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Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (RN to BSN program)
Course
Requirements • Program
Delivery • Admissions • Locations
Department
of Nursing,
College of Fine and Applied Arts,
Appalachian State University:
The RN to BSN degree is designed for the individual who has earned an associate degree in nursing (ADN) or a diploma from a hospital nursing program and holds an active, unrestricted, and unemcumbered registered nurse (RN) license in North Carolina or a compact state. The RN to BSN degree provides the academic knowledge and skills necessary to enter the professional level of nursing, to maintain a current position that requires the nurse possess or be working toward the BSN, or to advance in the nursing field whether one chooses to seek higher-level positions and/or to apply for graduate study in nursing.
In cooperation with the Office of Extension and Distance Education, the College of Fine and Applied Arts delivers an undergraduate bachelor's-degree-completion program in nursing to selected sites in western North Carolina. The program blends transfer credit with Appalachian's upper-division course work (i.e., courses typically taken in the junior and senior years of college) to provide local access to all courses required for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.
Program Requirements
The RN to BSN degree requires 124 semester hours for completion and is comprised of the following:
- The Associate Degree in Nursing [ADN] or a Diploma from a hospital nursing program (required, along with the active, unrestricted and unencumbered RN license, for the program of study)
- Cognate courses (some of which may be completed in the ADN degree program)
- General education (some of which may be completed in the ADN degree program)
- Upper-division major courses (to be delivered by Appalachian)
- Electives (depending upon the number of cognate and/or core curriculum courses completed in the ADN degree, the student will need sufficient elective hours to achieve the 124-semester-hour total required for BSN program completion)
Freshman
and Sophomore Courses to be Completed at a Community College:
(or other accredited institution)
For this program, lower-division course requirements (i.e., courses typically taken in the freshman and sophomore years of college) are fulfilled at a community college (or other accredited institution). Individuals planning to enter this program are encouraged to complete the NC Comprehensive Articulation Agreement (CAA) core prior to enrollment in this program. If completion of the CAA core is not likely possible by the start of this program, please contact the Office of Extension and Distance Education for more information concerning general education requirements.
In addition to completing the CAA core (or general education requirements), students pursuing the RN-BSN degree must complete the following cognate courses outside the program Appalachian delivers to the site. (NC community college course numbers which will fulfill the requirements are shown in the second column of the chart.)
| Microbiology |
3-4 sh; (BIO 170, 175, 176 or 275) |
| Developmental Psychology |
3 sh; (PSY 241) |
| Statistics |
3-4 sh; (MAT 151 + 151A and 155 + 155Aor other statistics course approved by the Chair of the Department of Nursing) |
| Additional cognate courses (18 total sh of cognate courses must be presented) |
7-9 sh; Examples of courses recommended as additional cognate selections: CIS 110, 115; PSY 281; SPA 111, 112, 211, 212; SOC 210, 213; or other courses approved by the Chair of the Department of Nursing) |
| Concurrent enrollment
(i.e. taking courses through Appalachian and the community
college during the same term) is allowed during the first three terms of the program. All lower deivision courses should be completed before the fourth (last) term of the RN-BSN program. |
Cohort Program:
The RN to BSN program is cohort-based, a concept of providing a schedule of courses to an identified group of students who, together, start and complete their upper-division program of study at a particular location. Cohorts begin at varying times, and the prospective student must select a particular cohort to attend prior to that cohort's beginning date (i.e., students may enter a cohort only at selected beginning times and at particular sites).
A total of 60 semester hours comprises the major requirements, a portion of which is derived from the student's previous experience in nursing. During the term preceding the last semester of the program, the student is awarded 30 semester hours of credit for prior nursing experience. Appalachan faculty deliver the upper-division courses to the off-campus site utilizing various methods of instruction (e.g., lecture, videos/DVDs, online), and students attend classes only one afternoon/evening per week. The cohort duration is four semesters.
Application Process
(Please contact the Office of Extension
and Distance Education about applying for a
new cohort. The application for admission for each
off-campus cohort is made available only at selected
times, and the application must be submitted directly to the Office of Extension and Distance Education. [Currently, the application for admission should not be submitted via Appalachian's online form.])
Applicants for the RN to BSN program must hold the associate degree in nursing (ADN) from an accredited college or have a diploma from a hospital nursing program as well as possess an active, unrestricted and unencumbered registered nurse (RN) license in North Carolina or a compact state. Because admittance to the cohort program requires the student have more than 30 semester hours of transferable credit, SAT or ACT scores are not required in the application process. Prospective applicants for this program who are less than 24 years of age and did not complete the UNC Minimum Course Requirements (MCR) in high school must contact the Office of Extension and Distance Education prior to making application.
It is important that students plan carefully to acquire any necessary general education, cognate, or elective courses which must be accomplished before the last semester of the program.
The completed application form, $50 application fee, and all supporting transcripts must be sent to the Office of Extension and Distance Education. Official transcripts from the high school and each college attended are required (and, if necessary, may be sent separate from the application form). An applicant will be notified of their admission status within 4 to 6 weeks following submission of the complete application.
Off-Campus Locations of Program
Catawba County
Spring 2009 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began at the Hickory Metro Higher Education Center and a new program is proposed for Spring 2010.
Burke County
Fall 2008 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began on the campus of Western Piedmont Community College, and a new cohort is proposed for Fall 2009.
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