RN-BSN - Extension and Distance Education at Appalachian State University

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 a current 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 122 semester hours for completion and is comprised of the following:

The Associates Degree in Nursing [ADN] or a Diploma from a hospital nursing program (required, along with the RN license, for the program of study)
Cognate courses (some of which may be completed in the ADN degree program)
Core curriculum (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 122-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). Listed below are the lower-division core curriculum and the cognate courses which must be completed outside Appalachian's RN to BSN cohort program. In some instances, examples of courses--rather than the full array of transfer options--are shown. Questions about the transferability of additional courses may be directed to the Office of Extension and Distance Education. Courses previously taken on the community college quarter system or those taken at other institutions can be evaluated for possible transfer credit. (Students transferring the NC Comprehensive Articulation Agreement core will automatically meet core curriculum requirements for this program.)

In the chart below, the Appalachian lower-division course requirements are listed in the first column, and the current NC community college equivalent courses are shown as three-digit numbers in the second column.

English 1000 & 1100 (core)	6 sh; English composition/literature (ENG 111 and ENG 112 or 113 or 114 or 131)
Social Science (core)	12 sh; including: World History--6 sh (e.g., HIS 111/112 or HIS 121/122) Other Social Sciences-- 6 sh in 2 different areas (Choose from: ANT 210, 220, 221; ECO 151, 251; GEO 112,130; POL 110, 120, 130, 210, 220; PSY 150; SOC 210, 213, 220, 225, 234)
Humanities (core)	12 sh; four courses from at least three academic areas, one must be an approved fine arts course [e.g., art appreciation, music appreciation, theatre appreciation, etc.] and one must be a literature course [approved literature courses in the community college course equivalents shown include the ENG courses listed, HUM 130, REL 211, and REL 212] (Choose from: ART 111, 114, 115, 116, 117; DAN 110, 211+212; DRA 111, 112, 122, 126, 211, 212; ENG 231, 232, 233, 234, 241, 242, 243, 251, 252, 253, 261, 262, 265, 266, 271, 272, 273, 274, 275; FRE 151, 211, 212; GER 211, 212; HUM 115, 120, 122, 130, 140, 145, 150, 160, 161, 211, 212, 220, 225, 240; ITA 211, 212; MUS 110, 112, 113, 114, 210, 211, 212, 213, 270, 271, 272; PHI 210, 215, 220, 221, 230, 240, 250; REL 110, 111, 112, 211, 212, 221; RUS 211, 212; SPA 211, 212)
Science (core)	8 sh; labs must be included (e.g., BIO 111/112 or BIO 168/169 or CHE 151/152 or PHY 151/152)
Mathematics (core)	3-4 sh; (Choose from: MAT 140, 161, 162, 165, 171, 172, 175, 263, 271, or 272)
Statistics (cognate)	3-4 sh; (Choose from MAT 151 or 155 or other statistics course approved by the Dept of Nursing Chair)
Microbiology (cognate)	3-4 sh (e.g., BIO 170, 175, 176, or 275)
Developmental Psychology (cognate)	3 sh; PSY 241 (or other related course approved by the Dept of Nursing Chair)
Additional cognate courses	7 - 9 sh (Choose from: 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)
Electives	At least 2 sh of electives outside the major discipline are required; additional community college elective courses may be needed to ensure the completion of a total of 122 sh for the BSN degree. (For a complete listing of transferable courses from the NC Community College System click here.)
Concurrent enrollment (i.e. taking courses through Appalachian and the community college during the same term) may be allowed; inquiries should be directed to the Chair of the Nursing 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 a current 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 core curriculum, cognate, or elective courses which must be accomplished before the last semester of the program.

The application for admission to an upcoming cohort must be submitted at least one month (and preferably three months) in advance of the beginning date of the cohort. The 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 30 days following submission of the complete application.

Off-Campus Locations of Program
Catawba County
Spring 2008 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began at the Hickory Metro Higher Education Center and a new program is proposed for Spring 2009.

Burke County
Fall 2007 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began on the campus of Western Piedmont Community College, and a new cohort is proposed for Fall 2008.

Watauga County
Fall 2007 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began at the Watauga Medical Center, and a new cohort is proposed for Fall 2008.

Ashe County
Spring 2008 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program began at Ashe Memorial Hospital.

Surry County
Fall 2008 -- RN to BSN degree in Nursing program is planned to begin at Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital.

For more information about the RN to BSN degree in Nursing, contact:
Dr. Wanda Stutts, Chair of the Department of Nursing

To make a request of the Office of Extension and Distance Education:
click here