Sydney Nursing School

Prior to 1983 the majority of nurse education within Australia was conducted by hospital-based, or hospital-affiliated, schools of nursing and was of an apprenticeship nature. On 7 November, 1983, the then State Minister for Health in New South Wales announced that from January 1985, all basic nurse education would be conducted by the higher education sector. Seeing a future for nurse education, the Council of the Sydney College of  Advanced Education (SCAE) established the Institute of Nursing Studies in February 1984, offering a basic nurse education program. Then, on 24 August 1984, the Federal Government gave its in-principle support for the full transfer of nurse education into the higher education sector. This education would then be the responsibility of the Federal Minister for Education. The full transfer of nurse education into this sector was to be completed by 1993.

The transfer of basic nurse education into the higher education sector ultimately led to the formation of the Faculty of Nursing within the University. The Faculty of Nursing developed from two previous nursing groups within the college of advanced education sector – the School of Nursing, Cumberland College of Health Sciences, and the Institute of Nursing Studies, Sydney College of Advanced Education. On 1 January 1990 the Institute of Nursing Studies amalgamated with the University of Sydney under the Higher Education (Amalgamation Act), 1989 and, as Institute of Nursing joined the Faculty of Medicine as a unit. The Faculty of Nursing then was established on 1 January 1991.

In 1992 a further milestone in the education of nurses was reached when the initial pre-registration course became a degree, the Bachelor of Nursing, across Australia. 

1 January 1993 saw a restructuring of the Departments of the Faculty with a reduction in numbers, the new departments being: Behavioural and Social Sciences in Nursing, Life Sciences in Nursing, Family and Community Health in Nursing, and Clinical Nursing. In 1993 the decision was taken to integrate the two nursing groups within the University (the Faculty of Nursing and the School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences) into the one Faculty of Nursing from January 1994. The Faculty of Nursing offered a full range of courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Undergraduate courses include the Bachelor of Nursing (Pre-Registration), a conversion Bachelor of Nursing (for registered nurses), a Bachelor of Nursing (Honours), and starting in 2000, the Faculty introduced the first of a series of combined undergraduate degrees. This began with the Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Arts offered in conjunction with the Faculty of Arts, followed in 2001 by the Bachelor of Nursing/Bachelor of Science offered in conjunction with the Faculty of Science. A range of graduate specialty clinical coursework awards in the major study areas of midwifery, critical care, rural and remote, infection control and perioperative nursing. The research degrees available in the Faculty included the Master of Philosophy (Nursing) and a Doctor of Philosophy.

The Faculty of Nursing has close affiliations with the health care sector, in particular, Central Sydney Area Health Service, the Northern Sydney Area Health Service, the South Eastern Sydney Area Health Service, and Western Sydney Area Health Service. The Faculty continues to develop close links with the health care service sector for the continuing education and professional preparation of nurses, the clinical practice of nursing and research.

In 1997 a new research centre was established, The Nursing Research Centre for Adaptation in Health and Illness. This centre is another example of the collaboration between the health care sector, in this instance Central Sydney Area Health Service and the Faculty of Nursing and is designed to foster partnerships between the health care sector, the University and the community.

The Faculty made a further step in its continuing development and growing strength when it began to consolidate onto the Mallett Street campus in 2000. From 2000 no new students enrolled at the Cumberland campus. This process was completed at the end of 2001.

During 2004 a number of major decisions were made by Senate about the future profile of the Faculty. Among these was a change of name to the Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, the disestablishment of departments and the phasing out of undergraduate courses to become, over time, a specialised postgraduate, post-registration and graduate entry faculty with a greater focus on research.

(Adapted from Nursing Handbook 2005)

In February 2005 Senate approved the new name of Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery and a new structure.

Senate 07.12.2009: Resolution 342/09

In December 2009 Senate resolved to authorise the Vice-Chancellor to agree to the Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery adopting the name Sydney Nursing School as an operational name, consistent with the Brand project, on the condition that it carry the University's logo to ensure a University of Sydney identity.

Senate 14.12.2017: Resolution SEN_7/15.98
As part of the University's strategic planning 2016-2020, Senate decided in December 2015 to reduce the number of faculties from 16 to six, with three additional schools reporting directly to the Provost, to come into effect 1 January 2017. The Sydney Nursing School will be relocated to a Faculty (yet to be named) which includes Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmacy.

In April 2016 the Susan and Isaac Wakil Foundation donated $35 million to the University and as part of the recognition of the Susan and Isaac Wakil Foundation's gifts, the Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery will be named “The University of Sydney Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery”.

Senate Resolution SEN_16/6-105
​​At 12 December 2016 meeting of Senate, Senate approved the creation of the new Faculty of Medicine and Health, which will consist of schools of Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing and Midwifery, Pharmacy, Public Health and Biomedical Sciences (working title). It will also include the current Faculty of Health Sciences as a school when it moves to the Camperdown/Darlington Campus from its current location in Lidcombe. The new faculty will not come into operation until 30 April 2018.