University home > Unit and programme catalogues in 2021/22 > Programme catalogue > Faculty of Health Sciences > Bristol Veterinary School > Veterinary Nursing and Companion Animal Behaviour (BSc) > Specification
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Programme code | 8VESC003U |
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Programme type | Single Honours |
Programme director(s) |
Gemma Irwin-Porter
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Faculty | Faculty of Health Sciences |
School/department | Bristol Veterinary School |
Teaching institution | University of Bristol |
Awarding institution | University of Bristol |
Accrediting types: |
Accredited by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) for the purpose of eligibility for registration as a veterinary nurse with that body. (http://www.rcvs.org.uk/) |
Relevant QAA subject benchmark groups | Veterinary Nursing (2019) (benchmark statement) |
Mode of study | Full Time |
Programme length | 4 years (full time) |
The BSc Veterinary Nursing and Companion Animal Behaviour will equip students with the specialist knowledge and practical skills associated with the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of problematic behaviours in companion animals, while also preparing the students for entry into the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Register of Veterinary Nurses. The programme sits within the globally renowned Animal Welfare and Behaviour group at Bristol School of Veterinary Sciences and is headed by a team of internationally recognised experts in companion animal behaviour research, putting students at the forefront of new developments in animal behaviour. The programme aims to produce professionals with an excellent understanding of the development, diagnosis and treatment of behavioural disorders in companion animal species, and specifically fulfils the requirements for both the academic requirement and level 1 practical requirement for certification as a Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CCAB) by the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour, the only independent accreditation body for the profession in the UK.
Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning and Teaching Methods |
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Level C: lectures, small group tutorials, web-based materials, practicals |
Methods of Assessment | |
Level C: combinations of multiple choice questions, viva voce examinations, short answer written exams and course work |
Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning and Teaching Methods |
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As A above plus throughout the programme, students are encouraged to become increasingly reflective in order to enhance their ability to develop clinical practice. |
Methods of Assessment | |
The format of assessments moves increasingly to strategies intended to allow students to display their ability to critically evaluate and synthesise information. This is reflected in the assessment criteria of the research project and in viva voce examinations, for example. |
Programme Intended Learning Outcomes | Learning and Teaching Methods |
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Tutorials and discussions are used widely to allow students to develop a professional identity. |
Methods of Assessment | |
As B above. In addition, a portfolio of evidence (The Nursing Progress Log) is collected to demonstrate the acquisition of key clinical competences and skills to meet the performance to the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Day One Skills and Competencies for Registered Veterinary Nurses. |
Statement of expectations from the students at each level of the programme as it/they develop year on year.
Level C/4 - Certificate |
At this level, students are developing the skills that are required for the higher levels, notably the abilities to use information provided to demonstrate an understanding of basic anatomy, physiology, pre-clinical science, animal management and basic nursing care. In the clinical environment they are working as pre-professionals and gaining clinical skills which match their underpinning knowledge at this level. |
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Level I/5 - Intermediate |
At this stage, students are learning to synthesise information to a greater degree and to be able to present it with confidence in the written and oral forms. They are also increasingly reflecting upon their own experiences and upon the information available to them from elsewhere. |
Level H/6 - Honours |
Students are developing the knowledge and skills required of professionally qualified veterinary nurses. In the clinical environment, they are increasingly working to the same level as professionally qualified (non-degree) veterinary nurses and can become involved with daily administration of the practice |
The intended learning outcome mapping document shows which mandatory units contribute towards each programme intended learning outcome.
For information on the admissions requirements for this programme please see details in the undergraduate prospectus at http://www.bristol.ac.uk/prospectus/undergraduate/ or contact the relevant academic department.
UG Workload Statement
Success as an undergraduate student depends on you being able to make the transition to self-motivated, independent learning. Programmes are designed to assist you in this development, in many cases by starting with units in which timetabled teaching, such as lectures and practical classes, provides the foundations of knowledge and skills in a subject, moving on to individual research-based work. Over time you will be expected to take increasing responsibility for your own learning, guided by the feedback on your work that you will receive. At the heart of your studies at every level there must be regular and disciplined individual reading, reflection and writing and it is this skill of independent studies, above all others, that will serve you best when you leave the University.
Most programmes use credits and a 20 credit unit broadly equates to about 200 hours of student input. This includes all activities related to the teaching, learning and assessment of taught units.
A component of this is the time that you spend in class, in contact with the teaching staff, which includes activities such as lectures, laboratories, tutorials and fieldwork. Some of this activity may be online and could consist of activity that is synchronous (using real-time environments such as Blackboard Collaborate) or asynchronous (using tools such as tutor moderated discussion forums, blogs or wikis).
In some programmes there are field courses and/or placements that will take place in concentrated periods of time.
Outside scheduled activities you are expected to pursue your own independent learning to build your knowledge and understanding of the subjects you are studying. Such independent activities include, reviewing lecture material, reading textbooks, working on examples sheets, completing coursework, writing up laboratory notes, preparing for in-class progress tests and revising for examinations.
We recognise that many students undertake paid employment. To achieve a sensible balance between work and study, you are advised to undertake paid work for no more than 15 hours per week in term-time.
