Nursing, RN to BSN

The goal of the Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (RN-to-BSN) program is to provide opportunities for qualified students to acquire the knowledge necessary to provide nursing care which promotes adaptation of the person, family, and community. This knowledge is acquired within a liberal arts experience which emphasizes honesty, integrity, civility, and a strong sense of personal responsibility. Professional preparation as a nurse includes promotion of lifelong learning, social responsibility, and service.

The faculty believe persons are unique, holistic, and developing beings with the process and capacity for thinking, feeling, reflecting, and choosing. Persons respond to and act upon the constantly changing environment, which is everything that is within and around them. To adapt to this changing environment, people use coping processes which are both innate and learned. Adaptation occurs as adaptive responses promote integrity and wholeness.

Health is a state and a process of being and becoming an integrated and whole person. Health is a continuum ranging from peak wellness to death. The adaptation level is that point where the person is able to respond positively. A whole person is one with the highest possible fulfillment of human potential.

Nursing assists persons, families, and communities to examine life and environmental patterns, attach personal meaning to these patterns, and choose adaptation. Nursing acts to enhance interaction with the environment by promoting meaningful life experiences, growth, and adaptation. The profession of nursing is an integrated part of a system for health care delivery and shares responsibility for working collaboratively with other health care practitioners.

Nursing education is a process which enables the learner to synthesize a body of knowledge obtained through courses in nursing, liberal arts, humanities, and the sciences. Because nursing is dynamic, the education is foundational for professional growth through nursing research and continuing education.

The faculty believe that the learner is best able to reach individual potential in an environment that is nurturing and promotes inquiry, dialogue, curiosity, creativity, the ethical ideal, and assertiveness. The learner brings an attitude of commitment and motivation for achievement. The role of the learner is to share in the responsibility of the teaching-learning process.

The teacher interacts with students as persons of worth, dignity, intelligence, and high scholarly standards. The teacher's role is to provide the climate, structure, and dialogue that promotes discovery of patterns and paradigms for practice. The teacher raises questions that require reading, observation, analysis, and reflection upon patient care. The teacher nurtures the learner, is available for dialogue, and promotes the use of research and critical thinking in the delivery of nursing care.

CMU also offers an Accelerated BSN program for individuals who already have a Baccalaureate degree in any subject and have completed the pre-requisite courses for Nursing education.

Bachelor of Science in Nursing Outcomes:

The Bachelor of Science Nursing graduate will be able to:

Demonstrate professional nursing leadership evidenced by the monitoring and improvement of healthcare systems, including management of physical, fiscal, and human resources.
Formulate research questions, critically analyze evidence, and apply evidence to practice.
Demonstrate the ability to effectively use technology to analyze, manage, and communicate data information.
Provide nursing care based on current knowledge, theory, and evidence to promote safety, holism, adaptation, and quality care as evidenced by the ability to:
1. Design and implement care based on the nursing process
2. Collaborate as a member of the interdisciplinary health care team.
3. Incorporate the principles of communication, client education, and client advocacy into practice.
Display behaviors as a member of the profession of nursing based on standards of practice and professional codes of ethics.

Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes

Assessment Methods

The Portfolio, student evaluations of instruction, course level assessments, and graduate and employer surveys are the primary methods of assessment. Students are required to maintain a portfolio during the Bachelors-completion Nursing Program. At the end of the program the students complete a survey identifying how well the program's design assisted the student in meeting the Program Outcomes, courses and/or assignments that helped in meeting the Program Outcomes, and suggestions for program improvement. The student evaluations of instruction identify course and instructor specific issues that can be addressed immediately. The course level assessments align course objectives and program outcomes with specific assignments, which are then used to demonstrate student learning. Graduate surveys provide further opportunity for students to submit feedback to the program. The employer surveys identify how well graduates perform based on the Program Outcomes.

Review

Portfolios are reviewed periodically and after the end of the program. The student is to evaluate whether the courses content helped them meet the program outcomes. Student evaluations of instruction are reviewed at the end of every course. Course level assessments are reviewed annually. The graduate and employer surveys are sent and reviewed after one year of employment.

Feedback

In the summer the Nursing Program Coordinator will review and evaluate assessment information. Recommendations are then presented at the summer faculty workshop. Recommendations result in changes to improve courses and clinical experiences for students as documented in the faculty workshop minutes. Analyses of the data obtained are reported annually in the Systematic Program Evaluation Plan Report.

BSN Requirements for Admission

Students who are interesting in applying to the Nursing RN to BSN Program should be fully admitted to Central Methodist University College of Graduate and Extended Studies. They must also have:

a degree in Nursing, either associate degree or diploma, from a State Board approved nursing program (40 Nursing credits from the ADN will be applied toward the BSN; general education credits will also transfer where applicable);
minimum GPA of 2.0 overall;
official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended;
current unrestricted RN license from an approved state (needed prior to beginning clinical courses);
One year work experience within the previous 3 years (This requirement may be waived at faculty discretion); and
Non-native speakers of English must present evidence of proficiency in the English language by scoring a 550 or higher on the paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or 213 or higher on the computer-based TOEFL or 77 or higher on the Internet-based TOEFL.

BSN Curriculum Requirements

A cumulative 2.0 GPA must be maintained and a grade of "B" or above must be achieved in all Allied Health and Nursing course, except AH316, AH390, HS304, and HS410, in which they must maintian a grade of "C".
The BSN program should be completed within five (5) years of enrollment.

Graduation Requirements

Satisfactory completion of the liberal arts and/or general education coursework as well as all courses in the major;
satisfactory completion of at least 120 credit hours;
satisfactory completion of at least 15 credit hours of upper-division coursework in the major;
satisfactory completion of at least 30 credit hours of upper-division coursework;
satisfaction of the 30-hour residency requirement;
cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 on coursework earned at CMU;
cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 on all upper-division major coursework;
payment of all tuition and fees; and
recommendation of the faculty.

Scholastic Standards for Nursing

The grading scale for the Department of Nursing is based on 80% as the minimum percentage for a "B" grade.

To graduate, students must maintain a grade of "B" in all Allied Health and Nursing courses, except AH316, AH390, HS304, and HS410, in which they must maintain a grade of "C", and must have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.

Requirements for Continuation in Program: Students who earn less than a "B" in a course may not continue in their cohort. Any one course where the student earns less than a "B" must be repeated and completed with a grade of "B" or higher, and then the student will join the subsequent cohort. Any second instance when a student earns less than a "B"- whether it is a repeated course or one taken for the first time - results in the student's dismissal from the program.

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