July 28, 2023
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- University Expert Diploma in Midwife-Led Care in Hospital Settings, Birth Centers, and Home Birth
University Expert Diploma in Midwife-Led Care in Hospital Settings, Birth Centers, and Home Birth
Enrolment open

- ModalityHybrid learning format
- LanguagesSpanish, English
- Credits15
- DateOctober 1, 2026
- Ending DateMay, 2027
- Planning
Synchronous online sessions: one or two Thursdays per month, from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm.
Two in-person sessions:
- January 22, 23 and 24, 2027
- May 21, 22 and 23, 2027 - Places40
- Location
Blanquerna-URL - Carrer Padilla, 326-332. 08025 Barcelona
- Faculty
Blanquerna School of Health Sciences
Presentation
The University Expert Diploma in Midwife-Led Care is a pioneering program aimed at midwives who wish to deepen and consolidate their advanced practice in the care of low-risk pregnancies and births in hospitals, birth centers, and at home. The program strengthens professional autonomy and clinical leadership through evidence-based practice and provides tools to promote real change in the way maternity care is delivered, expanding professional opportunities both within and beyond the public healthcare system.
This programme is carried out in collaboration with the Associació de Llevadores del Part A casa de Catalunya.
Who is it for?
Midwives who hold an official midwifery qualification, either as specialist nurses in gynecology and obstetrics or with a university degree in midwifery.
If you choose the Expert Diploma in Midwife-Led Care, you choose…
- Training aimed at improving the quality of care by promoting safer, more respectful, and woman- and family-centered care.
- Learning from nationally and internationally renowned faculty in midwife-led care in hospitals, birth centers, and home settings.
- Updating your practice with a program aligned with international recommendations and the best available scientific evidence.
- Meaningful learning through seminars, clinical simulations, workshops, and real-life cases.
- Flexible online and in-person training designed to balance professional and personal life with high-quality learning.
- Expanding professional horizons both within and outside the public healthcare system.
News

July 12, 2023
Nursing graduate Anna Garcia Faura wins the Corachan Grant for her academic record
July 7, 2023
Congratulations to all of our master's and postgraduate graduates from the School of Health Sciences!

July 5, 2023
Dr. Arturo Goicoechea, godfather of the Graduation Ceremony of master's and postgraduate degrees of the School of Health Sciences
Academic information

Calendar
In the following link, you can download the detailed calendar for the 2026-2027 course. (PDF)
Curriculum
Module 1. Midwife-led care models, professional leadership, ethics, and interdisciplinary work (5 ECTS)
- Historical evolution and current situation of birth care models
- Competency framework for midwives at national and international levels
- Impact of midwife-led care models on maternal and neonatal health
- The midwife as a leader in different professional settings
- Leadership strategies and management of midwife-led units
- Leadership and management strategies in home birth
- Collaborative work, effective communication, and conflict management
- Tools for entrepreneurship in midwifery
Module 2. Comprehensive care for women during pregnancy in midwife-led care models (3 ECTS)
- Models of antenatal care and their impact on health outcomes
- Woman- and family-centered prenatal care
- Obstetric examination and abdominal palpation
- Scientific evidence and complementary tests
- Health promotion and prevention of pregnancy complications
- Deviations from normality and the midwife’s response
- Systemic perspective and preparation for motherhood
Module 3. Care in physiological birth and initial management of complications (4 ECTS)
- Models of birth care and their impact on health outcomes
- Birth settings and evidence
- Physiology and biomechanics of birth
- Birth care in hospitals, birth centers, and at home
- Physical and emotional support during labor and non-pharmacological pain relief methods
- Water birth
- Strategies to minimize unnecessary interventions
- Care for women in special situations during childbirth
- Detection of complications and management of emergencies
- Perineal suturing
Module 4. Postpartum and breastfeeding care (3 ECTS)
- Models of postpartum care and their impact on health outcomes
- Postpartum physiology and continuity of care at home
- Advanced breastfeeding support and infant feeding
- Assessment of the healthy newborn and early detection of problems
- Bonding and parenting
Optional internships
- For students who are interested, there is the possibility of undertaking extracurricular placements in home-based care during pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period, with midwives who are experts in this field.
Easy terms for you to access the course
2026-2027 academic year
Admissions application: 50 € pre-enrollment fee. If you are not admitted or the graduate course is cancelled by the Blanquerna School of Health Sciences, the amount will be refunded during the academic year in which you pre-enrolled, subject to the presentation of the corresponding receipt.
Payment method
Fees are payable in three installments:
Initial payment: 34% at the time of enrollment.
January: 33%
March: 33%
Discounts available for master’s and postgraduate studies
*Discounts apply to official master’s degrees, lifelong learning master’s programs, and proprietary degrees, and are not cumulative: only one discount can be applied.
15% - Blanquerna Alumni Discount
Blanquerna alumni from any study program associated with a previous paid enrollment. Offered only once for each different type of qualification in which the alumnus/a wishes to enroll.
15% – Partner Companies Discount
Companies with which there is an external internship agreement.
10% – Professional Associations Discount
With all professional associations that have a valid collaboration agreement in place. Proof of membership is required.
10% – University Institutions Discount
Faculty, administrative staff, students, and alumni of university institutions with which there is a study/exchange agreement, for example, Universitat Ramon Llull or Emerson College.

