Development and Leadership of Nursing | Master of Health Care | YAMK

Are you a nursing professional (nurse, midwife, public health visitor, paramedic) ready to take your career to the next level? The Master’s Degree in Development and Leadership of Nursing is designed for individuals like you who are eager to deepen their expertise and step into advanced nursing and leadership roles. This program equips you with the advanced skills needed to lead, innovate, and transform healthcare environments, while driving your own career growth.

Through this Master’s degree, you will gain cutting-edge competencies in leadership, research, teaching, and development (R&D) that empower you to lead the future of patient care. Whether you aim to become an expert in Advanced Practice Nursing (APN) or take on national and international leadership roles, this program prepares you to excel in dynamic healthcare settings.

Become a change-maker in healthcare—shape the future of nursing with us!

Content of studies

The extent of the studies is 90 ECTS and currently include:

• Research and Development Studies 10 ECTS,
• Advanced professional studies 40 ECTS,
• Elective studies 10 ECTS,
• Master’s Thesis 30 ECTS.

It is recommended that the topic of the Master Thesis is related to your own place of work. For completing a Master’s thesis, the students get support and guidance form the school in the form of

• starting from first weeks in the Programme, working in a guided Master’s thesis process
• group supervision and individual support from instructors; instruction on the R&D methods and problem-solving skills for excelling in your project
• students’ self-directed learning, motivation and hard work make the necessary element of success.

Mode of study

You can complete your degree in 1.5 years by following a well-organized schedule that suits both full-time study and employment. While balancing studies with work, strong self-management skills will be beneficial.

Our program follows a blended learning approach, combining online and face-to-face learning through lectures, seminars, and workshops. The program includes intensive study periods on campus in Helsinki, typically 2-4 periods in total. There are 2-5 teaching days per month, with sessions offered both during the day and in the evening.

Much of the learning is independent group work, encouraging collaboration and self-directed study. The detailed schedule for autumn 2025 will be released in June 2025.