Catalog > Curriculum > Nursing

Nursing

Award: Associate of Applied Science Degree in Health Technology
Major: Nursing

Length of Clinical Component:

The Associate of Applied Science degree in Health Technology with a major in nursing is designed to prepare selected students to qualify as contributing members of the health team, rendering direct patient care as beginning practitioners of nursing in a variety of health service facilities. Classroom and clinical experiences will include lifespan from birth to death. Graduates will be eligible to take the National Council Licensure Examination leading to licensure as a Registered Nurse (RN). Licensure is required in order to be employed as a registered nurse. The nursing program is approved by the State Board of Nursing and accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, Inc. (61 Broadway, 33rd Floor New York, NY 10006; telephone 800-669-1656 ext 153).

The nursing law of Virginia addresses criteria for application for licensure. The Virginia State Board of Nursing has the power to deny opportunity to procure a license through testing if the applicant has willfully committed a felony/misdemeanor under laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia or of the United States. Upon acceptance to the clinical component of the nursing program, students will be required to pay for a criminal background check and drug screening.

Students may be eligible to receive credit for some courses in these curricula through the College’s advanced standing process. Examples include credit by examination or by articulation agreement.

Application and Admission to the Clinical Component

Acceptance to the college does not guarantee admission to the clinical component of the nursing program. Nursing faculty serve as academic advisors to those students who have taken the College Preparedness Test, whose transcripts are on file in the Admissions and Records Office, and who have been placed in the nursing curriculum by a BRCC counselor. Students must apply for admission to the clinical portion of the nursing program. Applications for the clinical portion of the nursing program must be completed in the calendar year in which students expect to begin the clinical phase. Clinical work begins in May for the LPN to RN group and consists of a total of three semesters. Clinical work for traditional students begins in August and includes a total of five semesters of clinical experience. Students must satisfy the graduation requirements listed in the BRCC Catalog and Student Handbook in effect at the time they begin the clinical component of the program.

Since the number of applicants generally exceeds the space available in the clinical program, some applicants may not be accepted even if the minimum requirements for admission are met. First priority is given to residents in the BRCC service area—Harrisonburg, Staunton, Waynesboro, Augusta County, Rockingham County, and Highland County.

In order to be considered a resident of the BRCC service region, applicants must have resided continuously in the service region for the 12 months prior to the clinical application deadline and must not be residents of the service region for the primary purpose of education. Service area criteria will be scrutinized very carefully.

Documentation may be required to establish residency in the BRCC service region. Listed below are documents that may be requested:

  • the parents’ and student’s latest federal and Virginia tax returns
  • physical residence in the student’s name that is not student housing
  • full-time or equivalent employment documenting income of $10,500 or more
  • car registration and VA driver’s license in the student’s name
  • documents showing who pays insurances and college tuition and fees

Information for out-of-state residents interested in pursuing a nursing degree: The nursing program is very popular within the BRCC service region and the state of Virginia, thus, admission into the clinical component is highly competitive. When enrollments must be limited for any curriculum, such as nursing, priority shall be given to all qualified applicants who are residents of the political subdivisions supporting the College and then to Virginia residents not having access to a given program at their local Virginia community college. Please review the information presented earlier in this section regarding residency in the BRCC service region and be aware that the qualified Virginia resident applicant pool may more than fill the enrollment capacity for the nursing clinical component; therefore the College may not be able to honor all requests for admission into the nursing clinical component.

To receive consideration for admission to the clinical portion of the nursing program, applicants must have earned a high school diploma or the equivalent, completed the general college admissions process, attended a nursing information session, and attained a 50% score on the math and reading comprehension portions of the NET test. LPNs who have a valid, unrestricted Virginia LPN license, Paramedics who hold a national paramedic certification, and individuals who hold a baccalaureate or higher degree are exempt from the NET test. In lieu of the NET test, scores from ERI, NLN, HESI, and ATI will be evaluated by the Nursing Program Head. See the nursing website for information regarding the NET test. The NET test must be taken within three years of application to the clinical component of the program. In addition, the following high school-level courses or college equivalents are required:

  • 2 units of science (with a minimum grade of “C”)
    • 1 unit of high school biology with laboratory (or BIO 101)
    • 1 unit of high school chemistry with laboratory (or CHM 101)
    • (Science requirements must be met before enrolling in BIO 141)
  • College Preparedness Test score demonstrating competency in arithmetic (or MTH 02), or SAT math score of 520
  • 1 unit of high school algebra (with a “C” or better) or MTH 03

