Nursing BSN

At the completion of the program, the graduate will:

• Integrate theoretical and empirical knowledge from the sciences and humanities curriculum into the practice of nursing.
• Provide holistic and competent care that promotes health and disease prevention to diverse individuals and populations.
• Utilize evidence to enhance quality and safety in nursing practice.
• Demonstrate inter- and intra-professional communication and collaboration to improve client outcomes.
• Utilize information management and technology in the provision of client care.
• Model civic engagement and fiscal responsibility in the delivery of health care.
• Demonstrate ethical values, leadership and professionalism in the practice of nursing.
• Assume accountability for intellectual growth, professional development and competent practice.

1. Clinical attendance is mandatory. Students must be punctual and prepared for all clinical experiences regardless of type (client care, simulation, observational experience, seminar, virtual, etc.). Time missed for dismissal from any clinical experience is considered clinical absence.

2. Clinical experiences are a vital component of the learning experience, and students are expected to attend all clinical hours as scheduled. Faculty recognize that extenuating circumstances occur; thus, any student exceeding two absences per course may be dismissed from the course delaying progression. All students are required to make-up missed clinical hours, incomplete clinical hours will result in course failure, with a grade of (F) submitted for the course.

3. All clinical absence time and unplanned SNAH closure on clinical days will be made up as allocated by the course faculty. Make-up days will be designated on a monthly basis. Students missing a clinical prior to the designated day are expected to make it up on the designated day unless otherwise directed by the course coordinator. Weekend students will be assigned a weekend make-up as designated on the clinical schedule. For NUR 170 and NUR 265, students will be required to complete clinical make-up as allocated and scheduled per syllabus. No changes will be made to scheduled clinical make-up days

4. A grade of incomplete would be earned if an absence is incurred within the last two weeks of the semester with the make-up scheduled at the discretion of the program. 

5. The first clinical make-up day will not incur a fee. Additional make-up days will incur a fee of $200 per absence per course, which will be billed to the student’s account. 

6. Students are responsible for reporting a clinical absence at least 30 minutes before each day of their assigned clinical time or as otherwise directed by the course faculty.

7. A satisfactory level of mental and physical health is important to support learning and assure  student and patient safety. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the Course Coordinator of any significant changes in health status that might impact their ability to fully participate in class or clinical, etc.  Any student unable to participate for medical reasons will need to submit a letter from their provider documenting the student’s fitness to return to class and/or clinical. 

8. Students are responsible for reporting clinical tardiness as soon as possible or as otherwise directed by the course faculty. 

9. Students not properly reporting a clinical absence or tardiness will receive a warning from the course faculty. A second offense may result in failure of the course. 

10. Students are granted one excused late arrival for up to 30 minutes. This late arrival will not count toward the course hour limit and the student will be permitted to complete the clinical day. Subsequent tardiness shall result in the student being dismissed from the clinical setting and clinical absence time will be accrued for that clinical day. 

Pre-licensure BSN Progression Policy

This policy delineates the academic standards required of students admitted to the pre-licensure undergraduate nursing program.

The nursing curriculum is designed to move the student from a fundamental understanding of basic concepts to complex critical thinking and application in clinical settings. Academic progression is designed to support educational success, licensure and transition to practice. 

A course attempt in one pre-licensure nursing program applies to all pre-licensure programs. A leave of absence does not negate previously attempted nursing courses.  An attempt is defined as earning a grade in a course or withdrawing from the course.

Progression Requirements:

1. A student must have a minimum earned cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher to enter into the required Nursing courses  beginning with NUR 160. Students are expected to maintain a 2.5 minimum cumulative GPA while in the nursing program. Students earning less than a GPA of 2.50 in their first semester will receive a warning. Students earning less than a GPA of 2.5 after their first semester will be placed on Academic Probation. Students who are on Academic Probation for 2 consecutive semesters will be dismissed from the program.

2. Successful completion of required nursing (NUR) courses and INT 450: Capstone is defined as a 77% or better according to the School of Nursing and Allied Health Grading Scale. Refer to the Undergraduate Nursing Grading Policy. A student can view the required nursing (NUR) courses in the academic catalog. 

3. A grade of 77% or higher for the Capstone Paper is required to successfully complete INT 450. 

4. A student who attempts (see definition above) any required nursing (NUR) courses and Capstone in the nursing program or earns less than a 77% in the same required nursing (NUR) course and Capstone for a second time will be dismissed from the nursing major. Academic advising relative to other majors/options will be provided.

5. A student must earn a C or better in any Mathematics or Natural Science courses that are required for the major.

6. A student may have no more than two unsuccessful attempts across all of the required nursing (NUR) courses and Capstone in the program. Students exceeding this requirement will be dismissed from the nursing major. Academic advising relative to other majors/options will be provided.

7. Any exceptions to the two-attempt limit must be approved by the Dean of the School of Nursing and Allied Health. 

8. If a student is enrolled in co-requisite NUR courses in a semester and withdraws from one co-requisite, a student may remain in the other co-requisite NUR courses if the date of the withdrawal is after the fourth week of the semester and with the discretion of the program director. Otherwise, students must be removed from all NUR courses.  

9. Once a student begins NUR clinical courses, the maximum time a student may be out of NUR clinical courses is 12 consecutive months from the time the student exited the program.  Prior to a student re-entering the program of study, faculty reserve the right to assign placement in the curriculum and to require remedial activities. If a student exceeds the 12 consecutive month limit, the student must restart the program’s clinical courses from the beginning and will adhere to the current policies and plan in place for the program of study.

