Questions: Designing a new nursing program

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Our school presently participates in a BSN program. The students complete part of the course work with us and then transfer to a different campus a considerable distance away. Because of a number of practical and administrative factors, this arrangement is changing. The nursing faculty on our campus have been asked by the administration to develop a proposal for an ADN program which can be completed entirely at our own institution.

Here are some questions:

1) How much planning time is required? (I'm thinking at least one year.)

2) Is it legitimate to use a curriculum already developed by another school in the state (assuming it were available), or better to develop one from scratch?

3) Any suggestions about transitioning the current prenursing students to the new program? (We've been selling the value of BSN education.)

4) What prerequisites should be required for entry into the program? (Some ADN programs I've looked at require numerous pre-nursing courses-- extending the total program to about three years, in practical terms.)

5) Any other thoughts? (grants?, pitfalls?, etc.)

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Specializes in Critical Care/Teaching.

okay....

1) see your state's rules and regulations and find out specifically what is required by your state that you MUST include in your nursing program.

2.) develop your classes, credit hours for each class, reasons why you feel like your istitution needs these in your program

3.) it takes a lot of time and work, mainly getting approval from the state

i have more information, if this helps.

Brandie :0)

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Thanks for the starters!!

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I'm not an instructor, but a student, but I thought I would at least share what our ADN program requires for pre-reqs.

They require the following before applying to the program:

1. High school level of Algebra I, C or better.

2. High school level of Chemistry, C or better.

3. High school level of Biology, C or better.

Everything else is what our school calls "co-reqs". In other words, they won't stop you from applying to the program, but our school uses a "point" system and the more co-reqs you complete, the more points you get.

They are:

  • Anatomy and Physiology I
  • Anatomy and Physiology II

* Yup, these are co-reqs...and I think our school needs to change this...a HUGE number of nursing students drop out of the program b/c they get a D in A&P..you must take A&P I in your first semester and A&P II in your second...this is very, very difficult with other nursing classes. If you get a D in A&P in your first semester, you cannot continue in the nursing program.

  • English Composition I and II
  • Biology I and II (These are pre-reqs in order to take A&P).
  • Nursing Math...yes, our school has an entire math class dedicated just for nursing math so it doesn't have to be taught in Pharmacology....all of us LOVE this and unique to our program in the area and is taught my a math instructor that works closely with the nursing faculty.
  • Life Span I and II (this is Psychology)
  • A humanities elective

Medical terminology is not required but highly recommended.

Our school also uses the TEAS test score for admissions to the nursing program. Our school does not use a waiting list, but if you re-apply, you get 5 points added to your score..thus increasing your chances for acceptance.

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Thanks you so very much. I'm interested in the prerequisites. How do people feel about basically doing a semester of so of college work just to be admitted into a two year degree program?

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So far, I haven't heard any of my classmates complain about it, then again and this seems to be par for the course at most nursing schools. We are highly encouraged to utilize summers to get these "little" courses out of the way.

Our nursing classes are about 7 to 9 semester hours each. Our pharmacology is broken down into 4 semesters at 1 hour each.

So it's very, very difficult for students to pile on alot of other classes on top of nursing, because in addition to class and clinicals we also have group projects (second year) that have to be scheduled and completed.

This eats up a lot of time.

Another consideration, students who are young and still under the health insurance of their parents and must maintain full-time status of 12 hours, find it difficult to get that 12 hours if they didn't get in on the first attempt, and then spend that year taking other classes.

By the second year, most students are only taking nursing, pharmacology, and that's it.

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Sorry, I realized I didn't fully answer your question.

You can actually be admitted to our program directly out of high school...the pre-reqs are all high school level.

Most other nursing programs has A&P as a pre-req, but ours has it as a co-req...this saves you that first year if you are right out of high school to where the program can be completed 2 years...but it is a very difficult two years b/c of the other non-nursing classes.

We have two students in our program that were direct admits out of high school. They are getting low B's, high C's.

Our program only admits in the Fall.

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Specializes in CNS, PMHNP, EMS, ER, Instructor.

At Idaho State University, both a BSN and a ADN program are run concurrently - the BSN program out of the University proper, and the ADN program out of the University's College of Technology.

Below is the link to the ADN Program page - maybe it will give you some ideas:

http://www.isu.edu/ctech/registerednurse.shtml

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Specializes in NICU, Post-partum.

I know this is an older thread, but one of the most frustrating things about our school is communication...there seems to be too many rumors and/or variations floating around on how to complete certain assignments. Some instructors swear that they send out e-mails and some of us never get them, etc.

If I were a nursing instructor and if your school uses Blackboard (I go to a "brick" school, but we constantly use blackboard), I would utilize it to the hilt.

I would put any and all announcements on Blackboard, changes, etc. Forms that students need in the course document section, etc. Making sure the instructions are detailed enough to where there is no question of what to do...and organized enough to where students don't have to play "Where's Waldo".

Make it the student's responsibility to check Blackboard daily...that isn't too much to ask of students either.

If students had ONE place to look for what to do and how to do it, I think it would make things easier for all involved.

Why in the world our school doesn't do this...I have no idea.

To me, it's a no-brainer.

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