Deficiencies may be corrected through appropriate courses at BRCC. A “C” average in academic work is considered minimum for selection to the clinical portion of the nursing curriculum. When appropriate, the academic courses may be taken out of sequence. It is strongly recommended that students complete as many academic courses as possible prior to beginning clinical nursing courses. Admission preference will be given to applicants who have met all program prerequisites and have completed BIO 141-142. For students who have not met the biology and math prerequisites prior to enrolling at BRCC, the nursing faculty strongly recommend that students successfully complete those requirements before enrolling in the BIO 141-142 sequence. BIO 141-142 must be completed within 10 years of acceptance into the nursing curriculum. In addition, students should not enroll in two science courses during the same semester.

The clinical application process includes receipt of a Nursing program application form, official transcripts of all secondary and post-secondary courses attempted or completed (including LPN transcripts for students who completed LPN training), personal/professional recommendations, attendance at a Nursing Program Information session within three years of application, appropriate scores on required entrance tests within three years of application, and a written plan of action for completion of the non-nursing course requirements. Any student who receives a final grade lower than 80% in any of the courses in the clinical nursing sequence may not continue the major. The student must reapply to the program and, if accepted, repeat the course and earn a final grade of 80% or higher before taking the next course in the sequence. Students will only be readmitted once to the clinical component of the nursing program. In order to graduate, students must maintain a cumulative grade point average of 2.0.

Program Options

The Nursing Program at BRCC offers three options for the potential student:

Option 1

The Nursing Department offers an opportunity for recent high school graduates to complete the Nursing degree program in two years of full-time attendance (five semesters including summer). This is a rigorous and academically challenging program for a limited number of students each year.

The following prerequisites must be completed for application consideration:

  1. Application for admission.
  2. High school credit in biology with a lab, chemistry with a lab, algebra (with a minimum grade of C in each). Applicants with Advanced Placement (AP) classes, more than one year of a subject, or higher grades will be given priority.
  3. High school GPA of 3.0 or above;
  4. Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores of 530 or higher/reading, 530 or higher/writing, 520 or higher/math, OR BRCC College Preparedness Test (Compass) scores of 81+ for reading, 76+ for writing, 34+ for arithmetic, and 36+ for algebra. Students who score 34 or higher for arithmetic do not need to take MTH 02. Students who score 36 or lower for algebra must take MTH 03 unless they have achieved a grade of “C” or higher on a high school algebra course. For corresponding College Preparedness Test (Accuplacer) scores, please consult an academic counselor.
  5. High School transcript; current high school students must submit an official transcript (a final official transcript is required in June for high school candidates with tentative acceptance).
  6. NET test—Nursing Entrance Test taken at BRCC (an additional fee is required). A minimum score of 50 is required.
  7. Two reference checklists from either teachers or employers.

Curriculum for Option 1

Fall Semester (1st semester)
Course No. Title Credits
ENG 111 College Composition I 3
BIO 141 Human Anatomy and Physiology Ia 4
NUR 108 Nursing Principles and Concepts Ib 5
NUR 136 Principles of Pharmacology I 1
SDV Student Development 1
    14

Spring Semester (2nd semester)

Course No. Title Credits
ENG 112 College Composition II 3
BIO 142 Human Anatomy and Physiology IIa 4
NUR 109 Nursing Principles and Concepts II 6
    13
Summer Semester (3rd semester)
Course No. Title Credits
NUR 226 Health Assessment 3
NUR 247 Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing 3
ITE 115 Introduction to Computer Applications and Concepts 3
PHI 225 Selected Problems in Applied Ethicsc 3
    12
Fall Semester (4th semester)
Course No. Title Credits
NUR 245 Maternal-Newborn Nursing 3
NUR 137 Principles of Pharmacology II 1
NUR 213 Second Level Nursing III 7
PSY 230 Developmental Psychology 3
    14
Spring Semester (5th semester)
Course No. Title Credits
NUR 214 Second Level Nursing IV 8
NUR 254 Dimensions of Nursing 2
SOC 215 Sociology of the Family 3
    13
  Total credits required 66

a LPNs who qualify for this option do not take NUR 108 and NUR 109 but take NUR 115 and NUR 136 in the summer.

b NAS 161-162 may also be taken.

c Students may also choose from ART 101-102, ENG 241-242, ENG 243-244, ENG 251-252, HUM 100, HUM 201-202, MUS 121-122, PHI 101, PHI 220, PHI 226, PHI 227, REL 231-232, SPD 151-152, or foreign language (including ASL).

