Accelerated Second Degree Nursing, B.S.

Peter Shute, MSN, BSN, EdD(c), Director of Accelerated Programs
pshute@mercy.edu

Bachelor of Science- Second Degree Nursing

General Liberal Arts and Sciences
General Education Requirements	51 credits
Nursing Prerequisites A&P II with Lab Human Development or Psychology, and Microbiology	13 credits (in transfer)
Lower Division Nursing*	43 credits
Upper Division Nursing	15 credits
Total	122 credits

Admissions Requirements

BA or BS degree from an accredited college or university
GPA of 3.0 or above is preferred.
Grade of C+ or better in all Nursing prerequisites:A&P II with Lab, Human Development or Psychology, and Microbiology.
Applicants with international education are required to have their earned credits evaluated by NACES to be comparable to United States standards.
Personal Statement (500 word essay)
One Personal Reference

Lower Division Nursing Courses

Total: 43 Credits

Upper Division Nursing Courses

Total: 15 Credits

Total Major Credits: 58

Progression Criteria

Once accepted as a B.S. Nursing major, students are required to achieve a ‘C+’ or better in all nursing courses and maintain a GPA of 2.33. Students may only repeat one NURS course.
Students may only withdraw once from one course.

Students will not progress to the next level of the program if they do not meet the above criteria.

Clinical Requirements

All students must complete the following before starting clinical. Copies of these documents/clearances must be submitted electronically to the Clinical Placement Coordinator by the specified due date for facility onboarding requirements.

No one is allowed to begin clinical without the following:

Current CPR for Health Care Personnel from American Heart Association
COVID vaccination
Immunization titers - MMR, Hepatitis B (antibody and antigen), Varicella
Hepatitis C antibody test
Annual Flu vaccine
TdAP/TD vaccination
Annual health assessment form (physical examination)
Annual N-95 mask fitting
TB Blood Test or PPD (chest x-ray for a positive PPD)
Background check
Drug screen
Fingerprints - Depending on agency requirements
Health insurance - Depending on agency requirements
Any other agency requirements

Program Dismissal Review

The School of Nursing strongly supports the progression of all students and works with students at risk to co-create an action plan that supports the students’ continuation in the nursing program. In cases which a student has been dismissed from the Traditional Nursing Program, the student may request a dismissal review when they believe that extenuating circumstances affected their academic performance in the program. The student must follow the School Dismissal Review Policy found in the nursing student handbook.

Complaints That Fall Outside Existing Policies

The School of Nursing is committed to meeting its mission as it relates to serving our students, potential students, staff, faculty, adjunct faculty, clinical faculty and the public. The School of Nursing and all its Program adhere to Mercy’s existing policies and procedures including but not limited to the Academic Appeals Policy, Policies and Procedures relating to Sexual Misconduct, Policy on Equal Opportunity and Non- grade appeals, student discipline, sexual misconduct complaints, disability accommodations, discrimination and retaliation. In addition to university policies, the School of Nursing, and our accreditor, Commission on College Nursing Education, all have policies and procedures in place that must be followed. If a circumstance arises for which there is no established policy or procedure, we are committed to ensuring that these exceptional complaints are considered and resolved in a timely, fair, consistent and equitable manner.

Procedure: Complaint to the Program: Complaints should be addressed to the Program Director through email. If the program director is the subject of the complaint, the complaint should be addressed to the Associate Dean, School of Nursing.

Program Policies

Readmission Program Policies

The reentry policy applies to students with Mercy University nursing credits who seek to reenter the Mercy University nursing program.
The admission policy applies to students dismissed from other nursing programs.
Applicants with a history of past violations of the Mercy University code of student conduct that may jeopardize patient safety, or the reputation of the School of Nursing may be disqualified.
Reentry or admission is only offered once. If a student is dismissed a second time from the nursing program, they may not reapply.
Readmission to the nursing program is not guaranteed.

Re-entry Policy: Mercy University students

A student academically dismissed from the nursing program at Mercy University may apply for reentry. The student seeking re-entry must initiate the process within two semesters of leaving the nursing program.

Students must meet all the current admission criteria to be considered for re-entry to the nursing program.

Admission policy: Nursing transfer students

A student dismissed from another nursing program for academic reasons may apply for admission to the nursing program at Mercy University. Applicants must meet the current admission requirements at Mercy University.

Nursing courses must be a grade of C+ or higher to transfer. The program will accept up to 6 credits in transfer for the courses listed below (courses must be taken within the last 5 years).

Contemporary Topics
Nursing Research
Informatics
Health Policy

Students dismissed from another nursing program will need to submit additional information, see below.

Where to apply

Students seeking re-entry will need to apply directly to the nursing program by the School of Nursing email at schoolofnursing@mercy.edu.

Students seeking admission as a nursing transfer student will need to apply to the Office of Admissions.

Admission Requirements

Students seeking reentry or admission as a transfer nursing student must submit additional information.

The applicant must:

Submit a personal statement addressed to the Readmission Committee requesting re-entry or admission to the nursing program for a specific semester and year. The Readmission committee is composed of nursing faculty, an admissions counselor, and PACT advisor. The personal statement should contain all the following information:
- Detailed explanation of the factors that contributed to the nursing program dismissal.
- Discussion of your academic readiness to resume the nursing program.
- Outline of your plans to achieve academic success.
- Submit two letters of recommendation supporting admission to the program. If the applicant was dismissed from a nursing program that was not Mercy University, one letter of recommendation must be from the program from which you were dismissed. The letter should address the reason for dismissal.

Nursing Course Transfer

Mercy University will accept some nursing course(s) taken at accredited nursing programs and accredited colleges or universities. To evaluate courses, students must submit applicable course syllabi and have a grade of C+ or higher in the transfer course. The School of Nursing will only accept up to 6 transfer credits for the courses listed below. Courses taken must be within 5 years of starting the program and must be weighted at 3 credits or more.

Contemporary Topics
Nursing Research
Informatics
Health Policy

School of Nursing Withdrawal Policy

Students may withdraw from a Nursing (NURS) course as per the Mercy University Student handbook.
• Students must withdraw during the designated withdrawal period.
• A student may withdraw from a NURS course only once throughout the nursing program.
• Students are required to withdraw from all components associated with a NURS course [i.e., didactic, clinical and/or lab]. The withdrawal from all components associated with an NURS course will be considered a total of one withdrawal.

Professional Licensure

Professional Licensure

To obtain professional licensure, please check with the appropriate licensing body in the state where you intend to practice. For additional information and detailed requirements, please refer to the specific program of interest on the “School Resources” section of the Mercy University NC-Sara webpage.