Program Director

BS in Nursing- Traditional and Accelerated Second-degree Track
Dr. Jane B. Paige
Office: CC-117
Phone: (414) 277-4522
Email: paige@msoe.edu

Overview

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program prepares individuals for the role of the professional nurse. Students graduate with the knowledge and skills necessary to care for individuals, families, and communities in complex health care environments. The MSOE School of Nursing (SON) offers two curriculum tracks to earn a BSN: a traditional, full-time track and an accelerated second-degree track.

BS in Nursing Traditional Track (BSN)

The traditional full-time curriculum track is designed specifically for students who are earning their first college degree. Generally, these are students who have graduated from high school and are beginning their college education or students who have earned college credits at another university and are transferring those credits to MSOE. Students are accepted directly into the nursing major. Progression through the sequence of clinical courses is guaranteed to all students who maintain full-time status and continue to meet the academic progression criteria. 

Students entering the traditional track from high school are accepted into the program starting freshman year and are guaranteed to graduate in four years if they start and stay on track. Students who transfer into the program enter the appropriate place in the curriculum sequence following a complete transfer evaluation. SON faculty advisors will work with part-time students to outline a sequence of courses that lead to degree completion.   

BS in Nursing Accelerated Second-degree Track (BSN-ASD)

This track is designed specifically for the adult working professional who has already earned a bachelor of science or bachelor of arts degree in another discipline and is looking to change careers. The BSN-ASD is a compressed, year-round curriculum designed to enable students to enter the workforce as professional nurses in approximately 18 months, assuming the student has met all of the prerequisites. 

Student Program Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the program, graduates of the BSN program will be able to:

• Provide safe, effective compassionate nursing care based on clinical standards that take in to account the holistic needs of the client while progressing towards independent practice.
• Use independent decision making to communicate critical thinking and reflective practice when applying the nursing process to individualize care for the client with complex needs.
• Incorporate effective communication and health education skills with clients and other members of the healthcare team to improve coordination of care and to minimize risk and error.
• Maintain a professional role; recognize client as full partner when providing compassionate care; engage in lifelong learning and initiate change responsive to the needs of society.
• Use health information technology to monitor and analyze outcomes; employ, select and evaluate biomedical technologies to ensure the quality and safety of nursing care progressing towards independent practice.
• Provide leadership that values the ideas and contributions of others when coordinating care and collaborating with members of health care team to improve health care outcomes.
• Demonstrate commitment to improve practice by retrieving and synthesizing evidence from diverse sources of professional literature that support decisions to ensure the quality and safety of nursing care 

Clinical Admission Requirements

Admission to the School of Nursing’s clinical courses is guaranteed to any applicant who has been granted admission to MSOE, continues to meet the School of Nursing progression criteria and has completed the following criteria:

1. Basic Life Support (BLS) Policy: All students must present evidence of BLS certification by the American Heart Association Basic Life Support for Health Care Providers.
2. Criminal Background Check: Students are required to complete a Background check, including Wisconsin Caregiver Disclosure, Wisconsin Department of Justice, and Federal Office of Inspector General (OIG) and General Service Administration (GSA) registries. There may be additional agency requirements. Students must not have been convicted of any crime that would substantially relate to the practice of nursing. All positive background checks and background disclosure forms are shared with clinical agencies. Each clinical agency reserves the right to determine if a student’s arrests or convictions are substantially related to the practice of nursing.
3. Health Insurance: Students are required to maintain health insurance coverage while enrolled in nursing clinical courses.
4. Health Requirements: Students admitted to the nursing program must provide a completed health assessment, from their primary care provider, evidence of required immunizations, annual TB skin tests, and annual flu vaccines.
5. Urine Drug Screen: MSOE requires students to participate in drug screening as a condition of continued progression, and to comply with clinical agency requirements. A positive drug screen will result in academic dismissal from the nursing program
6. The School of Nursing reserves the right to deny a student’s admission to a clinical course, or to limit or terminate his or her participation in a clinical course, if the student’s health status poses a significant risk to the health or safety of patients.

School of Nursing (SON) Student Handbook

Additional policies and procedures are outlined in the SON Student Handbook. Students are oriented to this document upon admission and annually through graduation. All students are expected to comply with the policies and procedures outlined in the most current edition of the SON Student Handbook.

Curricular Information

The following requirements are in addition to the academic regulations and policies in the MSOE Undergraduate Catalog.

A. Academic progression (Traditional and Accelerated)

1. A grade of “C” or better in Human Anatomy and Physiology series is the prerequisite to progress into NU 2010  and NU 2320   .

2. A grade of “C” or better in all required NU courses is the prerequisite to progress to the next nursing course.

3. A grade of less than “C” or “W” must be repeated in its entirety (theory and clinical). This will delay progression.

4. Withdrawal from a course more than 2 times due to poor academic performance will count as one less than C grade.

5. Students who have a gap of two or more consecutive quarters, including summer, between clinical courses must be able to demonstrate achievement of the prior course outcomes, including psychomotor skills.

a. A comprehensive assessment of the student’s knowledge, skills and abilities will determine if the student is able to progress or if a formal remediation/review is required.
b. The remediation/review will be an individualized 1-6 credit independent study. Students who are not successful in this review course must repeat the prior clinical course before moving forward.
c. Students must contact the School of Nursing Chair or Program Director at least one quarter prior to the start of the next course to plan for this assessment and possible independent study.

5. Final grades in clinical courses are comprised of two parts:

a. A numeric grade based on exams, written work, and assignments related to lab, clinical and simulation activities.
b. A pass/fail grade for clinical performance. The clinical performance is based on faculty evaluation.

Students must meet the requirements for success in both a & b above to be successful in the course and progress in the program.

6. Students must complete their course of study within six years of enrollment in their first NU clinical course. Any course that does not meet this guideline must be repeated in order to qualify for graduation.

B. School of Nursing Academic Dismissal; the following academic situations will result in dismissal from the nursing program:

1. Earning less than a “C” in three required nursing courses. (See A. 4)
2. Earning less than a “C” in the same course twice. (See A. 4)

Special Testing Accommodations

Students with special needs should follow up with the BSN Program Director or MSOE disability services coordinator.

Student Uniform

Students are required to purchase the student uniform and comply with the student dress code for all clinical lab experiences.

View Annual Student Enrollment and Graduation Data