Department website

Bachelor of Science in Nursing

This major is available on the Aurora campus.

Program Description

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree program prepares baccalaureate nurse generalists to provide direct and indirect nursing care to patients, families, groups, communities, and populations. With a liberal education foundation, students develop an understanding of the discipline of nursing in order to engage in direct care of the sick in and across all environments, health promotion and clinical prevention, and population based health care. Successful completion of the degree qualifies graduates to take the National Council Licensure Examination-RN (NCLEX-RN), required for licensure as a registered professional nurse (RN).  

Program Mission

To prepare a diverse population of professional nurses for ethical practice, transformational leadership, and life-long learning.

Program Vision

To prepare baccalaureate nurse generalists to transform healthcare delivery in a rapidly changing world.

Program Goals

1. Prepare graduates to practice as baccalaureate generalists to be providers of direct and indirect care; designers, coordinators, and mangers of care; and members of the nursing profession who are leaders and advocates for patients and the profession.  
2. Prepare graduates to practice as baccalaureate generalists through a liberal education in the sciences and the arts and a comprehensive nursing curriculum based on established standards.
3. Prepare graduates to practice as baccalaureate generalists committed to lifelong learning, professional excellence, ethical practice, and integrity.

Roles for Which the BSN Degree Program is Preparing Its Graduates

Baccalaureate nursing generalist: Provider of care, designer/manager/coordinator of care, and member of a profession.

Program Standards

The BSN degree program is based on the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (2008).

The baccalaureate degree program in nursing at Aurora University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC  20001, 202-887-6791.

BSN Program (Pre-licensure) Admission 

Aurora University offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree program. Further application information, including application deadlines, are located on the Aurora University BSN admission website. Two admission tracks are available for the pre-licensure BSN degree option:

• Direct admission from high school
• Admission for students into the professional phase of the nursing program

Direct Admission

Direct admission into the BSN program is offered to qualified incoming freshmen who have met the admission standards for Aurora University and have declared nursing as their intended major prior to enrolling at Aurora University. A high school cumulative GPA of B or higher (or 3.0 or higher on a 1-4 scale) qualifies students for direct admission status to the BSN program.  

Admission Requirements for Current AU Students and Transfer Students

There is a competitive, program-specific admission process for a limited number of seats in the BSN program for current AU students and/or transfer students desiring to enter the professional phase of the nursing program. All applications for current AU students and/or transfer students are reviewed for acceptance by the BSN Admissions Committee.  Admission to the nursing major is competitive, and meeting the minimum academic qualifications does not guarantee admission to the nursing program.  

In addition to the Aurora University undergraduate admission requirements, students applying to the BSN degree program are required to meet the following:

• A minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.75/4.0 scale (3.42/5.0) at a regionally accredited higher education institution.
• All nursing prerequisite courses taken must be completed with a “C” or better, with no "D" or "F" grades.  Courses taken after provisional admission and prior to the beginning of the 3000-level nursing courses must be completed with a “C” or better. The courses include:

  Course List

  Code	Title	Credits
  BIO-1210 & 1210Z	General Biology I and General Biology I Laboratory	4
  BIO-2280 & 2280Z	Microbiology and Microbiology Laboratory	4
  CHM-1200 & 1200Z	Principles of Chemistry and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory	4
  HLS-2660	Anatomy and Physiology I	4
  HLS-2670	Anatomy and Physiology II	4
  HLS-3050	Pathophysiology 1	4
  MTH-2100	General Statistics 3	4
  NUR-1214	Professional Nursing, Culture, and Health Care 2	4
  PSY-3250	Lifespan Development	4

¹

Students transferring to Aurora University may substitute NUR-3160 in place of HLS-3050 Pathophysiology

²

NUR-1214 Professional Nursing, Culture, and Health Care can be waived for all students who transfer in 15 or more credits earned post-high school graduation.

• All science prerequisites must have been completed within the last ten years.
• An interview may be requested at the discretion of the School of Nursing Admissions, Policies, and Standards Committee.
• Applicants who are graduates of foreign secondary schools where the primary language is not English must obtain a composite score of at least 550 (or a 213-220) on the computer-based test from the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or ESL Level 109.
• Students are required to have successfully completed 60 semester hours (SH) prior to entering the nursing program. Of those 60 SH, a maximum of 20 SH remaining will be allowed at the time the applicant’s file is reviewed for admission the semester prior to beginning clinical courses (i.e., 12 SH fall or spring and 8 SH summer).

