Applications for Postgraduate Funding for the 2025 academic year opens on the 1 August 2024 and closes on the 4 October 2024
For Hospital and Specialist Services funding application form click here
For Primary Health Care and Aged and Residential Care funding application form click here
Hutt Valley works with Tertiary Education Providers to support Registered Nurses (RNs) across the district to study towards postgraduate qualifications. Nurses can apply for papers that build towards a postgraduate qualification.
Please watch the PowerPoint presentation here to familiarise yourself with the PG Funding Process.
Before you apply:
Any RNs who wish to apply for funding for the 2025 academic year must have a career conversation. Career conversations enable you to consider what your future aspirations are, and how your study pathway will support your professional growth. Please review the Career Conversation flyer for the appropriate person to book an appointment.
Please bring the following documents to your career conversation and to discuss:
- Professional Development & Career Plan - Signed and dated by yourself and your line manager
- What papers you have completed
- A copy of your academic transcript or a screen shot of the grades achieved
- What your study plan is for 2025
- What your future career aspirations are
- How your plan of study aligns with the Government Policy Statement
- Level on the Professional Development and Recognition Programme (PDRP)
Following your career conversation, you will be able to apply for funding from 1 August using the online application form. The application form will take approximately 20 minutes to complete and you will not be able to save your progress so it must be completed in one sitting.
Funding process
The 2025 application process is for the entire 2025 academic year i.e. Trimester 1, Trimester 2 and Trimester 3. The steps below outline the process for funding applications.
Step One
Attend the Capital, Coast and Hutt Valley Postgraduate Roadshows to discuss papers and pathways with the Tertiary Education Providers. For venue, dates and times, view the roadshow flyer here
Step Two
Decide which papers you would like to apply for. Complete your Professional Development & Career Plan in discussion with your manager to identify career goals and how you will attain them.
Step Three
Contact and arrange a career conversation with a person on the list above. Remember to take with you a copy of your academic transcript and your Professional Development & Career Plan
Step Four
Apply for funding using the online application form from 1 August. It is important that all sections are completed. If you have any trouble with the application form, please contact Chantelle.Eden@huttvalleydhb.org.nz for assistance. You will receive an email acknowledgement of your application. Applications close on 4 October 2024.
NB: Hospital & Specialist Services (HSS) - Your service Nurse Director/ Director of Nursing/ Director of Midwifery and line manager will prioritise applications for their area. They will consider roster implications, skill mix on ward, how this paper will improve patient outcomes, how it fits with your area's professional development plan, and PDRP level of the applicant. Nursing and Midwifery Leadership complete the prioritisation process within the funding allocation.
Eligibility Criteria
Prioritisation follows the initial application supported by line managers and Nurse Directors. The criteria below is the minimum requirement for eligibility.
- Current portfolio on the Professional Development and Recognition Programme (PDRP) at time of application
- 0.6 FTE and above
- Educational preparation the role requires for delivery to service outcomes
- Parameters for applicant's eligibility for one paper includes:
- Pathophysiology/anatomy and physiology, Advanced assessment, Pharmacology for nurses on the clinical pathway. Other papers may be funded where directly relevant to the nurses role or strategic goals e.g. Māori health & wellbeing.
- RN Expert on a service agreed Nurse Practitioner pathway may be funded to Masters level based on service specifications. This may include nurses that have previously completed Masters degree
- Nurses in senior designated roles may be funded to Masters level
- Nurse Educators may be funded to Masters level with a focus on education
HSS Prioritisation Process
Once applications are processed considering eligibility criteria above, the following prioritisation occurs:
- Māori and Pacific Nurses
- PDRP participation at correct level as per criteria for application
- Paper choice relevant to clinical practice
- Senior nurses
- NETP graduates
Prescribing Practicum Courses
All career conversations for nurses working towards a Prescribing Practicum or the Nurse Practitioner Pathway must be completed by Helen Costello.
If you are planning to undertake a RN prescribing practicum or Nurse Practitioner (NP) advanced practice and prescribing practicum course, approval to enrol is required at a service level and from the Workforce & Practice Development Unit (W&PDU). Support to undertake the practicum courses relies on organisational agreement for role development during and after the practicum. A Prescribing Practicum Support Plan must be prepared before commencing the paper. This information also informs work-site planning, PG funding prioritisation and District's workforce development.
A Prescribing Practicum Support Plan will address the additional expectations for clinical teaching, prescribing supervision (often medical or NP) and advanced practice mentoring associated with these papers. PG funding contributes towards the additional costs associated with completing a NP advanced practice and prescribing practicum (e.g. professional supervision and clinical release). For more information or guidance, please contact Helen.Costello@ccdhb.org.nz.
Professional Supervision
If professional supervision is part of your practicum plan, a list of supervisors can be obtained by emailing Nursing@huttvalleydhb.org.nz once your application is approved.
Clinical Mentoring
Application for up to 10 hours clinical mentoring support must be approved prior to undertaking a course requiring this.
This support is only available for courses that require clinical mentoring/clinical mentor in addition to academic teaching/mentoring. Clinical mentoring must be negotiated by the nurse enrolling in the course in consultation with their Line Manager and W&PDU at the time of your PG career conversation. Approval will be documented in the confirmation email.
Clinical mentoring is the provision of clinical teaching and coaching to support the RN to extend knowledge and skills through clinical experience, critical thinking, skilled health assessment and comprehension of diagnostic measures and outcomes. These skills are required for evidence based clinical reasoning.
Assessment courses that may require clinical mentoring
An assessment paper that requires learning and practicing new clinical assessment skills through accessing clinical mentoring to extend practice in the workplace or a new setting.
- Assessment and Clinical Decision Making (Massey University)
Cultural Support
Hutt Valley provides funding for cultural supervision/mentoring and resources to support Māori and Pacific RNs undertaking postgraduate study.
Cultural Support funding is open to any person who has whakapapa and cultural links to whānau, hapū and iwi (for Māori) or is of Pacific Peoples descent and has established cultural links to the Pacific Peoples' communities.
Definitions
Cultural supervision is either a formal or informal relationship between members of the same culture. The purpose is to ensure that the supervisee is practising according to the values, protocols and practices of that particular culture. It is about cultural accountability and cultural development (Eruera, 2005).
Mentoring is an advisory role in which an experienced, highly regarded, collegial person guides another individual in the development and examination of their own ideas, learning, personal and professional development. The relationship is dynamic, complex and reciprocal. It supports growth and bridges the gap between the educational process and the real world. The relationship identifies the talents the mentee already possesses and the nurturing and encouragement of these talents in order to fully develop them (Barker, 2006; College of Health Disciplines, 2005; College of Nurses Aotearoa, 2007).
Mentor is an appropriately qualified and experienced person, who facilitates learning, supervises and assesses RNs continually so that they achieve their outcomes at the end of the programme. Mentors motivate and encourage RNs to continue their education (HW, 2006). A mentor may also be someone trained in providing clinical (professional) supervision.
Cultural development is support that can be combined with cultural supervision or mentoring but funds for cultural development are limited to:
- Cultural resources
- Membership to Māori or Pacific Health Professional Organisations
- Cultural activities including Kuia/Kaumātua, and peer support
Contact
If you have any questions about the funding process or need assistance, please contact;
Chantelle Eden Nurse Coordinator – NETP and PG Funding
Chantelle.Eden@huttvalleydhb.org.nz