Professional Programmes
Many undergraduates in the Faculty of Health Sciences will be following the professional programmes of:
For these professional programmes, full time attendance is compulsory unless absence is formally approved. Academic activities are timetabled throughout the 5-day week and student workload is around 40 hours per week on average. Where possible, students in the early years are permitted Wednesday afternoons for sport and extra-curriculum activities. This may not be available in later years of professional programmes as when a student progresses through the curricula there is an increasing exposure to clinical and professional activities. Students in clinic or on placements may need to stay later than core times of 08.00 – 18.00 or even overnight to observe out-of-hours activities. This increasing exposure to clinical activities means that students on these professional programmes often have longer term dates than the University standard. Individual years within programmes are likely to vary in length (for example because of the timings of placements) and further information on this will be found in individual programme regulations. Another important point to note is that many of the assessments sit outside of the standard University examination timetable and are likely to be more frequent meaning that students will more oftentimes be engaged in revision activities and self-directed learning.
Faculty of Health Sciences
Faculty Assessment and Feedback Statement for Undergraduate Students. University of Bristol access only.
A key part of the BSc (Hons) Veterinary Nursing & Companion Animal Behaviour programme is the need to complete no less than 1800 hours of clinical experience at RCVS approved Training Practices (TP) which work in partnership with the School. This will enable entry onto the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Register of Veterinary Nurses at the point of graduation. The School makes these placements when they occur during the academic period. The completion of the RCVS Day One Skills for Veterinary Nurses (Nursing Progress Log) and the RCVS Day One Competencies (within a minimum of 94 weeks of education) are requirements to allow entry onto the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Register of Veterinary Nurses.
In addition to the fees for the programme, a student may encounter the following costs:
Year 1 of Study
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Enrolment Fee - £202
Year 2 of Study
No anticipated course costs.
Year 3 of Study
Students will need to budget for travel costs to mandatory placements/ rotations which may be up to 50 miles from the School – Travel costs are estimated at approx £1200 per year.
*Financial support available *
Year 4 of Study
Students may incur costs whilst completing optional field trips during their research project - Amount will depend on where project conducted. May incur travel/accommodation costs £100-£300.
Some students may elect to complete placements that incur additional travel/accommodation costs (eg overseas projects). Amount will depend on the location of the placement.
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Fee - £64
*Financial support available *
*In addition please budget for travel & accommodation costs for extra mural studies (EMS) placements throughout the Programme- Average expenditure for a 2 week placement is £152 for a large animal and £119 for small animal*
Future years
Please note it is possible that the information shown for future academic years may change, primarily due to developments in the relevant academic field.
Gemma Irwin-Porter, Programme Director
email: gemma.irwin-porter
Unit Name | Unit Code | Credit Points | Status | |
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Anatomical Science 1A | ANAT10008 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Anatomical Science 1B | ANAT10009 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-2 |
Principles and Practice of Primary Veterinary Nursing | VETS10014 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Pre-Clinical Science | VETS10005 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Physiology 1A | PHPH10017 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Physiology 1B | PHPH10018 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-2 |
Certificate of Higher Education | 120 |
Unit Name | Unit Code | Credit Points | Status | |
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Clinical Veterinary Nursing Theory | VETS20019 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Companion Animal Behaviour | VETS20018 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Veterinary Anatomy 1 | ANAT20001 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Veterinary Anatomy 2 | ANAT20007 | 20 | Mandatory | TB-2 |
Diploma of Higher Education | 120 |
Unit Name | Unit Code | Credit Points | Status | |
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Clinical Nursing Practice | VETS20022 | 80 | Mandatory | AYEAR |
Professional Veterinary Nursing Practice | VETS20023 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Diploma of Higher Education | 120 |
Unit Name | Unit Code | Credit Points | Status | |
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Research Methods and Dissertation | VETS30035 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Applied Clinical Veterinary Nursing | VETS30036 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-1 |
Clinical Skills in Companion Animal Behaviour | VETS30037 | 40 | Mandatory | TB-4 |
Veterinary Nursing and Companion Animal Behaviour (BSc) | 120 |
Unit Pass Mark for Undergraduate Programmes:
For details on the weightings for classifying undergraduate degrees, please see the Agreed Weightings, by Faculty, to be applied for the Purposes of Calculating the Final Programme Mark and Degree Classification in Undergraduate Programmes.
For detailed rules on progression please see the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes and the relevant faculty handbook.
Please refer to the specific progression/award requirements for programmes with a preliminary year of study, the Gateway programmes and International Foundation programmes.
All undergraduate degree programmes allow the opportunity for a student to exit from a programme with a Diploma or Certificate of Higher Education.
Integrated Master's degrees may also allow the opportunity for a student to exit from the programme with an equivalent Bachelor's degree where a student has achieved 360 credit points, of which 90 must be at level 6, and has successfully met any additional criteria as described in the programme specification.
The opportunities for a student to exit from one of the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine, and Dentistry with an Award is outlined in the relevant Programme Regulations (which are available as an annex in the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes).
An Ordinary degree can be awarded if a student has successfully completed at least 300 credits with a minimum of 60 credits at Level 6.
The pass mark for the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine and Dentistry is 50 out of 100. The classification of a degree in the professional programmes in Veterinary Science, Medicine, and Dentistry is provided in the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
Please note: This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of the programme and the learning outcomes that a typical student might reasonably be expected to achieve and demonstrate if he/she takes full advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided.
University of Bristol,
Senate House,
Tyndall Avenue,
Bristol, BS8 1TH, UK
Tel: +44 (0)117 928 9000