Bachelor of Nursing Science - Pre-Registration
James Cook University · Cairns
Bachelor degree · 2.75 years · On campus or online
See every nursing course comparedCan I get in?
- Lowest rank is the figure to compare yourself with. If you have no adjustments, your ATAR is your rank; if you have some, add them first.
- Lowest ATAR: some got in from here because adjustments lifted their rank.
- Lowest rank that got an offer: 66.50
- Lowest ATAR that got an offer, before adjustments: 63.60
- Median rank that got an offer: 74.00
About studying nursing
Nursing degrees combine coursework with supervised clinical placements in hospitals and community settings. To register as a nurse you need a degree approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia. Midwifery is a separate qualification, and some courses in this area are midwifery degrees.
This describes the field in general, not this course. Check the university's page for what this course covers.
Getting into nursing courses
Selection is primarily ATAR-based. Most providers expect Units 3 and 4 English, and some require or recommend a science subject. Non-ATAR pathways are available at many universities.
This describes the field in general, not this course. Check the university's page for what this course covers.
These are the lowest rank and the lowest ATAR that got an offer in 2026, not a cut-off or a guarantee. Next year's depends on how many places there are and who applies. How ATARs really work · Didn't get the ATAR you needed?
What this course asks for beyond your ATAR
Courses like this usually include placements or on-campus intensives, even when you study online, and the university's course page has the details for this one.
Before you can start placement you will need a police check or working with children check and a first aid certificate. This does not affect whether you get in. It is worth knowing early because some of it takes time to organise.
We show that these requirements exist, not what they currently say, because universities change them and we would rather send you to the source than repeat something out of date. Check the current requirements with QTAC.
Three kinds of figure on this page
They are not all about the same thing, so they are kept apart. Each section says who its numbers describe.
This course
Bachelor of Nursing Science - Pre-Registration at James Cook, Cairns. These describe this course and nothing else.
- Lowest rank that got an offer
- 66.50
- Lowest ATAR that got an offer, before adjustments
- 63.60
- Median rank that got an offer
- 74.00
- Length
- 2.75 years
- Study mode
- On campus or online
- Campus
- Cairns
- TAC code
- 326031
Nursing at James Cook
Source: QILT, SES 2023-2024, CEQ 2024-2025, GOS 2023-2025Every nursing student at James Cook, not this course alone. The tick on each bar is the national figure for nursing.
National average: 75.2%
National average: 76.8%
National average: 71.6%
National average: 84.5%
- Median starting salary
- $79,300
- National, same field
- $71,400
All of James Cook
Every student at James Cook, across every subject. Nobody publishes them for one course or one study area.
Where graduates end up
Source: QILT, 2025 GOS-LQILT does not publish three-year outcomes at course level.
of supervisors would hire another James Cook graduate. Employers of recent graduates, surveyed by QILT (ESS 2023-2025).
Do students stay and finish?
Source: Dept of Education, 2024Of students who started at James Cook in 2016, nine years later:
- Finished a degree
- 64%
- Still studying
- 4.8%
- Left after returning
- 20.2%
- Never came back after first year
- 11.1%
More recently: of new James Cook bachelor students in 2023, 13.1% didn't come back to study at any university the following year.
Students are followed if they move: finishing a degree at another university counts as finishing, and moving to another university doesn't count as leaving. Read these alongside the quality measures, not instead of them. Completion and attrition partly reflect who a university enrols – universities serving more regional, mature-age and part-time students naturally run higher attrition without being worse at teaching. What completion rates tell you
Who you'd study with
Students who started in 2026 (Course Seeker)132 students started this course in 2026. How they got in:
- 45%Straight from school, on ATAR alone
- 14%Straight from school, without using an ATAR
- 8%From earlier uni study
- 7%From TAFE or VET study
- 8%On work and life experience
- 17%International students
At least 37% of this intake got in by a route other than a school ATAR – worth knowing if your rank isn't where you want it. The other ways in
From the standard student-profile table universities publish for each course's intake. Categories are the national admissions-transparency ones.
What it costs, next to what graduates earn
Total student contribution:3 years × $4,908/year ≈ $14,700Estimate
Fees are charged by study load, so a faster degree usually costs about the same.
The Australian government sets this rate by field of study, so it is the same at every university in the country – James Cook did not set it and cannot discount it. Your exact total depends on the subjects you pick. Paid through HELP once you're earning, not upfront. How HECS-HELP works
- Typical starting salary (this study area)
- $79,300
- Typical salary three years on (all James Cook graduates)
- $93,900
Our arithmetic, from the fee and salary figures shown elsewhere on this page with their sources. It never affects how well this course fits you.
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