A Comparative Study of Iranian bachelor's nursing education system with the University of Southampton, UK

For the nursing bachelor's degree to be more successful in Iran and to identify the strengths and weaknesses of its curriculum, it is necessary to conduct comparative studies and benefit from the experiences and strategies experienced in successful universities. This study aimed to compare the Iranian undergraduate nursing curriculum with the University of Southampton, UK.

The present study is a comparative descriptive study that was performed using Bereday's four-step model including description, interpretation, proximity, and comparison. The details provided from the Iranian bachelor's nursing curriculum are taken from the website of the Ministry of Health in Iran and the University of Southampton.

Despite the similarities in the content of some courses, there are differences in terms of admission requirements, and course length between the two educational systems. At the University of Southampton, there is an emphasis on training managers with a research-oriented approach and technology integration, but this issue has received less attention in Iran. At Southampton, attention to research at the end of the study has led the student to identify problems and be drawn to research, while in Iran, a nursing research lesson is taught at the beginning of the course. Educational strategies at Southampton are student-centered, but in Iran they are teacher-centered. The day problems are seen in the online curriculum of the University of Southampton, but there is less flexibility in the Iranian curriculum and a focus on knowledge-based. Graduates in the UK are directed towards hospitals and society, but in Iran, graduates are mainly directed towards hospitals, and their ability to take on other social roles is not seen.

In addition to developing professional skills, the Iranian Nursing Bachelor's training program needs to focus on training managers with a research-oriented approach. It is also necessary, to on student-centered principles instead of teacher-centered; emphasize problem-oriented instead of knowledge-oriented, and community-oriented instead of hospital-oriented.