Additional Requirements

Progression Requirements for the Direct Admission Students

The academic record of each direct admission student in the BSN program will be reviewed at the end of every semester. In that review, it will be determined which students are in good academic standing as a nursing student and which nursing students will be put on academic probation in the following semester. The review will include, at a minimum, the following progression standards:  

Review 

Direct admission nursing students who have met the progression standards will remain nursing students in good academic standing in the BSN program. Those not meeting one or more progression standards listed above will be placed on academic probation in the BSN program. 

Academic Probation in the BSN Program

Students placed on academic probation will have one semester to meet the progression standards and end their probationary status. At the next end-of-semester review of academic records, students on probation who have met the progression standards will be removed from probationary status and returned to the status of good academic standing in the BSN program. Those who have not met the progression standards will be dismissed from the nursing program and will be helped to find an alternate academic major. 

Students can only be placed on probation once. Students who have been on probation previously and returned to good academic standing once, and subsequently do not meet the progression standards will be dismissed from the nursing program and will be helped to find an alternate academic major. 

There is no appeal process for dismissal.

Students may not enter the NUR 3000-level courses on probation. Students who are placed on probation in the semester prior to entering the NUR 3000-level courses will have one semester to meet the progression standards and end their probationary status. The program will require sufficient time to review the academic records of such students. This review period will impact the student’s progression into the NUR 3000-level courses.   

Program Requirements for Students in the 3000- and 4000-Level Nursing Courses

Program requirements include, but are not limited to, fingerprint criminal background check(s) and drug screening(s), documentation of immunizations/immunity to vaccine-preventable diseases and other health requirements, health insurance, core performance standards, American Heart Association healthcare provider CPR certification, clinical attire and equipment requirements, program-specific expenses and fees, and access to private transportation.

Progression Standards for the 3000– and 4000-Level Nursing Courses

When a nursing student begins the 3000/4000-level nursing course sequence, progression and dismissal policies outlined in the annual School of Nursing Baccalaureate Student Handbook will apply.   

Program Requirements

Nursing Major – Pre-licensure Program

Course List

Code	Title	Credits
BSN Core Course Prerequisites 1
BIO-1310	Biology of Cells for Nursing	4
or BIO-1210 & 1210Z	General Biology I and General Biology I Laboratory
BIO-2280	Microbiology	3
CHM-1200 & 1200Z	Principles of Chemistry and Principles of Chemistry Laboratory 2	4
HLS-2660	Anatomy and Physiology I	4
HLS-2670	Anatomy and Physiology II	4
HLS-3050	Pathophysiology	4
MTH-2100	General Statistics	4
NUR-1214	Professional Nursing, Culture, and Health Care 3	4
PSY-1100	General Psychology	4
PSY-3250	Lifespan Development	4
Nursing Course Requirements
NUR-3000	Introduction to Professional Nursing	3
NUR-3050 & NUR-3051Z & NUR-3052Z	Principles of Nursing I and Principles of Nursing I Laboratory and Principles of Nursing I Clinical	7
NUR-3110 & NUR-3111Z & NUR-3112Z	Principles of Nursing II and Principles of Nursing II Laboratory and Principles of Nursing II Clinical	6
NUR-3160	Pharmacological Concepts Pharmacology	4
NUR-3260 & NUR-3261Z	Health Assessment, Education and Promotion and Health Assessment, Education and Promotion Laboratory	4
NUR-3450 & NUR-3452Z	Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing and Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing Clinical	4
NUR-4050	Nursing Research	3
NUR-4200 & NUR-4202Z	Nursing: a Global Community Outlook and Nursing: a Global Community Outlook Clinical	4
NUR-4300 & NUR-4302Z	Medical Surgical Nursing I: Collaborative Practice in Health and Illness and Medical Surgical Nursing I: Collaborative Practice in Health and Illness Clinical	7
NUR-4500 & NUR-4502Z & NUR-4503Z	Nursing Care of the Family and Nursing Care of the Family/OB Clinical and Nursing Care of the Family/PED Clinical	7
NUR-4600	Leadership Ethics and Policy	3
NUR-4605	NCLEX Review	1
NUR-4800 & NUR-4802Z	Medical Surgical Nursing II: Collaborative Practice in Health and Illness and Medical Surgical Nursing II: Collaborative Practice in Health and Illness Clinical	6
Total Credits		98

¹

All prerequisite courses must be taken prior to beginning 3000-level nursing courses 

²

CHM-1310/Z, 1320/Z, 2410/Z, 2420/Z or 2450/Z also meet this requirement.

