Nursing and Health Courses
Nursing students must attain a minimum grade of C in all natural science courses and C+ in NUR and HLT courses for the grade to apply toward nursing degree requirements. Please note that grades of C-, D+, and D will not be accepted for transfer credit for matriculation in the School of Nursing. To be eligible to begin 2000 level nursing courses as nursing majors, all students must complete the required courses in Anatomy and Physiology I and II and Chemistry for Nurses with a C or better, pass General Psychology and Introduction to Sociology, and maintain a GPA of 2.75 or greater. Students who enter the College as declared nursing majors must successfully complete the required courses by the end of the spring semester of freshman year. Nursing students who do not meet the minimum grade(s) in required courses or do not have a GPA of 2.75 or better must confer with their academic advisor to change their major or change their status to undeclared.
Undeclared students who which to declare nursing as a major or students who wish to change their major to nursing must meet the same grade and GPA requirements as nursing majors. Please note, acceptance into the nursing program for change of major students is granted on a space available basis.
Nursing students may not register for NUR or HLT courses if the prerequisite for the course has not been met. Nursing students are permitted only one (1) NUR or HLT course clinical or laboratory failure for the entire undergraduate nursing program. Clinical and laboratory components are graded on a pass/fail basis; failure of either a clinical or and/or laboratory component will result in a grade of F for the course. Nursing students who earn a grade of less than C+ (76%), or fail either a clinical or laboratory component for a second time will be dismissed from the School of Nursing but not necessarily from Mount Saint Mary College.
Clinical Nursing Course Requirements
Nursing students must demonstrate proficiency in clinical calculations each clinical semester;
clinical calculation proficiency is a requirement for attending required clinical learning experiences. As well, current American Heart Association Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers certification is required for all clinical experiences.
New York State Department of Health and the Joint Commission require all personnel, which includes nursing students, who have contact with patients to have the following completed before contact with patients.
At the time of admission to the School of Nursing (one time only): Criminal background and fingerprint investigation; active immunization documentation (serum titers) for measles, mumps, and chickenpox, and; drug screening (drug screening may be done more than once). It is strongly recommended, and the School of Nursing encourages, student to complete Hepatitis B immunization before beginning clinical courses. If a student declines Hepatitis B immunization the student must sign a declination statement. The availability of clinical sites may be limited for nursing students without completion of the Hepatitis B series.
Annually and at the time of admission to the School of Nursing: health physical with required tuberculin (PPD) testing, and; current year flu vaccination (usually available in the fall). The availability of clinical sites may be limited for nursing students without current year flu immunization.
All health forms must be completed and submitted to Health Services by July 1 of each year, this includes incoming declared nursing freshman students. These requirements are subject to change or modification at any time.
Nursing Leave of Absence
All matriculated nursing students, in good standing, according to the standards stated above, who are planning a leave of absence (LOA) for personal/medical reasons that will cause an interruption of their required course work must complete and file a Leave of Absence form with the School of Nursing. All leaves must be approved by both the student’s academic advisor and the School of Nursing Chair. To be eligible to return to the nursing program without academic penalty the student must be in good academic standing (as stated above) and the LOA must not exceed one year. If the LOA exceeds one year, the student must meet with the Chair of the School of Nursing and appropriate faculty to discuss the possibility of readmission to the School of Nursing.
RN-BS Program
An RN to BS (in nursing) program is offered at the College for registered nurses (RN) who have graduated from an accredited nursing program and hold a current valid RN license in the United States. The RN to BS program is offered predominantly online with minimal residency requirements. There are 135 hours of clinical/preceptorship experience; 90 hours in Community Health Nursing and 45 hours in Professional Nursing: Issues and Trends. These clinical/preceptorship hours meet the New York State Department of Education and the CCNE accreditation requirements.
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