Career opportunities
- Hospitals: pulmonology units, intensive care units, and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation units.
- Community health centers.
- Home care.
- Primary care centers.
- Centers specializing in care for patients with respiratory pathologies associated with neuromuscular or neurological disorders.
- Independent professional practice.

A direct link to your future career
Our work doesn't finish the moment you graduate. The Alumni department will support you to enable us to achieve an employment rate of 90% of students in the first year after graduation
State-of-the-art facilities at the student's disposal
Theoretical-practical classrooms and clinical simulation
Putting theory into practice is key to gaining knowledge. In the case of nursing, it is a key aspect before dealing with patients. The faculty has simulation classrooms to prepare students for clinical interventions.

Anatomy room. Osteoteca
This room has teaching resources so that students can become familiar with the human body, identify and locate muscles, bones, arteries, veins or nerves.

Anatomy
See human anatomy in its entirety on a real scale and in 3D. This is the reality that allows the anatomy, an interactive display table to see any anatomical system of the human body.

Academic Secretary
The Academic Secretaries of the Blanquerna faculties are the space for students to relate to the processes linked to the registration of official and own courses.

Student Information and Guidance Service (SIOE)
Would you like to receive information on pre-registration and admissions processes, scholarships and grants or validations? The SIOE is the service you need. Ask for all the information about any of these processes and discover all the possibilities at your fingertips.
Internship service
Professional experience is a core part of our methodology. For this reason, we have a broad spectrum of internship agreements to meet the needs and preferences of all students. You will graduate having worked in your industry.

Scholarships and grants service
At Blanquerna, we put the future within everyone's reach thanks to our scholarships and grant service to start or continue studying at our schools. Financial aid is both internal and external to the university. You will find a wide range of possibilities.

International Mobility Office
Going abroad is a unique opportunity to discover the plurality of the world. Aware of the importance of the internationalization of studies, we have established mobility agreements around the world.

Careers
This service provides graduates with the necessary means so that they can actively participate in their professionalism and propose optimal candidates to organizations and companies looking for staff.

Job Bank
The leap into the world of work is always a challenge. For this reason, we provide a Job Bank for students and graduates. This service puts students in touch with companies and institutions looking for staff.

Social Commitment
Solidarity and the struggle for human dignity are values that identify us. Social Commitment is a volunteer program that our students can join to participate in projects in the Third and Fourth World.

Alumni service
Studying in Blanquerna allows you to be part of our community. Being a college student opens the door to a lot of options for continuing your vocational training beyond your time in the classroom.

Sports service
Want to represent the URL in college sports tournaments? You can find a wide range of possibilities for both individual and team sports. To be a student of Blanquerna, you will have a discount at the Can Caralleu and La Salle Sport & Fitness sports complexes.

Personal Guidance Service (SOP)
If you are in a difficult situation in the academic, personal or social field, you can request, free of charge, the personalized attention of the SOP. This is an interdisciplinary team of professionals who will guide you in dealing with the situation.
Faith and Spirituality
In the three Blanquerna faculties, you will find spaces for reflection isolated from the hustle and bustle dedicated to the celebration of the Faith or cultural and religious animation. If you wish, you can also receive personalized attention and information about church life.
Diversity support
At Blanquerna we promote personal development at all levels to people with a diversity of specific needs from a normalizing context that encourages personal autonomy and uniqueness.

Blanquerna Choir
If you like music and want to take part in the concerts of institutional events and festivities, sign up for the Blanquerna Choir. There you will meet new friends and enjoy music.

