Track Two (RN-to-BS Program)
Admission Process
All students applying to the RN-BS program must hold a current unencumbered license to practice as an RN in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The RN-BS student applying to Worcester State University as a transfer student can receive up to 72 credits transferable from an accredited associate degree college and a maximum of 90 credits from four year colleges and universities. Students with a BA or BS degree in another major only need to complete the nursing courses and the prerequisite courses for the nursing major. Admission requirements include official high school and college transcripts and a minimum 2.5 GPA. Associate degree graduates and diploma graduates earn 29 nursing credits for NCLEX-RN licensure.
All Track Two courses are offered in a hybrid format (in-class and online).
The full-time day program offered at WSU is a three semester nursing program. Students are admitted into a cohort and class will be held either Tuesday or Thursday. Class times are scheduled 9am-4pm.
All applicants must complete the required components of the admission process prior to May 1st for consideration of admittance for that September. Students who wish to matriculate into the program and begin taking prerequisites or corequisites early, may be admitted as an early admission by completing the application process. However, students may not enter the nursing program of courses without first having completed all pre-requisites (including statistics) with a grade of C or higher.
Students in the Quinsigamond Community College-Worcester State University Mass Transfer Block Pathway will adhere to the QCC-WSU articulation agreement.
Track Two Prerequisite Courses
These courses may be transferred if the student has previously taken the course (per college transfer policy) or may be taken at Worcester State University. Prerequisite, corerequisite, and Nursing courses may not be taken pass/fail.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| EN-101 & EN-102 | College Writing I and College Writing II 1 | 6 |
| MA-150 | Statistics I 2 3 | 3 |
| SO-100 | Introduction to Sociology: Exploring Our Social World | 3 |
| PS-101 | General Psychology | 3 |
| BI-161 & BI-162 | Human Anatomy and Physiology I and Human Anatomy and Physiology II | 8 |
| BI-204 | Microbiology | 4 |
| or BI-206 | Medical Microbiology | |
The Worcester State University Nursing program requires 31 credits. All nursing courses must be taken in sequence. All courses are hybrid unless otherwise noted. Students must achieve a minimum grade of 80 in each nursing course. Only one nursing course may be repeated to obtain the minimum grade or required GPA and must be repeated within the 2 years.
Sample RN-BS Curriculum - WSU Campus (Full-time Blended/Day)
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Semester I | (9 credits) | |
| NU-332 | Transition to Baccalaureate Nursing | 3 |
| NU-333 | Nursing Informatics (track 2) | 3 |
| NU-334 | Selected Mechanisms of Disease and Related Pharmocology (track 2) | 3 |
| Semester II | (10 credits) | |
| NU-342 | Health Assessment (track 2) | 4 |
| NU-431 | Research Seminar in Nursing (Track II) | 3 |
| NU-432 | Advanced Nursing Perspectives in Chronic Illness (Track II) | 3 |
| Semester III | (12 credits) | |
| NU-452 | Professional Nursing Leadership and Organization (Track II) | 3 |
| or NU-551 | Nursing Leadership and Administration | |
| NU-472 | Community/Public Health Nursing (Track II) | 6 |
| NU-473 | Health Policy (Track II) (On-Line) | 3 |
| or NU-530 | Social Policy and Economics of the Health Care Delivery System | |
| Total Credits | 31 | |
Students are required to meet with their academic advisor to review their courses for the upcoming semester. A minimum of 120 credits is required for graduation. First-year and transfer students with 45 or fewer credits at the time of admission shall complete two academic programs (a major/major or major/minor) to qualify for graduation. For more information, please view the MajorPlus section of this catalog.