³

This course will be waived for all students who transfer in 15 or more credits earned post-high school graduation.

Undergraduate Degree Requirements

A student who graduates from Aurora University with a baccalaureate degree will have met the following requirements:

1. Completion of all requirements for an approved major (with no grades lower than “C”).
2. Overall completion of at least 120 semester hours of coursework with a GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale (a course may be utilized only once in application toward a degree requirement, unless otherwise noted in the academic regulations). The 120 semester hours of coursework must include:
   • At least 52 semester hours completed at a senior college.
   • Residency Requirement - At least 30 semester hours completed at Aurora University, including the last 24 semester hours in the degree, and including at least 18 semester hours in the major. (Portfolio assessment credit, life and vocational experience credit, off-campus experience credit, examination credit, participation credit, and block credit, shall not count toward the residency requirement).
   • Upper-Division Requirement - A minimum of 30 semester hours numbered 3000 or above. Of these 30 semester hours, 15 semester hours must lie within the major and 15 semester hours must be completed at Aurora University.
3. Completion of all General Education requirements (with no grades lower than “C”), as follows:
   • Quantitative and Formal Reasoning competency requirement
   • ENG-1000 Introduction to Academic Writing
   • IDS-1200 Discover What Matters or IDS-3040 Global Justice
   • IDS-1150 First Year Experience - Not required for Transfer or AU Online students)
   • Satisfactory participation in the junior-year mentoring and assessment process designed to guide students to successful completion of their degree and to encourage planning for next steps beyond graduation. (IDS-3500 Junior Mentoring Program I and IDS-3550 Junior Mentoring Program II - Not required for ADC or AU Online students but may be designated electives for AU Online students admitted with fewer than 15 hours of transfer credit.)
   • Distribution Requirements
     Students will complete one approved course¹ from each of the following categories:
     • Artistic Literacy
     • Cultural Literacy
     • Human Inquiry
     • Scientific Inquiry

In addition to the above, ADC and Online students will also complete one approved course¹ from the following category:

• Discovery and Reflection

¹

Only courses that are approved to meet the distribution requirement can be used toward this requirement. See the list of approved courses  for available options. Courses taken to meet distribution requirements are 4 semester hours apiece, with the following exceptions:

• An approved transfer course of at least 2.50 semester hours can be used to satisfy a distribution requirement.
• Courses with co-requisite laboratory components may be used to satisfy a distribution requirement, provided that the student successfully complete both the three-credit-hour course and the single-credit-hour lab component.

Learning Outcomes

Graduates are prepared to enter the profession of nursing as contributing members of the discipline to promote, maintain, and restore the health of patients in a variety of settings.  Graduates are prepared to:

1. Integrate knowledge from the liberal arts and sciences education into one’s professional nursing practice (Essential I: Liberal Education for Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice);
2. Assume a professional nurse leadership role to assure quality nursing practice in the delivery of health services (Essential II: Basic Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality);
3. Integrate scholarly inquiry and research into evidenced based nursing practice (Essential III: Scholarship for Evidence Based Practice);
4. Ethically mange data, information, knowledge, and technology to achieve desired quality outcomes (Essential IV: Information Management and Application of Patient Care Technology);
5. Demonstrate basic knowledge of healthcare policy, finance, and regulatory environments (Essential V: Health Care Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments);
6. Utilize multiple interprofessional and intraprofessional methods of communication to collaborate effectively in delivering safe, patient-centered care throughout the lifespan and in a variety of settings (Essential VI: Interprofessional Communication and Collaboration for Improving Patient Health Outcomes);
7. Perform competently, effectively, and ethically as a baccalaureate nurse to promote, maintain, and restore the health of vulnerable populations (Essential VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health);
8. Demonstrate caring and culturally sensitive behaviors that create an environment of respect for the dignity of patients, families, self and others (Essential VIII: Professionalism and Professional Values);
9. Integrate critical thinking and professional values into the clinical decision making process (Essential VIII: Professionalism and Professional Values);
10. Accept responsibility for lifelong learning, global citizenship and service in the nursing profession (Essential IX: Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice);
11. Articulate a personal philosophy of nursing which guides one’s practice as an educator, researcher, advocate, manager, and provider of care (Essential IX: Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice).