A British university that is a leader in healthcare is opening up career prospects for nurses in India by offering them a chance to gain a new type of UK qualification. Nursing is set to become a graduate-only profession in Britain, in one of the biggest shake-ups to nursing education that the country has seen. The controversial move has been backed by professional bodies in the UK health service that say it will improve the status of nurses who now take on clinical work once performed by doctors.

In response, British universities are developing a range of different degree level courses -- and the University of Worcester toured India to tell prospective students about its new nursing "top up" degree starting from September this year.

Diploma qualified Indian nurses will be able to complete the course in a year of full-time study, and graduate with the highly regarded BSc (Hons) in Nursing Studies. If they want to work in Britain, they will then be able to enrol on the Overseas Nurses Programme from September 2012.

The University of Worcester, based in a historic cathedral city to the west of Oxford and near the border between England and Wales, is a leading innovator in health and social care. In January 2011 it received the highest possible grade in the annual monitoring review carried out by UK's Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

In Britain, nurses are no longer seen as just doctors' assistants, says Ruth Pearce, head of continuing professional development in the University of Worcester's Institute of Health and Society. "Nurses are leading clinical teams and thinking about themselves as the leaders of care. As nursing increasingly becomes a graduate entry profession, a UK based degree will give recognition to the status of nurses and boost their career prospects," she says.

The BSc (Hons) top up course in Nursing will include theory and simulated clinical practice. Students will not be qualified to work as nurses in Britain while they study, but may be able to find part-time work in care homes.