Nursing
Exploring the Major— During the first term, students interested in this major should complete the Developmental Mathematics sequence, if not waived. As soon as MAT 012 is waived or completed, students should register for BIO 201 during the spring term as well as CHM 113. First-year students should also choose from the following courses: WELL 150, PSY 100, as well as any courses meeting Perspective Areas and other requirements in the General Education curriculum. Students who are not immunized per the Nursing Student Handbook and clinical agency policy are ineligible for clinical experiences and ineligible for admission to the Nursing major.
NUR 110 should be taken the fall or spring term of the freshman year as it is a prerequisite to subsequent NUR courses. Students enrolled in NUR 110 must meet clinical agency requirements for the course, minimally: American Heart Association Health Care Provider CPR certification, negative nationwide healthcare fraud and abuse report, satisfactory criminal background check, TB skin test, influenza vaccine (during fall semester), health insurance card and letter of verification of coverage. Students must obtain and upload verification of these requirements into mycb.castlebranch.com prior to and/or during NUR 110. No student will be permitted to attend clinical without having these requirements uploaded and verified by mycb.castlebranch.com. Students progressing to NUR 226 and all clinical nursing courses thereafter, must meet the additional clinical requirements under Course Sequencing.
Berea College students with English as a second language (e.g., F-1 international students and for specific domestic students identified by the Admissions Office) who are interested in the Nursing Program will be required to take the paper-based TOEFL test, which will be administered on campus. Students must also complete a TOEFL iBT off-campus and earn a minimum total score of 83 and minimum subscore of 26 on the spoken portion before the first day of the student’s third term of enrollment at Berea College. The College will incur transportation and fees related to TOEFL testing. Resources to prepare for the exams are available in the Nursing Student Handbook.
Admission to the Major— For entry into the nursing major, all students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0, and a minimum pre-nursing GPA of 3.0 in the following required collateral courses: BIO 201, BIO 202, BIO 207, BIO 222, CHM 113, CFS 221, and PSY 100. Note: Satisfactory completion for all nursing and pre-nursing courses is defined as a grade of “C or better.” A grade of C- in any collateral courses is unsatisfactory. Students may repeat only one of the above pre-nursing courses to be considered for admission.
Credit requirement for graduation with Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree - 35.5 earned credits.
Course Sequencing Considerations (in order to complete degree requirements within eight terms) -- Please see the 4 and 5 year curriculum plans located in the Nursing Student Handbook.
Proficiency Requirements for Acceptance, Progression, and Completion of the Major— Students must demonstrate skill proficiency (e.g., skill demonstration, principles of safe medication administration and mathematical drug calculations) each term beginning in the sophomore year. In addition to completing specified course requirements, in order to earn a degree in the Nursing major, each student must: 1) earn a grade of C or higher in each required Nursing Department course including each collateral course; 2) demonstrate appropriate qualities of judgment, disposition, and respect in the classroom and clinical setting; 3) obtain current immunizations or proofs of immunity, annual TB skin testing; and 4) maintain current CPR training for the adult, infant, and child with AED training for the healthcare provider. All nursing students must obtain a satisfactory criminal background check prior to taking their first clinical nursing course and again in the last semester of nursing coursework as required by the Kentucky Board of Nursing. Nursing majors also must satisfy departmental standards for effectiveness in written and oral communication. NOTE: Students need to complete 20 earned course credits outside the major, in addition to the 15.5 major course credits, which means a minimum of 35.5 earned credits are needed for graduation. Students whose major credits include transfer credits may need to adjust accordingly.
Other Considerations or Recommendations— The Nursing Department incorporates required standardized testing and remediation throughout the program. Students are required to complete remediation of course content prior to progression to the next nursing course. Standardized exams, remediation and review courses help prepare students for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).