Progression in the Nursing Major

Students entering the pre-licensure track of the BSN degree program must follow the prescribed curriculum sequence and must complete the required pre-requisites.

Students must receive at least a C+ grade (78) in each nursing course and may not progress to the next semester nursing courses until a grade of C+ (78) is achieved. This may mean that the student needs to extend the program beyond 4 years since most nursing courses are taught only once per year. Students must achieve a 78 average on test scores in nursing courses including the final exam, before other grades, such as papers, projects or nursing care plans, are averaged into the grade.

• Students that fail to achieve the minimum grade of a C+ in the NU105 - Introduction to Professional Nursing course on their first attempt, will be dismissed from the nursing major.
• For all NU courses other than NU105, Introduction to Professional Nursing, students may only repeat a failed nursing course once.  Failure to successfully complete a nursing course on the second attempt at any institution will result in dismissal from the nursing major.
• Students who fail two different nursing courses will be dismissed from the nursing major.
• For all theory courses with a clinical component, students must pass both theory and clinical in order to pass the course. If a student fails either the theory or clinical component, the student must repeat both the theory and clinical components of the course.
• Students must request approval from the Program Coordinator prior to enrolling in any course other than a Saint Joseph’s College course. The Program Coordinator will determine the appropriateness of the course. 

Additionally, pre-licensure nursing students must achieve the following grades in non-nursing required courses as follows:

Course	Minimum Acceptable Grade
EH 101  * College Writing	C
PY 101  * Introduction to Psychology	C-
SO 201  * Principles of Sociology	C-
BI 220  * Medical Microbiology	C
BI 210  ** Anatomy & Physiology I	C
BI 211  ** Anatomy & Physiology II	C
CH 120  ** Chemistry for the Health Sciences	C
NN 202  * Nutrition	C+

* Course must be successfully repeated prior to progressing to junior level nursing courses.

** Courses must be successfully repeated prior to progressing to sophomore level nursing courses.

If a student does not successfully repeat these required courses within the required time frame then the time for the completion of the program will be extended beyond four years.

 

Functional Abilities Policy

Students in nursing programs must possess the functional abilities to perform the skills and behaviors required of a professional nurse. Therefore all nursing students must possess the following functional abilities:  The

• ability to see, hear, touch, smell, and distinguish colors;
• capacity to communicate orally and in writing with clarity, accuracy, and efficiency;
• ability to perform full range of required client care activities in a safe and effective manner;
• ability to think critically, analyze, assess, solve problems, make judgments;
• emotional stability and ability to accept responsibility and accountability.

Detailed statements relative to these abilities can be found in the Nursing Student Handbook.

 

Professional Licensure

The undergraduate Nursing major curriculum is designed to prepare student to take the NCLEX-RN licensing exam.

Students who are pursuing a BSN degree leading to application for professional licensure and will be participating in clinical must purchase a CastleBranch account (see Nursing Handbook).  CastleBranch is one of the top 10 background screening and compliance tracking solutions companies in the nation.  You will order a criminal background check, medical document manager, and drug test through your account.  The package includes a search of your current county of residence.  If any additional counties are found associated with your name, they will be performed at no additional charge.  This package also includes document storage.  At the end of the order process, you will be prompted to upload specific documents required by your school for immunization, medical, or certification records (see Nursing Handbook). 

ATI Complete

The Nursing Department has incorporated the testing and assessment offerings from the Assessment Technology Institute (ATI), which offers a wide variety of NCLEX preparation assessments during nursing school.  These assessments not only prepare our students for the NCLEX, but they also help them gain critical thinking skills and a comprehensive nursing knowledge base needed to be a great nurse.

With the completion of this degree program students will:

• Demonstrate professional behaviors in appearance and demeanor, uses legal and ethical principles; acts accountable in role as:  advocate, collaborator, teacher, team member and leader; integrates research into practice; and becomes an independent learner.
• Demonstrate holistic caring behaviors to: clients and recognizes the importance of holistic self-care; community; colleagues; including health promotion and illness prevention.
• Communicate effectively and professionally: verbally, nonverbally, in writing and using computer technology
• Demonstrate critical thinking focusing on:  clinical reasoning, problem solving and effective use of the nursing process.
• Demonstrate safe, effective throughout the life span (and at the end of life) that is based on accepted principles and standards of nursing practice, reflects evidenced-based care and culturally competent.