Q's about the bachelor Of Midwifery Undergraduate degree

[~mamaspice~]

MG, Samantha & Feeb. Thanks so much for your replies. There are certainly pro's and cons either way aren't there.
I think I am going to do the BMid, especially if our local Uni - Griffith, starts the course in 2010. I don't think I'll be needing to work in any rural settings (don't think I'll ever be able to get DH to leave the Gold Coast) so that won't be a concern.
Griffith already has an affiliation with the current Gold Coast Hospital and in 2012 there will be an additional tertiary hospital opening here on the coast. They are calling it a Super Hospital. It will be as good as any of the major hospitals in the capital cities. No babies will ever have to be transfered to Brisbane from the Gold Coast again. In the postnatal ward every mother will have their own room with own bathroom and fridge etc. Also the SCN will have private rooms so mums can stay there right with their bubs. It's all very exciting and I'm very excited about the oportunity to be able to learn and possibly work in this hospital.
I guess if i do decide I'd like to be an RN I can always do it afterwards. I know it's the ass-about way of doing things but I really just want to be spending 3 years doing a degree that I enjoy and if BMid is going to give me more knowledge and experience in the field of mid first up, then I think it's the way to go for me.

Thanks again for your replies.

PS: feeb, not long now hey

[feeb]

Nope not long now i am so excited!!

[~mamaspice~]

How exciting Feeb, enjoy the rest of your pregnancy. It'll be over so quickly

Just a question guys. Where you work, do midwives who are also an RN get a higher rate of pay then those who are only RM's?
Not that it's all about the money for me because it isn't. An aquaintance of mine who is an RN & RM apparently gets a specialist rate of pay but I was wondering if that was maybe because she works for an agency.

[feeb]

You get paid the grade of nurse you are according to years of working (or if like me you have applied for CMS clinical midwife specilaist at that rate) plus a diploma allowance for having done post grad studie (its not much but better than nothing) you get paid more again if you have masters.

[3GirlsOnly]

Hi ladies....

I am currently first year of the dual degree of nursing/midwifery at UQ. It is very hard work, four full days a week and a heap of research is involved as it is basically self directed learning.

Studying at UQ is very different to other uni's because of the problem based learning/self directed study... I did first year nursing last year at QUT but applied to UQ for this year just to do the double degree.. because it is structured very differently, I was unable to get credit for most of what I have done previously however fortunately enough I loved what I did last year and did not find it a total waste of time!!

Anyway, if you have any questions, feel free to message me, or you can msn me on mum23girls@hotmail.com

Good luck with what you decide to do!!

[~mamaspice~]

Hi 3GO,

Oh what a bummer that you didn't get credits for all the subjects you did at QUT.
Do you go to the lectures every week at UQ Ipswich as well? Or just your PBL at the Mater?

Thanks for your email address. I probably will have some questions to bug you with

I've got my fingers crossed that Griffith will be starting the BMid in 2010. The course convenor will know for sure in August so I've got my

[3GirlsOnly]

Do you go to the lectures every week at UQ Ipswich as well? Or just your PBL at the Mater?

Hi! I really don't know why they say that the lectures are non compulsory... they are the basis of the course, your public health and anatomy and physiology. Yes, I go and would be so lost if I didn't!!

We do two 8 hour shifts a week.. could be 6am-2pm or 1/2pm-9/10pm, one day at the Mater for PBL and clinical skills, then lectures on Fri.

I like some aspects of the course, you only do one unit at a time that is the good thing... each week there is a approx. 600 word essay on a chosen topic from PBL... very self directed, one 1200 word assignment every 4 weeks (3 of them to do per semester) and one oral presentation every 4 weeks (three per semester. It is very research based. I like the integrated exam at the end of semester (yet to do it though!), they do one exam for the three units altogether. So there is one three/four hour exam at the end. However it is worth 50% of the course, so if you freeze up then there are no second chances!! I don't like the self directed aspect though. I need to be taught, I find it very hard to just read to learn, I need further clarification which doing it this way lacks IMO. I judt have my eye on the end product and just plug along!!

We moved from northside of Brisbane to just out of Ipswich, to be close to Uni and their library. Also on the northside where we were, I couldn't find anywhere that had availability for afterschool care... I had my name down at 10 centres with no luck. It has been a good move though because it encouraged hubby to find a new job that he is happier in.

Good luck, hope Griffith can offer you something! It is a great feeling when you know exactly what you want to do. It took me until I was 29 to get that feeling!!! I doubt that it will be long before there are direct entry Mid courses at all uni's!! It may be worth doing something related just to better your chances at getting in, as it is a very competitive course to enter into. Especially if it is a new course they are offering. QUT set their OP as 2 for the double degree, I chose UQ for their graduate reputatation though!

[Erica]

Hi
I too was tossing up whether to do a straight Bachelor of Midwifery or a combined Midwifery/Nursing degree for the reasons mentioned but after talking to a midwife at Griffith Uni I was reassured that if a Midwife is what I want to be then I should do just the BMid as a RM can do everything required of a midwife. I think I will be applying to Griffith to study BMid next year as the Logan campus and Logan Hospital are fairly close to home which will make life easier (with 2 kids at school). It would be great to study at UQ and if I could be based at the RWBH birth centre for clinical practice but the extra costs with travel, parking and the time and distance involved isn't practical for my situation. I've heard that BMid is a pretty full on degree - is it really hard work ? I would love to hear from any BMid students out there on the workload. Especially from girls doing the course at Griffith. I'm hoping to also continue working one day a week at a pharmacy. Am I totally insane?!?