Bachelor of Nursing Application

In preparation for obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) at St. Ambrose University, students must first complete the following courses:

1. Complete the following prerequisite courses with a C grade or higher prior to admission to the Nursing Program. If applicable, no more than one science course can be completed the summer before fall entry.

• +BIOL 101 Principles of Biology (or higher level Biology), 4 credits (plus lab)
• BIOL 211 Introductory Microbiology, 4 credits (plus lab)
• BIOL 230 Human Anatomy and Physiology, 4 credits (plus lab)
• BIOL 232 Advanced Human Anatomy and Physiology, 4 credits (plus lab)
• +CHEM 103 Principles of Chemistry (or higher level Chemistry), 4 credits (plus lab)
• STAT 213 Applied Statistical Reasoning for the Sciences, 3 credits
• +PSYC 105 Introduction to Psychology, 3 credits
• PSYC 212 Life-Span Developmental Psychology, 3 credits
• +SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology, 3 credits

+applicable toward general education requirement

2. Complete general education requirement credits
    Traditional BSN program: 7 or fewer credits
    Accelerated BSN program: 3 or fewer credits (other requirements are met with previous Bachelor's degree)

3. Achieve a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or above.

4. When a student's primary language is not English, the student must meet the required TOEFL - Proficiency set by the Iowa Board of Nursing: 

     TOEFL iBT minimum of 84 with a speaking score of 26
     TOEFL PBT minimum score of 560
     IELTS minimum of 6.5 with a spreaking score of 7.0

5. In addition to the above courses, the following are required prior to being fully accepted into and starting the Nursing Program (Nursing Admissions Requirements):

• CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) Certification course required, active certification or employment documentation of equivalent CNA skills (pdf), within last three years before beginning nursing courses.
• CPR Certification must be American Heart Association BLS Provider

Additional recommendations:

• Completion of the SAU Foreign Language Requirement: 3 years of high school foreign language or 2 semesters of college-level foreign language prior to starting the Nursing Program.
• Review the health documentation requirements for acceptance in the Nursing Program.
• Meet with your advisor or the Nursing Academic Advisor/Recruiter for review.

Program Progression

1. Achieve a grade of C or above in ALL nursing courses and required prerequisite and co-requisite courses. A student who receives one unsatisfactory grade (C- or lower, or withdraws from a course) may repeat the course one time. A student who has two unsatisfactory attempts (C- or lower and/or course withdrawal) in nursing courses at any time during the program, in either the same course or in separate courses, will be dismissed from the nursing program.

2. Achieve a minimum of 74% average on all course exams. If the average exam scores for a course falls below 74%, the student will receive the exam average as the course grade.

3. All prerequisite courses must be complted before progression to the next semester of nursing courses. (For example, all semester 1 nursing courses must be completed prior to the progression to semester 2 nursing courses).

All students are charged a standard fee by the University for any course with a lab component. This fee is reflected on tuition statements. Your tuition bill also will reflect the following nursing fees:

Once admitted, what will I need?

Uniform – Each student needs at least one full uniform, available only through the SAU bookstore. The uniforms are dark navy and white, easy to maintain, and very professional-looking. The uniform includes a warm-up jacket, scrub pants, and a top with the St. Ambrose Nursing Student badge that has been professionally applied.

Shoes – Shoes made of puncture-resistant material are recommended, not required. Shoes should be professional white, navy, black, or gray with minimal color accents. Shoes should be wellfitting walking shoe or running shoe with a closed toe and closed heal, shoes are to be clean, non-slip/non-marking sole and in good condition, panty hose or socks shall be worn.

Watch – Each nursing student needs a watch with a sweep second hand.

Stethoscope – Each nursing student needs a stethoscope. One option is MDF MD One, and it may be ordered online with 21 colors to choose from. MDF Instruments offers a discount to all SAU nursing students who order online. This stethoscope has a lifetime warranty and a free parts-for-life program.

Textbooks – All textbooks adopted for the nursing curriculum will be stocked in the SAU bookstore. While we do realize that textbooks are expensive; we discourage renting textbooks as many of them will be used throughout the entire nursing program.

Computer – The department utilizes a secure testing platform for all department testing. Students should use a computer that can support Examplify/ExamID/Exam Monitor. Tablets such as Apple iPad or Microsoft Surface are not supported. Read the minimum system requirements

If a student does not meet the criteria for admission to the SAU Nursing Program, they may submit a letter of appeal to the Nursing Department Admission and Progression Committee at nursing@sau.edu explaining the circumstances related to not meeting the criteria.

PROCEDURE

• A written appeal must be received by the Admission and Progression Committee within two weeks of the dated Admission Decision letter.
• Letter must specify extenuating circumstances that would request the Admission and Progression Committee to alter their decision based upon departmental policy.
• The Admission and Progression Committee will meet to review appeals for admission during the next scheduled meeting.
• A decision letter will be sent to the student within a week following a committee decision.

Like all applicants to the SAU Nursing program, applicants with a federal conviction also submit a criminal background check.

Upon completion of the criminal background check, the Nursing Department submits any reported criminal record results – along with clarified information from the student – to the Department of Human Services. The Department of Human Services makes the determination if the student may or may not participate in clinical experiences. Even if the student is cleared to participate in clinical experiences, the Iowa Board of Nursing has the right to decline licensure.

Criminal background checks are repeated prior to taking the nursing licensure examination (NCLEX-RN®) and any offer of employment in a health care setting.