Denied Associate Degree Nursing

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Is there a law or hiring a lawyer can help me with my nursing school.

I recently completed my ADN program and will walk with the completion ceremony next week.

Unfortunately, I can not sit for NCLEX anytime soon because the college I attended

denied the English 1 they approved when I entered the program.

Seems like I am being punished despite due diligence on my part - that is seeking the expert advice of a guidance counselor every semester for any possible deficiency that may hinder me from completing the program. Every semester I get reassurance from my guidance counselor that I have everything in order including English 1 and will not have problem if I follow their recommendation which included taking two 0.5 units of PE classes.

Now, I completed the program but they will not award my ADN diploma or transcript stating I completed the ADN program because I lack English I which they approved in 2008 before they accepted me to the program and re-approved the same in January 2010.

I worked hard to earn my ADN and will be more than willing to take English 1 had I been advised correctly. The only option the school offered to me is to take English I next semester (Spring 2011) which will make ineligible to sit for NCLEX until July 2011. This means lost opportunity for me to become an RN and lost income specially when you are in a tight budget in a difficult economy.

Is there any law or any avenue that a student can avail to help resolve my predicament? So far I have appealed my case to the dean of admissions office and they upheld the "reading proficiency met" with the BA degree I earned in 1996 but have not decided if they will uphold the English 1 equivalency they awarded me in 2008 and re-approved earlier this 2010.

I will appreciate any comments or advice.

Thank you.

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Seeking legal help will be costly and take time. More than likely more time than if you were to just go ahead and take the course. I would go with the path of least resistance, take the course.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

You can quickly get the English 101 out of the way by taking the course through a regionally-accredited, distance-based school called CALCampus. You can seriously complete the class in a few weeks. I would see if your school would accept credits earned from this school, as they have been around since 1982. Many other regionally-accredited colleges have accepted their classes.

CALCampus - Course List

I would take this route before consulting with an attorney, as seeking legal action right off the bat would alienate the school's administration even more. Good luck to you!

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Perhaps if all else fail I will take English 101 and raise the issue of taking this at CALcampus.

Pardon my emotion, but I can't help vent my frustration when matter of principle is trashed by the people you expect will hold. I am also confused when the true value of equivalency suddenly lost its bearing.

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Have you gone up the chain of command with this? If it is the advising office that is denying you then first talk to a different advisor, then appeal to the department of nursing, the department of health, the dean of the the college of arts and letters, the dean of the university. The step may be different at your school but the concept will the be same.

If you have any paperwork showing they approved your English credits for the purposes of graduation, it would be helpful. Also, your attitude and presentation of yourself is very important in this process.

I know schools do this kind of thing (they did it to my nephew and my daughter), but sometimes the above process works.

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Perhaps if all else fail I will take English 101 and raise the issue of taking this at CALcampus.

Pardon my emotion, but I can't help vent my frustration when matter of principle is trashed by the people you expect will hold. I am also confused when the true value of equivalency suddenly lost its bearing.

I fully agree, you have every right to be very angry. Just don't come off that way. I agree with PP that you need to be very calm through this process.

Can you get in touch with the professor who originally taught you English 1? It may be as simple as having that person furnish a syllabus and explain what they teach to prove that the concepts covered were required concepts your school requires.

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If you have a BA degree, how can they question you have suff. English credits?....the legal ave. may take too much time...but if you know a lawyer I would consult just the same.....

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Working as a human resource officer for the last 10 years I value the importance of documentation. So I have the paperwork when the dean of English dept approved the equivalency of my English 1 in 2008 when I got accepted to the program and January of this year as part of re-evaluation requirement when you reached third semester into the program.

Since working with counselor does not help at this time (She already did her best by voicing her argument over the validity of the English 1 they approved and now seems like null and void). Now, I am working with our director for the nursing program and directed me to write an appeal letter to the dean of admission office. I attached the transcript for my BA, notarized copy of course description of English 1 they approved with the appeal letter I submitted to them.

Three weeks since I submitted this appeal letter they informed me over the phone that "I met reading proficiency" which is a requirement waived when you already have a BA. Reading proficiency is required however if English 1 is not met. So I verified this fact to the record specialist handling my case and was informed that I do have reading proficiency met and the dean of Admission office together with dean of English department are re-evaluating my English 1. If this approach does not work, the director of nursing program instructed me to write an appeal letter to the EVP for Academic affairs.

For the time being, I will attend the completion ceremony for the ADN program next week although technically I am not yet a graduate. Moreover, I still can not submit my application to the BRN to sit for the NCLEX which is the most important thing to me.

Thanks guys for all the comments.

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Can you test out of it? At my school, there are certain courses you can apply to test out of. You get the credit but you don't have to take the actual class.

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I agree with caliotter3.You should take the course. Getting an attorney would cost you more money than if you had taken the course.

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Can you take a CLEP or some other test to show proficiency?

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The school allowed me to walk on December 14, 2010 for the pinning and completion ceremony.

Yesterday, after several appeals with help from the program director and dean I recieved the best Christmas gift. Now I am officially a graduate with an Associate in Science, Nursing of Fall 2010.

With the news I got I did not wait a moment, I sent my application with adrenaline rush yesterday to the BRN in order to sit for the NCLEX.

Thank you all for your comments/suggestions. It allowed me to prepare myself with options had the appeals failed.

Thank you and merry Christmas.

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