School of Nursing

900 Urban Life Center
404-413-1200
Regena Spratling, Associate Dean & Chief Academic Officer for Nursing
nursing.gsu.edu/

The Byrdine F. Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions offers a curriculum leading to the Bachelor of Science degree with a major in nursing. Upon the completion of the baccalaureate program and subject to the rules of the Georgia Board of Nursing, the graduate becomes eligible to write the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) a requirement for becoming a registered professional nurse.

The university catalog in effect at the time a student is admitted to the nursing program will normally apply to a student. However, the nursing curriculum and other requirements are subject to change in order to comply with regulations of accrediting agencies or with institutional or university-system policies. Every effort will be made to notify students of such changes; however, it is the student’s responsibility to become aware of all current program and college requirements. Students who withdraw from the nursing sequence and wish to return will enter under the current catalog if space is available in nursing courses. Academic credit for nursing courses for a student who withdraws from the nursing program is valid for a five-year period. PSYC 3140 - Psychopathology and Abnormal Psychology  and Anatomy and Physiology I and II (BIOL 2110K - BIOL 2120K) must be completed within five years prior to beginning the nursing sequence. Special exceptions may be made to this policy for individuals who can document current utilization of the knowledge gained from these classes. All requests for exception will be reviewed by the Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs.

Academic advisers work closely with students to plan programs; however, it is the student’s responsibility to see that course prerequisites are met as required. The student is expected to follow the program planned in conjunction with the assigned academic and faculty advisers.

Clinical and didactic learning experiences may be scheduled at any time during the day and/or evening hours and on weekdays and weekends; personal schedules must be flexible to meet program requirements. Students will be expected to provide their own transportation to/from both the classroom and clinical settings.

Nursing has the right to make changes in the program, curriculum and courses with appropriate notification. Students will be expected to accommodate these changes as long as the total hours required for graduation are not increased.

The student is responsible for adhering to policies and procedures specified in the Nursing Undergraduate Student Handbook. Degree requirements must be completed in order to meet the eligibility requirements for writing the NCLEX.

Program Financial Information

Clinical practice will require that the applicant obtain student uniforms that meet Nursing program standards. Additional costs that are the responsibility of the student include 1) the cost of cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification and liability insurance; 2) the cost of lab supplies; 3) the cost of a standardized testing program; and 4) the cost of criminal background checks and drug screens.

Program Academic Regulations

A minimum grade of C (2.0) is required in statistics and all courses designated as nursing. All nursing majors must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0 to remain in the nursing sequence.

Enrollment in a course may be terminated at any time if, in the judgment of the instructor, the student’s behavior jeopardizes patient safety. This termination would result in a course failure and may result in dismissal.

A student may repeat a nursing course in which a grade of D, U, F or WF was received one time only. Failure of the repeated course or a second nursing course results in termination from the program. In the event a student is unsuccessful in NURS 3510 , NURS 3610 , NURS 3710  or NURS 3810 , the student may take one new clinical course (NURS 3510 , NURS 3610 , NURS 3710 , NURS 3810 ) concurrently with the course that must be repeated.

The School of Nursing reserves the right to require the withdrawal of any student at any time in order to preserve and maintain the school’s standards of scholarship and conduct. Furthermore, if the student has been sanctioned for any violation of university rules, procedures, or policies, an automatic review and determination of that student’s progress in the program will occur.

The procedure for re-entering students may be found in the previous section entitled “Admission Requirements.”

Each teaching team establishes the attendance policies for classroom and clinical experiences. In general, however, all learning experiences are required. Due to the complexity involved in selecting and supervising clinical learning experiences, students are required to complete all assignments promptly.

Selected achievement tests are required throughout the program. An end-of-program exit activity will be required of all nursing students.

Additional information, including information on program, policies and procedures, can be found in the Nursing’s Undergraduate Student Handbook. Students are responsible for the information in this handbook as well as that in other university publications.

Accreditation

The baccalaureate program is approved by the Georgia Board of Nursing. The baccalaureate and master’s programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

The School maintains membership in the Council of Member Agencies of the Southern Council on Collegiate Education for Nursing of the Southern Regional Education Board, and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.