Student representatives
Each class group must elect a representative to put forward concerns or make proposals to the faculty members and academic management. At the same time, each degree must appoint a delegate and each school a representative on the general URL council.
Student Council
Contact between students and the university is constant and is channeled through the Student Council, the body that collects proposals and requests from students and facilitates university life.

Language support service
Are you studying a foreign language and want to improve your level? Do it at your own pace in the language self-learning classroom. This service offers various teaching resources and materials to practice the language.

Anti-harassment Point
We’re here to listen! Have you experienced or witnessed any situation of harassment? Do you have any questions about Blanquerna’s equality policy? Would you like to make a proposal or suggestion regarding gender issues? Use this Anti-harassment Point: write to us through the channels you’ll find at the bottom of this page.
All the services you need while you are at the School
Libraries
If you need a quiet space to study or to do individual and group work, come to the library! Each school has its own library with computers, workrooms, reading points and an extensive catalog of documents you can consult in both hard copy and digital format.

Computer rooms
If you have a job or just need a computer, you can go to the computer classrooms or workspaces and use the Macs we have at your disposal.

Chapel
The chapel is the right place to find recollection, peace, to focus, to pray and to celebrate the Eucharist weekly and at important liturgical moments (Christmas, Ash Wednesday and Easter). The sacrament of reconciliation is also celebrated.
Faculty (among others)
- Lucia Alcaraz, PhD, RNM (ASSIR Metropolitana Nord, Barcelona)
- Laia Aguilar, PhD, RNM (LactApp, Barcelona)
- Àngels Bonet, RNM (ASSIR Bages and independent practice, Barcelona)
- Soledad Carregui, PhD, RNM (Hospital de la Plana, Castellón)
- Garazi Carrillo, PhDc, RNM (AQuA, Barcelona)
- Laia Casadevall, PhDc, RNM (Independent practice, Barcelona)
- Ank de Jong, PhD (Amsterdam UMC, Netherlands)
- Soo Downe, PhD, RNM (University of Lancashire, United Kingdom)
- Ramon Escuriet, PhD, RNM (CatSalut and Department of Health, Barcelona)
- Quique Estevez, RNM (Hospital Trueta de Girona and independent practice, Girona)
- Andreia Gonçalves, PhD, RNM (Polytechnic Institute of Viana do Castelo, Portugal)
- Marta García, Psyc, RNM (Independent practice, Barcelona)
- Fátima León, PhD, RNM (University of Seville, Seville)
- Maria Llavoré, RNM, ANT (Hospital de Sant Pau i de la Santa Creu, Barcelona)
- Inma Marcos, RNM (Independent practice at Nèixer a Casa, Barcelona)
- Anna Martín, PhD, RNM (Blanquerna Faculty of Health Sciences, Barcelona)
- Margarita Manresa, PhD, RNM (Hospital Clínic, Barcelona)
- Nazareth Oliveira, MSc, RNM (Independent practice, Madrid)
- Ibone Olza, PhD, MD (European Institute of Perinatal Mental Health, Madrid)
- Lluna Orus, RNM (Birth Centre, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu de Martorell, Barcelona)
- Alba Pallisé, RNM (ICS Tarragona-Valls and La Matriusca Cooperative, Tarragona)
- Imma Sàrries, RNM (Independent practice, Barcelona)
- Rafael Vila, PhD, RNM (Hospital de la Ribera and International University of Valencia, Valencia)
- Marta Villanova, PhDc, RNM (Blanquerna Faculty of Health Sciences, Barcelona)
- Shawn Walker, PhD, RM (King’s College London, United Kingdom)
Application process
To access the master degree and/or university specialization diplomas, you must hold an official Spanish university degree, or a degree from another country in the European Higher Education Area. These studies are also open to students with a degree issued by an education system outside the European Higher Education Area, who do not need to have it approved, provided that the level of training is equivalent to that of an official Spanish degree and that, in the country of origin, the degree gives access to graduate studies. However, admission does not in any case imply the convalidation of the degree or any other type of recognition beyond allowing the student to access master and graduate studies at the University.
Furthermore, these courses are open to people who do not have a degree but who, due to their professional or personal background, are considered qualified to take them. In these cases, the degree they will obtain will be a university extension.
The application process consists of two parts:
Pre-enrollment
Enrollment
Pre-enrollment
Students can pre-enroll online (by accessing Pre-enrollment | Blanquerna or the pre-enrollment option for each course). It can also be done in person at the School.
During the process, the candidate must submit the requested documentation:
- ID card, passport or NIE residence card.
- Certified photocopy of the qualification that gives the student access to the course or documentary proof that the relevant document has been requested.
- Copy of the official academic transcript with grades for the courses taken and the average mark of the qualification justifying admission.
