody scenes are often seen, which may be accompanied by extremely unpleasant smells, which are commonplace for nurses.
Then during the nursing department, you can’t avoid the need to go through the internship stage. This scene of long-term practice is completely different from the previous learning of knowledge and listening theory in school. After becoming a nurse, the work scene is not limited to hospitals, it can include nursing homes, clinics, and other places, and even the hospitals are subdivided into different departments. If the nurse in the operating room needs to be under high pressure for a long time, a little carelessness will affect the life safety of the patient. Therefore, it is not uncommon for nurses to face the death of a patient. They must have a strong heart.
What courses can I choose from the nursing department? (Take the Nursing Department of CUHK as an example)
1. Bachelor of Nursing Course
The purpose of this course is to train students to become registered nurses in general medicine, to train students to have a good theoretical knowledge base and sufficient practical ability, and finally be able to join the society as a nurse who promotes public health. The following is the course content (due to too much course content, here are only examples of three major subjects)
(1) The origin and development of nursing
(2) Basic Pharmacology
(3) Compound health problems and needs
2. Bachelor of Science in Gerontology
This course is set up to train students to be specifically responsible for the health issues of the elderly and community care issues and to improve students’ relevant knowledge through theoretical knowledge and practice. Finally, become a professional with sufficient ability to promote development in the field of elderly care. The following is the course content (due to too much course content, here are only examples of three major subjects)
(1) Basic Care in Gerontology
(2) Elderly chronic disease management
(3) Elderly Health and Social Care Service Policy
3. Master of Nursing Philosophy and Doctoral Program
The nature of this course is not similar to other courses. This course is mainly research-oriented. Research under the guidance of senior professors to promote the development of nursing. The following are the course requirements:
(1) Complete 12 credits of taught subjects
(2) Dissertation research subjects
(3) Weekly research seminars
4. Doctor of Nursing Course
This course is mainly part-time and lasts for four years. Mainly in the form of practice, students are trained to have higher clinical and leadership skills and be able to deal with crises. The following is the course content (due to too much course content, here are only examples of three major subjects)
(1) Global Advanced Nursing Practice
(2) Applied Biosciences in Advanced Nursing Practice
(3) Health Information System and Patient Care Technology
5. Master of Nursing Program
This course is mainly part-time and lasts for two years. Train students to combine the theoretical knowledge base with practice, and be able to apply them to the field of clinical specialty. The following is the course content (due to too much course content, here are only examples of three major subjects)
(1) Clinical reasoning and decision-making in advanced nursing practice
(2) Topics of Contemporary Advanced Nursing Practice
(3) Advanced health assessment and diagnostic survey
6. Master of Nursing Science (pre-registration) course
This is a full-time course in the form of credits and lasts no more than three years. So that undergraduate graduates who wish to become registered nurses can acquire relevant nursing knowledge and abilities by taking this course. After passing the course, you can obtain the professional qualification of a registered nurse (general) of the Nursing Council of Hong Kong. The following is the course content (due to too much course content, here are only examples of three major subjects)
(1) Basic Nursing
(2) Applied Psychology and Nursing
(3) Social Science, Health and Nursing
Ranking of Hong Kong Nursing Department
The first school in Hong Kong to establish nursing is the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, but it has been ranked lower than the Chinese University of Hong Kong in recent years. In the 2019-2020 QS World University Rankings by Subject (Nursing), the Chinese University of Hong Kong ranks 21st, while the Hong Kong Polytechnic University ranks 31st, followed by the University of Hong Kong at 39th.
2019-2020 QS World University Rankings by Subject (Nursing)
| University name | Ranking |
| The Chinese University of Hong Kong | 21 |
| The Hong Kong Polytechnic University | 31 |
| The University of Hong Kong | 39 |
CUHK Nursing Department Admission Requirements and CUHK Nursing Department Scores
The admission requirements of the Department of Nursing at CUHK are a bit different from other subjects. Priority will be given to some elective subjects for admission to the Department of Nursing. According to the admission requirements of the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Bachelor of Nursing program, students who have passed the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination must meet the third level of Chinese and English, and the second level of mathematics and general education. Also, two elective subjects are required to reach the third level. Among these two elective subjects, if the elective subjects are biology/chemistry/combined science/integrated science/physics, priority will be given. If you are a non-JUPAS or non-local student, you need to meet the academic requirements of the GCE Advanced Level Test / International Advanced Level Test / International Baccalaureate University Preparatory Course / Associate Degree / Advanced Diploma.
If it is a master’s or doctoral degree program in the Department of Nursing, CUHK, you need to refer to the relevant requirements of the Graduate School of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and you can apply for admission if you meet the specified requirements.
According to the average score for admission to the Chinese University of Hong Kong in Nursing with Hong Kong Diploma Examination results from 2019 to 2020, the upper quartile is as high as 5 points, and both the middle and lower quartiles require 4.8 points. If calculated based on 6 subjects, the total score needs to reach about 29 points to ensure successful admission.
Job content after becoming a nurse
Nurses need to deal with different cases and situations every day, so they will also have different work requirements in different departments. The following lists the general tasks that general nurses need to do.
- (1) Assess the patient’s health
- (2) Provide advice on disease prevention
- (3) Administer drugs and monitor related reactions
- (4) Teach patients and their families how to care for injuries
- (5) Explain how to use drugs at home
- (6) Assist doctors in treating patients
- (7) Operate and monitor medical equipment
- (8) Keep medical records
The way out of nursing and the salary situation
Nursing graduates of CUHK can immediately become registered nurses and work in hospitals, community healthcare institutions, clinics, and other places.
According to the civil servant salary situation announced by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government in February 2020, the starting salary for registered nurses has reached HK$31750. The following will list the corresponding salary and treatment of nurses at all levels.
| Position | Minimum Salary (HKD) |
| Registered nurse | 31750 |
| Head Nurse | 53500 |
| Senior Head Nurse | 74515 |
| Chief Nurse | 93710 |
| District Chief Nurse | 117580 |
| Chief Nurse | 150950 |
*(The above content is for reference only, please refer to the relevant official website for specific data and requirements)