Question reference: S6W-23946
- Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 15 December 2023
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Current status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 16 January 2024
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address the 11% drop in acceptances onto nursing programmes in Scotland in the last year, as reported by UCAS.
Answer
The Scottish Government has been monitoring UCAS figures, which exclude Open University and Honours programmes, and we thank our Higher Education Institutions who have worked hard to promote their programmes by visiting schools, attending careers fairs and promoting the range of opportunities via their social media channels.
The attraction and retention of students into nursing remains a key focus for the Nursing and Midwifery Taskforce - not everyone will begin their career by participating in an undergraduate programme and these are not the sole solution to filling workforce vacancies. That is why we are already considering alternative career pathways, such as apprenticeships and ‘earn as you learn’ routes, that can attract candidates and encourage existing staff to join supported education programmes that enable them to reach registration with the relevant professional bodies.