- Students with studies qualifying them for access completed outside Spain: certificate issued by the relevant body (university, embassy, consulate) confirming that the studies qualify the student to undertake master degree or graduate studies in the country of issue. Students who come from a foreign university must provide details of the grading system used at their university, as well as the aforementioned documentation, which must comply with the requirements for translation and legalization established in current regulations.
- Payment of €50 in terms of pre-registration fee. The amount of the application will only be returned in case of cancellation of the course by the center. The amount will be returned during the course in which pre-registration has been made, upon presentation of the corresponding receipt. Payment is by credit or debit card using a secure and confidential process.
Once pre-enrollment is complete, the documentation will be assessed, and the student will be informed of the result and how to enroll, if applicable.
Enrollment
Enrollment is the final step in the procedure to access the master degree or graduate studies. Each student will be informed in the letter of admission of his/her enrollment date. When enrollment is complete, with payment of the corresponding fee, the student will have definitively secured a place. If the student leaves the course, the enrollment fee will not be refunded in any case. The School reserves the right to cancel any courses for which the required minimum number of enrolled students has not been reached. In this case, the amount paid for enrollment will be refunded in full.
Documentation to be provided:
- Certified photocopy of the degree certificate or certified photocopy of the university studies completed.
- Official academic certification (list of subjects studied with their grade).
- Current account number for direct debit in case of payment by installments.
When students enroll, they will have two business days to pay the total cost of enrollment, by bank transfer, credit card or barcode. Studies can be paid in full or in installments, without any interest, by bank transfer.
If payment by installment is selected, students will have two business days following completion of enrollment to pay 33.3% of the total cost of the enrolled credits, using their chosen form of payment; this payment cannot be made by direct debit. The remaining 66.4% is split into two monthly installments, in January and March, payable by direct debit using the bank account number provided upon enrollment.
School alumni are given a 15% discount on the enrollment fee (non-cumulative discount). Distinctions obtained in the fourth academic year of the bachelor degree are not eligible for a discount in own master degrees and graduate studies. Prices are updated each academic year. Once enrollment is complete, the amount paid will not be refunded under any circumstances.
When a student enrolls, a contract for the provision of teaching services is formalized between the student and the Blanquerna Foundation, which is legally binding from the time of payment. Payment includes the corresponding insurance and, for students under the age of twenty-eight, compulsory academic insurance. If a student declines to take up a place, he/she will lose in full any amount he/she has paid.
The student accepts the rules for the use of computer services established by the Blanquerna Foundation. The student's personal data will be included in an automated file under the responsibility of the Blanquerna Foundation, so that this contract can be maintained and fulfilled. Students should note that their data may also be used to inform them about the future activities of the Foundation, or for the institution to send them publications.
In accordance with the provisions of Organic Law 15/1999 on the protection of personal data, students have the right to access their data to update, rectify or cancel them, or object to their use, by sending a letter, indicating which right they want to exercise.
This section is a summary of the general conditions for enrollment. It is only for guidance and therefore has no contractual value. In the event of any discrepancy, the provisions of the general conditions for enrollment specified in the receipt generated at the time of enrollment will prevail; this receipt formalizes the contract between the student and the Blanquerna Foundation; students can consult it on the intranet whenever they wish.
Foreign students
The School reserves the right to ask candidates with qualifications outside the EES for a letter from their university, embassy or consulate to certify that their studies enable them to pursue a master degree or graduate studies.
Students are responsible for having all the official documentation necessary for their stay in Spain while studying at the School. Applicants can ask for a pre-acceptance document attached to the pre-enrollment receipt to initiate applications for visas or scholarships or carry out any other administrative procedure. Under no circumstances does this document guarantee a place if all the access and admission requirements are not met. Once applicants have been accepted and enrollment is complete, they can request a letter of admission from the Academic Secretary, if required, by paying the corresponding fees.
Contact us
For more information, please contact the prospective students department.
[email protected]
Scholarships and grants Blanquerna
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