A Guide to Becoming a Midwife: All you Need to Know

We are all enchanted by the wonders of nature and when a woman is ready to give birth, she does need some professional assistance, which is traditionally provided by a midwife. If any young person wishes to enter into the nursing and midwifery sector, they are advised to enrol in a Bachelor of Midwifery degree, which is a 4-year full-time course that comprises of theoretical classroom learning and hands-on experience assisting qualified midwives.

Bachelor of Midwifery

This is a branch of the Bachelor or Nursing Science that teaches the student how to carry out midwifery practices, and when you study midwifery, your first year of study would be at the university campus, where you would learn a lot of the theory. This is followed by a series of professional placements where you work under supervision, and when you graduate, you can become a registered midwife with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia and can therefore pursue your career. The great thing about this profession is that your services are in need all over the world, which means you can emigrate to another country and easily find work.
Pre-Natal & Post-Natal Care

A great part of your work involves assisting women before and after birth, therefore you will have to spend time working at clinics, which might mean living away from home for a period of time. Very often, you will be sent to a city hospital for a few months, and then a rural community centre, where you will assist country folk. This might involve working with the indigenous population in remote regions of the country, and with a varied placement for work experience, your career might involve the following:

  • Intensive Care
  • Emergency 
  • Neurology
  • Radiology
  • Communicable Diseases
  • Special Care

Recommended Subjects

If you are planning to enrol in the Bachelor of Midwifery course, the following subjects will be useful:

  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • General Maths
  • English (Units 3,4 C)

The course only allows for part time attendance on the first year of study, after that, you must be a full-time student until you graduate. Here is an article that highlights the benefits of a career in neurology, which might be of use if you are not sure about the direction you wish to take.

Choosing a University

If you use Google and search for ‘Bachelor of Midwifery’, you will receive a list of university websites that offer such a course, and after some browsing, you should be able to locate a reputable university that meets with your approval. It might be that your first choice of university means you will have to live away from home for a period of time, and when you are ready to enrol, the website will tell you what the requirements are. Here is a comprehensive list of universities in Australia, which might be of some help.

If you are looking for a challenging and very rewarding career, becoming a registered midwife offers you a decent salary that will increase as you develop professionally, and should you wish to live abroad, the chances are that you can find work at a local hospital or community centre.