Midwifery
What Do Nurse Midwives do?
- Provide care to women, including gynecological exams, family planning services, and prenatal care.
- Deliver babies; manage emergency situations during labor (such as hemorrhaging), repair lacerations, and may provide surgical assistance to physicians during cesarean births.
- Provide wellness care, educating their patients on how to lead healthy lives by discussing topics such as nutrition and disease prevention.
- Provide care to their patients' partners for sexual or reproductive health issues.
Pre-Nursing Midwife Requirements
In order to become a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM), students must first become Registered Nurses and then Advanced Practice Registered Nurses specializing as CNMs. The road to becoming a CNM follows that of an RN:
Prerequisites: Requirements vary slightly between schools. It is important to check the requirements of each school you are considering to make sure you complete all requirements. In general, students must take:
General Chemistry, Biology, Microbiology, BioChem, Human Anatomy, Physiology, Nutrition, Stats, English, Social and Behavioral Science
Application: NursingCAS (Centralized Application Service)
For more info check out: American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Applicant Information
Entrance Exam: Graduate Record Examination (GRE)
Nurse Midwife Education
Certifications: Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNMs) and/or Certified Midwives (CMs)
Years of Study: Depends on background
Most programs require a Bachelors Degree (BA/BS) for entry. Many will accept an individual who has a BA/BS but is not an RN, and will provide an accelerated nursing education prior to the midwifery portion of the program. This takes typically 1.5 to 3 years. See more information on the Nursing page