Closing the attainment gap: supporting academic success for internationally educated nurses through targeted literacy and academic pathway interventions

Course Leads identified a decline in average results, particularly in essay-based assessments (CEP 2022/23), and lower attainment among internationally educated nurses (IENs). In module NW6/7004, IEN enrolment rose from 50% to 75%, yet an 18.9% attainment gap remains between UK/Irish and Philippine students. There was also a rise in academic misconduct cases, often linked to poor paraphrasing and missing citations. Surveys showed many IENs had no prior exposure to referencing, critical thinking, or academic writing. Given the short duration of CPD modules, there is limited time to develop these essential skills. In response, we piloted asynchronous academic skills content ahead of a 15-credit module. Early results showed that the attainment gap has narrowed down to 1.5% - 6%. Building on this success, a dedicated academic literacy module has been approved. It also forms the London HE pathway designed to support IENs with Pre-diploma level qualifications to access the BSc (Hons) Healthcare Practice top-up degree.