Program Description
The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.) program prepares students for licensure as entry-level professional nurses. The General Education program engages students in the liberal arts, promotes community and civic engagement, and develops students’ abilities to use ethical reasoning in decision-making. The B.S.N. program, including the traditional B.S.N. pathway and the fast flex pathway, builds on the liberal arts to develop discipline-specific knowledge, skills and abilities needed to promote health, prevent disease, manage acute and chronic conditions, and coordinate care to individuals, families and communities across the lifespan in a variety of healthcare and community settings.
Admission and Retention Requirements
The B.S.N. in nursing offers three options for completion: the traditional pathway, the fast flex pathway and the R.N.-B.S.N. pathway. Admission to the traditional pathway is limited to 113 students each fall and spring. Admission to the fast flex pathway is limited to 30 students each summer semester. For information on the R.N.-B.S.N. pathway, see the R.N.-B.S.N. catalog page.
All applicants must be currently admitted to the university, meet admission criteria, and complete the application to the pathway of choice. Detailed application information is available on the nursing school website.
Application Requirements
The following are required to apply for admission to the traditional B.S.N. pathway and the fast flex pathway:
- Enrolled at JMU
- B.S.N. declared major
- One full-time semester at JMU completed (by the end of the semester of application)
- 36 credit hours completed (by the end of the semester of application)
- Earn a minimum grade of “C-” in prerequisite courses and maintain a minimum prerequisite GPA of 3.0
- After the criteria and pre-requisite courses are met, the following will be used in applicant consideration:
- Experiences such as prior military service or veteran status, current ROTC, current work experiences, and/or current community services
- Attributes such as Pell Grant eligibility, first-generation college student, and/or being multilingual, and
- An essay of no more than 250 words to address a prompt that demonstrates students’ commitment to the values of the School of Nursing
Admission Requirements
After application and before entry into the traditional or fast flex pathway, students must maintain a minimum prerequisite GPA of 3.00, complete 48 credit hours, and earn a minimum grade of “C-” in the remaining prerequisite courses:
- Earn a minimum grade of “C-” in prerequisite courses:
Students may elect to repeat up to two courses during their enrollment at JMU on a repeat/forgive basis following university policy. For prerequisite courses used in the admission application, specifically biology, chemistry and statistics, when taken at JMU or other institutions as repeat credit, the nursing program will average the grade of the repeated course for a final grade used in the admission application.
Students on the traditional pathway are full-time and take courses and clinicals during day, evening and night time hours. Students on the fast flex pathway are full-time and take courses and clinicals during evening, night-time and weekend hours. The associate director for undergraduate programs must approve any deviation from the full-time enrollment pattern as outlined in the catalog. Once admitted, the student must earn a minimum grade of “C-” or “Credit” in each required nursing course to remain in good standing in the nursing program. A grade of “D+/-“, “F” or “No Credit” is considered a course failure. A student who receives a failing grade in a nursing course may repeat one nursing course with school approval. A student who receives a second failing grade will be ineligible to continue in the program.
Other academic and related policies in effect for students in the nursing program are outlined on the school website.
Additional Information
Students can seek fall or spring admission to the program. Students must complete 36 credit hours before they will be eligible to be considered for admission to the program.
Madison Foundations normally is completed during the first year. General Education courses in Arts and Humanities , The Natural World , American and Global Perspectives and Sociocultural and Wellness Area can be scheduled as desired by the student across the first and second years.
Most students can complete general education and prerequisite courses in four semesters, but some students find it necessary to enroll in summer school or an additional year to complete the work satisfactorily.
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