Prizes

Departmental Prize

Criteria for nomination

A nomination can be made for the recognition of a student’s personal and professional development, contribution to the enhancement of the university/departmental community.

Please note that to be nominated the student must have demonstrated performance beyond the standard reasonably expected of a student. It is not necessary for the nominee to meet all three of the criteria to be considered for the prize. However, the nominee must demonstrate excellence in at least one area.

Please note the examples given are intended as a guide only.

1. The nominee has displayed consistent all-round performance and/or significant improvement in their programme of study. For example:

• consistently positive practice reports
• trajectory improvement in academic grades

2. The nominee has participated in wider departmental and/or University activities that contribute to the overall student experience. For example, the nominee has made a significant contribution to:

• a departmental committee
• a programme team
• disseminating academic coursework via seminars conferences and publication

3. The nominee has demonstrated initiative and leadership. For example, the nominee has:

• demonstrated leadership amongst their peer group
• worked with wider Student Union to initiate voluntary or sporting activity
• taken initiative in a manner which promotes the Department

Nomination period and process

This prize is awarded annually and is available to any student in the Department of Health Sciences. One prize is available for students on undergraduate programmes and one for students on postgraduate programmes. Nominations may be made by any member of departmental staff. The deadline for nominations is 31 August each year. Nominations are submitted on the Departmental Prize Nomination Form (available on the staff webpages).  A sub-group of the Board of Studies reviews nominations and approves the successful nomination. The successful nominee will be informed following the October Board of Studies meeting.

Nursing

The Outstanding Dissertation Prize and the Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize are awarded annually to finalist students. Recommendations are made following the relevant Board of Examiners meeting.

Outstanding Dissertation Prize: Nursing

• The Dissertation Prize is awarded to the student who achieves the highest mark for the MNursing Dissertation module.
• To be eligible for the prize the mark must be in the first class banding (ie 70% or above).
• If a number of students achieve the same highest mark then all students with this mark will receive a prize.
• If there is no highest mark in the first class banding in a particular year the prize will not be awarded.
• The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Achievement Prize: Nursing

• The Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize is awarded to the student with the highest credit-weighted and stage-weighted average mark for Stage 2 and 3 theory modules; first attempt marks are used in this calculation.
• Separate prizes will be awarded for the BSc Nursing and MNursing programmes.
• To be eligible for the prize the highest mark must be in the first class banding (ie 70% or above).
• If a number of students achieve the same highest mark then all students with this mark will receive a prize.
• If there is no highest mark in the first class banding in a particular year the prize will not be awarded.
• The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Outstanding Practice Achievement Prize: Nursing

The Outstanding Nursing Practice Prize will be judged by the programme team from the nominations received from nursing Practice Assessors. Separate prizes will be awarded for the BSc Nursing and MNursing programmes.

Nominations can be made for students from all fields of practice in their final year. The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

A nomination can be made for the recognition of a student’s personal and professional development, and their contribution to the enhancement of practice experience. The nominee must have demonstrated performance beyond the standard reasonably expected for a nursing student.

It is not necessary for the nominee to meet all criteria to be considered for the prize; however the nominee must demonstrate excellence in more than one area.

• The student works effectively across a variety of multi-professional teams demonstrating an ability to challenge the way care is delivered; ensuring care is person-centred.
• The student has mastered their fundamental nursing skills and actively goes beyond programme requirements in practice (eg extensive reading, raising questions, seeking to learn from their own and other’s experience and applying new learning in their practice experience).
• The student takes responsibility for their own learning, recognising the limits of their practice, actively seeking and positively responding to feedback to improve their own performance.
• The student invests in those they care for, demonstrating a genuine interest in their needs, wanting to know what more they can do to promote comfort and a sense of well-being for the patient/client and their family.
• The student has had a positive impact on all those surrounding them. This may have been commented on by both staff and patients/clients and/or their contribution to patient/client care has left sustainable improvement after they have finished the practice experience.
• The student is passionate and proud to actively promote the value and professional identity of nursing.

Midwifery

The Outstanding Dissertation Prize and the Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize are awarded annually to full-time finalist students. Recommendations are made following the relevant Board of Examiners meeting.

