Transferring Nursing Schools - From one state to another

AgentBeast, MSN, RN · Mar 19, 2012

Generally credits for core nursing course don't transfer from one school to another and if you transfer midway through the program you basically start over again at your new school. Stuff like your sciences, psychology, math, and writing courses will transfer. Each nursing program structures its nursing courses a little differently so they just don't accept transfer credits for those courses.

grownuprosie · Mar 19, 2012

That depends on which school you are coming from and where you are going. My school, for example, will not accept transferrs even if there is space in the incoming class. Each quarter, the students take two classes, Nursing lab and nursing theory. Try translating that into pharmacology, ethics, and other credits the way they are at other schools. Not gonna happen. there is a specific ammount of information that must be covered in school, and different programs cover it in different order. So going to another school may mean you cover lungs twice but never cover hearts, for example. You should check with your school about how well their credits transfer. also, check with the school you will be transferring to when you figure that out.

Good luck. I hope it works out for you.

kaycedee · Mar 19, 2012

I am sort of in the same situation, but my husband actually moved out of state in October for his job. For several reasons I will be staying behind and completing nursing school before I move to join him. I was told that any in-state nursing classes I took would not transfer. This went not only for the nursing process classes but also for the three pre-nursing nursing classes (I know, right?) that the out of state program required.

Something else to think about is that while you've satisfied the prerequisite courses in your home state you might have a long way to go somewhere else. In my case I would have had to take 21 credit hours worth of extra support courses that weren't required in my home state. The cost of those support courses alone was literally a few dollars short of what I'll be paying for my entire ADN, so in my situation staying put was a pretty clear choice financially.

There are so many variables to consider with a decision like this. I ended up just making a pros and cons list and going over it with my husband to help us decide what to do. Good luck, I know it's not easy. :)

FLboundBSN · Mar 19, 2012

I talked to my husband about what yall said and he agrees. He was in a similar situation with his masters in Psych, so he understands. We shall see what happens. Nothing is set in stone just yet, so we have some time... Thank you guys! :hug:

hgrimmett · Mar 20, 2012

The state CC near me requires you to have *at least* 11 credits in various general ed classes before you can take any of the nursing classes. If you'd like to see what they require, here's a link Nursing R.N. | Degree Programs | SPC

I would consider going ahead and going to school and at least getting the general ed classes out of the way.. if you are planning to attend state funded community colleges in both states, those credits at least should be transferable. Things like English (Composition) 101 and 102, College Math/Algebra, etc. You're most likely going to have to take those anyhow at either school, and those classes have a very good chance of transferring, unlike the nursing specific classes. Ultimately, it's up to the school that you transfer TO as to how many credits they will accept from previous schools.