HLTH 551Professional Project
This course will provide students with the knowledge and skills to plan, execute and complete a project that demonstrates advanced knowledge in a field of professional practice. Students will apply skills acquired during the study programme to solve a practice problem or problems. The outcomes of the project will be presented in a report targeting relevant key stakeholders.
Course details
- Dates
- 7 Jul 2025 to 8 Feb 2026
- Starts
- Trimester 2+3
- Fees
- NZ$4,778.40 for
- International fees
- NZ$17,856.00
- Lecture start times
- Monday 9.00am
- Tuesday 9.00am
- Campus
- Pipitea
- Estimated workload
- Approximately 600 hours or 20.0 hours per week for 30 weeks
- Points
- 60
Entry restrictions
- Prerequisites
- HLTH 501 or 521 or 528; Part 1 of MNS and 60 pts from HLTH 501-550, or Part 1 of MHlth subject requirement;
- Corequisites
- None
Taught by
School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Practice—Faculty of Health
About this course
In this course you will learn approaches to Project Planning and Project Management as they apply to an innovation or quality improvement project of your own design. You will use these approaches to carry out your project plan with your current employer in a health-related or clinical environment, and produce an evidence-based, professional project report relevant to your area of interest or practice.
There are three, two-day workshops associated with this double trimester course. Workshop one introduces the principles of Project Planning and how to design your own project. Workshop two addresses common problems encountered in Project Management. Workshop three develops your oral presentation skills and sharpens the professional presentation of your project work for your stakeholders.
The most important element of your success will be engaging regularly with the course coordinator and your classmates to problem solve and explore new ideas. You are expected to attend all organised class activities in person and on campus. If, in exceptional circumstance you need to attend online, please contact the course coordinator.
Course learning objectives
Students who pass this course will be able to:
Integrate project management principles and theory to design and implement a quality improvement project.
Critically analyse research evidence to justify the project objectives and contribution to health equity.
Demonstrate advanced communication, reflection, and problem-solving skills.
Prepare a professional report, critique project outcomes and make recommendations for sustainable change.
How this course is taught
The most important element of your success will be engaging with the teaching staff, the tutors and your classmates to explore new ideas. We expect you to attend all organised class activities except in exceptional circumstances. Details of any in-person components will be provided to students via Nuku and may range from individual coordinator meetings to full day workshops.
Assessment
- Project plan with literature review Mark: 25%
- Online discussion participation Mark: 10%
- Oral and written report Mark: 15%
- Project report Mark: 50%
Assessment dates and extensions
Once you've signed up to this course, you can use to see due dates for assessments and information about extensions.
Mandatory requirements
Find out what you must do to pass this course.
In addition to achieving an overall pass mark of at least 50% students must:
- Complete all pieces of assessment
If you believe that exceptional circumstances may prevent you from meeting the mandatory course requirements, contact the course coordinator for advice as soon as possible.
Lecture times and rooms
What you’ll need to get
You do not need to get any texts or equipment for this course.
Who to contact


Selected offering
HLTH 551
7 Jul–8 Feb 2026
Trimester 2+3 · CRN 31015