Outstanding Dissertation Prize: Midwifery

• The Dissertation Prize is awarded to the student who achieves the highest mark for the dissertation module.
• To be eligible for the prize the mark must be in the first class banding (ie 70% or above).
• If a number of students achieve the same highest mark then all students with this mark will receive a prize.
• If there is no highest mark in the first class banding in a particular year the prize will not be made.
• The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Achievement Prize: Midwifery

• The Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize is awarded to the student with the highest credit-weighted and stage-weighted average mark for Stage 2 and 3 theory modules (practice modules are excluded from the calculation); first attempt marks are used in this calculation.
• To be eligible for the prize the highest mark must be in the first class banding (ie 70% or above).
• If a number of students achieve the same highest mark then all students with this mark will receive a prize.
• If there is no highest mark in the first class banding in a particular year the prize will not be made.
• The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Outstanding Practice Achievement Prize: Midwifery

The Outstanding Practice Achievement Prize will be judged by the programme team from the nominations received from midwifery Practice Assessors for students who have achieved the following criteria:

• The student must demonstrate excellent clinical skills and is proactive in recognising learning opportunities.
• The student must demonstrate a woman centred approach and demonstrate care and compassion to those in their care.
• The student is an advocate for women and their families.
• The student works effectively in the multi-professional team.
• The student demonstrates excellent communication skills.
• The student must have achieved marks above 70% for practice (part 1 of the assessment) in Midwifery Practice 5 and Midwifery Practice 6 version 2, and passed the reflective essay (part 2).
• The prize will be presented at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Nursing Associate

The Outstanding Progression Prize and the Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize are awarded to finalist Learners of each cohort. Recommendations are made from the programme team to the Board of Studies. Prizes are presented at the departmental graduation reception.

Outstanding Academic Progression Prize:
Foundation Degree in Science in Health & Social Care: Nursing Associate

• The Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize is awarded to the learner with the greatest increase
  between their Stage 1 credit-weighted average mark and their Stage 2 credit-weighted average mark;
  first attempt marks are used in this calculation.
• To be eligible for the prize the increase between the Stage 1 and Stage 2 credit weighted marks must
  be at least 7%.
• If no learner achieves a 7% increase or greater in a particular year no prize will be awarded.

Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize:
Foundation Degree in Science in Health & Social Care: Nursing Associate

• The Outstanding Academic Achievement Prize is awarded to the learner with the highest credit-
  weighted and stage-weighted average mark for Stage 1 and 2 theory modules; first attempt marks are
  used in this calculation; Stages 1 and 2 will be weighted on a ratio of 1:1.
• To be eligible for the prize the calculated mark must be 70% or above.
• If there is no highest mark of 70% or above in a particular year the prize will not be awarded.
• If a number of learners achieve the same highest mark then all learners with this mark will receive a
  prize in that year.

Outstanding Practice Achievement Prize:
Foundation Degree in Science in Health & Social Care: Nursing Associate

The Outstanding Practice Prize for the Foundation Degree will be judged by the programme team from the nominations received from learners’ Practice Assessors for learners who have made a significant difference to practice and enhanced the
patient/clients experience.

The nomination must be supported by the personal supervisor.

Taught Postgraduate

Consideration will be given annually to students whose degree is ratified at the Board of Examiners award board or prior to the graduation results deadline. Students whose award is ratified after this deadline will be considered for the following year’s prize. Prizes are presented annually at the departmental graduation reception in January.

Outstanding Dissertation Prize: Taught Postgraduate

• Awarded to the student who achieves the highest mark for their dissertation.
• To be eligible for the prize the dissertation mark must be 80% or above.
• If more than one student achieves the highest dissertation mark, all students with the highest mark will receive a prize.

Outstanding Taught Postgraduate Academic Achievement Prize

• Awarded to the student on each taught postgraduate programme (Master of Public Health, MSc Health Research, MSc International Humanitarian Affairs, MSc Advanced Clinical Practice, MSc Mental Health Research, PGCert Health Research & Statistics) who achieved the highest credit-rated award mark.
• To be eligible for the prize the student must be awarded a pass with distinction (ie an award mark of 70% or above).
• If more than one student on each programme achieves the highest credit-rated award mark, all students will receive a prize.

Research Degrees

The KM Stott prize is awarded for the best PhD thesis each year and the successful nominee receives a prize of £100. Academic staff are invited to nominate a PhD student for this award and are required to provide a statement outlining the reasons for the nomination.