Curriculum for Option 2

Option 2 is for those students who need some prerequisites, and/or must work and wish to attend part-time. This option can take three years or longer because students may wish to take only one pre-clinical class per semester.

Pre-clinical studies for Traditional Students

  • ENG 111 and 112: College Composition I-II
  • BIO 141 and 142 : Human Anatomy and Physiology I-II (NAS 161-162 may substitute)
  • SOC 215: Sociology of the Family
  • PHI 225: Selected Problems in Applied Ethics (see footnote “c” under Option 1)
  • PSY 230: Developmental Psychology
  • ITE 115: Introduction to Computer Applications and Concepts
  • SDV: Student Development

Clinical Component: 5 semesters

Fall:
Spring:
Summer:
Fall:
  • NUR 245 Maternal/Newborn Nursing
  • NUR 137 Principles of Pharmacology II
  • NUR 213 Second Level Nursing III
Spring:

Curriculum for Option 3

Option 3 is for those students who are LPNs, need some prerequisites, and/or work and wish to attend part-time. This option can take two years or longer.

Pre-clinical studies for LPN Students

  • ENG 111 and 112: College Composition I-II
  • BIO 141 and 142: Human Anatomy and Physiology I-II (NAS 161-162 may substitute)
  • PSY 230: Developmental Psychology
  • SDV: Student Development
  • SOC 215: Sociology of the Family
  • PHI 225: Selected Problems in Applied Ethics (see footnote “c” under Option 1)
  • ITE 115: Introduction to Computer Applications and Concepts

Clinical Component: 3 semesters

Summer:
Fall:
  • NUR 245 Maternal/Newborn Nursing b
  • NUR 213 Second Level Nursing III
  • NUR 137 Principles of Pharmacology II
Spring:

All of these options are fully explained in regularly scheduled Nursing Information Sessions conducted by BRCC Counseling Center staff and the nursing faculty. Dates and times for upcoming Nursing Information Session may be obtained by calling the Nursing Department at ext. 2326. They are also on the nursing department website.

a LPNs who have graduated from nursing school within the last five years and have received a score of 50% or greater on the NLN medication administration test or received a score of 60% or greater on the ERI medication administration test are exempt from NUR 136.

b LPNs who have graduated from nursing school within the last five years and have received a score of 50% or greater on the NLN maternity nursing test or received a score of 60% or greater on the ERI maternity nursing test are exempt from NUR 245.

Health Sciences

Award: Certificate

Purpose: to prepare students who wish to enter allied health and veterinary technology programs with competitive admissions procedures at Blue Ridge Community College or at other colleges. Students should consult the catalogs of the transfer institution they wish to attend for admission requirements for competitive health programs such as dental assisting, dental hygiene, physical therapy assisting, respiratory therapy, or other allied health programs.

Successful completion of the Health Sciences Certificate will strengthen the academic record of students applying for admission to Blue Ridge Community College’s Registered Nursing and Veterinary Technology Programs. Please note, however, that not all courses listed will be required in every allied health program. Some allied health programs may require more prerequisite courses prior to admission. Students should carefully follow the admission procedures published for the particular health program of interest.

Course No. Title Credits
BIO 101 Introduction to Biology 4
ENG 111 College Composition 3
SDV Student Development 1
CHM Chemistry Electivea 3-4
  Social Science Elective a 3
PSY Psychology Elective a 3
  Humanities Elective a 3
  Career Field Electives a 10-11
  Total credits required  30-31

a refer to table below

Academic Advising Table for Specific Allied Health Programs

Electives Registered Nursing
AAS Degree		 Veterinary Technology
AAS Degree
Chemistry Elective CHM 101
General Chemistry I & Lab		 any Chemistry Course
Social Science Elective SOC 215
Sociology of the Family		 Choose any ECO, GEO, HIS, PLS, PSY or SOC course
Psychology Elective PSY 230
Developmental Psychology		 Choose any PSY course
Humanities Elective PHI 225 Ethics Choose any ART, HUM, PHI, REL, Literature, or foreign language course
Career Field Electives BIO 141
Anatomy and Physiology I
BIO 142
Anatomy and Physiology II
ENG 112
College Composition II		 BIO 102
Intro to Biology II
Choose any two of
VET 101, VET 102,
VET 103, and VET 236

See also:  Nursing Program Website