Adelaide University
Graduate Diploma in Maternal, Child and Family Health
- Delivery: Face to Face
- Study Level: Postgraduate
- Duration: 12 months
Enhance your understanding of the social, legal, moral, socio-economic and political frameworks that inform contemporary models of care.
Course overview
Adelaide University’s Graduate Diploma in Maternal, Child and Family Health will equip you with skills to nurture healthier Australian families.
This customisable qualification offers you a choice of electives, all focusing on the health of the mother, child and family. Covering both the nursing and midwifery disciplines, you’ll study topics that integrate into your everyday practice and advance your skills into areas of clinical need.
Expand your perspective of the areas that impact family care and learn ways to address them. Understand how family health can be influenced by domestic violence, disability, chronic disease, culture and geographic location. Learn practical skills and strategies to provide care, including communication, ethical and legal requirements and more.
Fit study around your work and life with online and part-time study options. Engage in workshops and learn from your fellow nurses and midwives.
You’ll graduate with the skills to provide better, more individualised care and the perspective to improve policies and practices for mothers, children and families.
CSP Subsidised Fees Available
This program has a limited quota of Commonwealth Supported Places (CSP). The indicative CSP price is calculated based on first year fees for EFT. The actual fee may vary if there are choices in electives or majors.
Key facts
July, 2026
What you will study
Complete 48 units comprising:
- 12 units for all Core courses.
- 36 units for Electives.
Core courses
Complete 12 units for ALL of the following:
- Maternal, Child and Family Health
Electives
Complete 36 units comprising:
36 units from Program electives
- Primary Health Care
- Perinatal Mental Health for Health Professionals
- Best Practice in Adolescent Mental Health
- Leadership and Management in Nursing and Midwifery
- Prescribing for clinicians
- Pharmacotherapeutics for Advanced Clinical Practice
- Advanced Lactation and Breastfeeding
- Women’s Sexual and Reproductive
- Clinical Inquiry
Entry requirements
Admission criteria
To be eligible, an applicant must have achieved the following minimum entry requirements and demonstrate that they fulfil any prerequisite and essential criteria for admission. In cases where there are more eligible applicants than available places, admission will be competitive with ranks based on the entry criteria.
- A completed bachelor's degree (AQF level 7) or higher from a recognised higher education institution.
- Hold or be eligible to hold registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA).
Recognition of Prior Learning
Adelaide University is committed to recognising the contribution of students’ prior learning towards their program requirements.
Credit may be granted for formal, informal and non-formal learning, with guidance on eligibility provided to prospective students in a clear, transparent and publicly available credit framework.
Credit determinations will be:
- Evidence-based, equitable and transparent.
- Academically sound.
- Applied consistently, fairly and subject to review.
Credit will be granted for prior learning that is relevant and equivalent to the learning required for the courses for which credit is sought.
Credit will only be granted if it:
- Maintains the credibility and integrity of the program for which credit is sought.
- Does not contravene the conditions of the program’s professional accreditation.
- Does not disadvantage the student’s ability to achieve the expected course or program learning outcomes.
For more information, contact the university or visit its website.
Outcomes
Learning outcomes
The Graduate Diploma in Maternal, Child and Family Health is a flexible program available for part-time or full-time study.
Choose from a variety of nursing and midwifery programs that will provide an advanced scope of practice and lead to areas of specialised future employment.
Begin with a theory that encompasses maternal, child and family health, including historical and contemporary trends that impact this group. You’ll also learn the existing policies, programs and interventions in place in Australian healthcare and how they inform your existing practice.
Choose from topics that interest you, including:
- Women’s sexual and reproductive health across the lifespan, including standard and chronic conditions like endometriosis, fertility management and safer sex.
- Advanced understanding of lactation and breastfeeding, including the biology of breastfeeding, addressing complications and providing emotional support to help new mothers.
- Pharmacology and prescribing, including a better understanding of the role of medicines in primary healthcare and how to safely prescribe them.
- Mental health, including support and interventions for groups with unique needs, such as perinatal and adolescent health.
- Aboriginal healthcare, including learning culturally safe care built upon the pillars of relationship, respect and opportunity
- Leadership and management, including how to influence workplace culture in the Australian healthcare system.
Career outcomes
You could work in career roles such as:
- Child and Family Health Nurse
- School Health Nurse
- Case Coordinator
- Clinical Nurse Specialist
- Health Promotion Nurse
- Community Health Nurse
- Nurse Research Assistant
Fees and CSP
Estimated student contribution amount per 1.0 EFTSL (48 units) in 2026: $4,738 (Commonwealth Supported Place).
Commonwealth-supported students are charged a portion of the cost of their higher education through a student contribution. Where the duration of the program is less than one year, the total cost of the program is displayed.
Commonwealth Supported Places (CSP)
A Commonwealth Supported Place is a higher education place where the Australian Government subsidises your fees so that you only pay a portion through a student contribution amount.
The amount of student contribution you’ll pay depends on:
- Number of courses you are enrolled in.
- Unit value of courses.
- Funding cluster your courses fall under.
A HECS-HELP loan allows students to borrow from the Australian Government to cover some or all of their student contribution. To be eligible for HECS-HELP, you must be studying in a Commonwealth Supported Place.