10. Students dismissed from the 3 year or 4 year BSN program may not transfer into the ASN, 3 year BSN, or 4 year BSN program.

RN to BSN Progression Policy

The nursing curriculum is designed to move the student from a fundamental understanding of basic concepts to complex critical thinking and incorporation of evidence-based findings to practice settings. Academic progression is designed to support educational success, the development of leadership qualities, and the delivery of holistic, safe, and competent nursing care. 

This policy delineates the academic standards required of students admitted to the RN-to-BSN  nursing program.

A leave of absence does not negate previously attempted nursing courses.  An attempt is defined as earning a grade in a course or late-dropping the course.

Progression Requirements:

1. All students must have an active RN license on file in order to be enrolled in any RN-to-BSN required nursing (NUR) courses and INT 450: Capstone with the exception of general education requirements. A student can view the required nursing courses in the academic catalog. 

2. Students must secure employment or volunteer in a health care setting for eight (8) hours weekly by the beginning of the second semester of enrollment in order to continue in the RN-to-BSN core courses. Students must maintain employment or volunteering in a health care setting for eight (8) hours weekly throughout the program. 

3.  A student must have a minimum earned cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 or higher to enter into the required nursing courses.  Students are expected to maintain a 2.5 minimum cumulative GPA while in the nursing program. Students earning less than a GPA of 2.50 in their first semester will receive a warning. Students earning less than a GPA of 2.5 after their first semester will be placed on Academic Probation. Students who are on Academic Probation for 2 consecutive semesters will be dismissed from the program. A student can view the required nursing (NUR) courses in the academic catalog. 

4. A student must earn a C or better in any Mathematics or Natural Science courses that are required for the major.

5. Successful completion of required nursing (NUR) courses and INT 450: Capstone is defined as 77% or better according to the Undergraduate Nursing Policy Grading Policy. A student can view the required nursing (NUR) courses in the academic catalog. 

6. A student who attempts (see definition above) any required nursing (NUR) courses and Capstone in the nursing program or earns less than a 77% in the same required nursing (NUR) course and Capstone for a second time will be dismissed from the nursing major. Academic advising relative to other majors/options will be provided.

7. A student may have no more than two unsuccessful attempts across all of the required (NUR) nursing courses and Capstone in the program. Students exceeding this requirement will be dismissed from the Nursing major. Academic advising relative to other majors/options will be provided.

8. Students are expected to complete all required courses for program completion prior to registering for INT 450. INT 450 must be taken in the last semester of the program. 

9. A grade of 77% or higher for the Capstone Paper is required to successfully complete INT 450. 

10. Any student who steps out of the program must return within two years and will need to meet the curricular requirements at the time of program re-entry. Additionally, any person wanting to return after more than 2 years from the last course completion will need to be reviewed and approved for return by the Program Director. 

Grading Standards

Explanation of Grading Standards

1. Grades on quizzes, exams (tests) and other forms of evaluation are carried out to two decimal places and not rounded.

2. Rounding occurs at the end of the semester only with final course grades. Final course grades ending with 0.5 or greater are rounded upward unless the final course grade is less than required, in which case no rounding occurs.

Example:

79.47 = 79%. It does not round up.

79.74 = 80%.

76.99 = 76.99%. It does not round up.

    3. In any course, all course outcomes and/or additional course requirements must be met, or a course grade of “F” will be assigned       regardless of points earned. 

      Example: If a student earns a passing course grade but does not meet course or clinical outcomes, a grade of “F” will be awarded

Students Enrolled in the Pre-licensure BSN Track

1. A course grade of “C+” (77%) or higher is required in all NUR, INT courses.

2. A grade of “C” (74%) or higher is required for all other courses.

3. INT 450: A student must achieve a grade of “C” (77%) or higher on the Capstone Paper to pass the course.  If not achieved, the grade on the paper will be the grade of record.

Minimum Examination Grade Policy for Students Enrolled in the Pre-licensure BSN Track

Students must achieve a weighted examination average grade of 77% in all nursing (NUR) clinical courses to successfully complete the course. If a weighted examination average of 77% is achieved, the other course points such as extra credit, quizzes, assignments, and ATI will be added into the final grade calculation and this grade will be entered as the student’s overall average. If a student does not earn the weighted examination average of 77%, the weighted examination average will be entered as the student’s overall course grade. A minimum grade of 77% is required to pass this course.

Students Enrolled in the RN to BSN Track

1. A grade of “C+” (77%) or higher is required for all RN to BSN NUR, INT, Core Courses.

2. All course outcomes and/or additional course requirements must be met to successfully complete the course as outlined in the course syllabus.

3. INT 450: A student must achieve a grade of “C+” (77%) or higher on the Capstone Paper to pass the course. If not achieved, the grade on the paper will be the grade of record

Pre-Licensure

Cornerstone Core Curriculum Requirements

Consist of 14 core and 2 overlay requirements.  See below for additional detailed information on each of these requirements.

Recommended CCC Courses

Major Requirements 

RN to BSN

RN to BSN Students will transfer approximately 67 credits from an associates degree curriculum. Please see the Block Transfer policy for more information.

Core Requirements: If one of these PHL/THE courses were completed as part of your ASN program @ SJU, they will apply to the core requirements; however, to meet program credit hours a student will need to take a 3 credit general elective. 

67 transfer credits + 53 RN to BSN curriculum credits = 120 credits

Block Transfer 

Major Requirements 

Four -Year Traditional BSN Course Sequence

¹

Must be taken the last semester of the of the program

²

Must be taken during last 7 weeks of the program

RN to BSN Course Sequence