Nursing (B.S.N.)

A degree in nursing allows approved graduates to sit for the NCLEX-RN examination. The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) is a generalist degree and those who pass the licensing examination (NCLEX-RN) are able to work in many areas of a hospital including medical-surgical, critical care, operating room, pediatrics, telehealth, and oncology. Nurses are not limited to hospitals and can also work in areas such as home health, long term care, case management, and community health. Increasingly, additional employment opportunities can be found in non-traditional areas such as insurance companies, flight nurse, and parish nurse.

A BSN is also a stepping stone to other careers including nurse executive, nurse educator, nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, nurse anesthetist, clinical nurse leader, clinical nurse specialist, and nurse scientist. These options require additional study at the graduate level. Nursing faculty work with students to help them choose professional goals that are most appropriate for their interests and talents.

All students fully admitted to the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program must maintain a 2.5 cumulative grade point average to remain in the program.
Students who maintain a 3.0 GPA and have completed A&P I, A&P II are eligible to participate in the accelerated BSN program (courses run over the summer).

BSN Program Outcomes

BSN program outcomes are tied to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education which delineate expectations for professional nurses. Level 1 outcomes are the beginning skills (knowledge and comprehension) required in the first half of the program. Level 2 outcomes (analysis) are the expectations of the student who is ready to graduate and thus, are also the program outcomes:

Synthesize knowledge from the humanities and sciences into professional nursing practice, scholarship, and service to others (Nursing Practice).
Employ the nursing process using clinical reasoning to deliver compassionate, safe, and culturally relevant patient/family-centered care; demonstrate respect for the inherent worth and uniqueness of individuals in the provision of evidence-based, developmentally appropriate nursing care (Patient-Centered Care).
Incorporate principles of population health, health promotion, and disease prevention in partnership with diverse communities to promote health equity (Population Health).
Appraise and disseminate research findings to engage in evidence-based practice that promotes optimal health outcomes (Scholarship and Evidence-Based Practice).
Participate in quality improvement initiatives and actions that contribute to a culture of safety for patients, providers, and within the work environment Quality and Safety).
Practice intentional collaboration across professions, individuals, families, and communities to optimize care (Collaborative Practice).
Apply systems knowledge to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of nursing practice and decrease the cost of healthcare (Systems-Based Practice).
Demonstrate ethical use of information and communication technologies to support, document, and optimize safe nursing care (Informatics and Technology).
Assume accountability to individuals, families, society, and the nursing profession while practicing within expected ethical and legal values (Professionalism).
Demonstrate personal leadership by advocating for a culture of patient safety and systems thinking; commit to intellectual curiosity, life-long learning, and personal health and resiliency (Leadership and Professional Development).

All students registering for the BSN program will pay a nursing fee per semester of enrollment in nursing courses as detailed in the Tuition and Fees section of this catalog.

Academic Progression

Students must earn a grade of at least C in all required courses. Any grade lower than C will be considered a course failure and both the didactic and clinical courses must be repeated.
Nursing courses may be repeated one time.
Students who repeat a nursing course must participate in the mandatory remediation process with the SHINE Coordinator. Failure to participate in the remediation process will prevent the student from repeating the course.
Two course failures will result in an overall program failure and the student will not be permitted to progress in the program.