School of Nursing

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Purpose and Focus

Graduates of the program are expected to demonstrate competencies consistent with being a critical thinker, a culturally competent caring provider of health care, an effective communicator, and a responsible manager of health care. Graduates are prepared to be successful in the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEXRN), which is required to practice and be licensed as a Registered Nurse in all states.

Degree Objectives

At the conclusion of the program of study, graduates will:

1. Use emerging patient care technologies and information systems to support safe and effective nursing practice.
2. Integrate leadership concepts, skills, and decision making in the provision of high quality nursing care delivery in a variety of settings.
3. Apply knowledge of health care policy, finance and regulatory environments, including local, state, national and global health care trends in nursing practice.
4. Integrate professional values, attitudes, knowledge, and behaviors into nursing practice.
5. Demonstrate sound clinical judgment in the planning, provision, and evaluation of evidence-based nursing care at the individual, group, and community levels.
6. Apply principles that enhance safety for patients and health care providers through both individual performance and system effectiveness.
7. Demonstrate effective inter- and intra-professional communication and collaboration for improving patient outcomes.
8. Use clinical prevention strategies to promote health and prevent disease across the life span at the individual and population levels.

Accreditation

Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education
Nevada State Board of Nursing - Approved

Undergraduate Majors

Nursing

Area of Concentration

B.S. in Nursing

Offers preparation for licensure as a registered nurse.

Licensure Programs

Graduates of the BS in Nursing Program must successfully complete the NCLEX-RN examination to obtain licensure.

Admission to the Major

Minimum GPA: 3.00

Admission Policies

Students are admitted each semester. Students utilize the admission criteria published within the Undergraduate Catalog in effect at the time of admission to UNLV pre-nursing (PRN) major. Once admitted to the nursing program, students are expected to maintain continuous full-time enrollment, thus allowing completion of the nursing course work in 16 months. Students may apply and be accepted only twice into the nursing program. Once a student has begun the nursing program, they may not reapply as a new student if they are unsuccessful in, or withdraw from, their nursing courses, except if the failure occurs in first semester. UNLV offers no part-time undergraduate B.S. nursing degrees.

B.S. in Nursing

Students must first be admitted into pre-nursing (PRN) and have a cumulative grade point average of 2.50. Students with a GPA between 2.00 and 2.50 may be admitted as nursing probationary students.

Students are eligible for admission to the nursing major (NUR-4YR) when a UNLV GPA of 3.00 is established and the student has earned a B (3.00) in the following prerequisites:

MATH 120 - Fundamentals of College Mathematics or higher (except MATH 122, 123, 132), BIOL 223 - Human Anatomy and Physiology I  and BIOL 224 - Human Anatomy and Physiology II ), BIOL 251 - General Microbiology , NURS 299 - Nutrition and Development Across the Lifespan and has earned a minimum of a C (2.00) in all other general education and prerequisite courses. For acceptance into the nursing program, the B (3.00) grade in the identified courses must be earned in either the first or second enrollment, including a withdrawal or audit in the course. In addition, students will be required to complete the HESI A2 Entrance Exam prior to admission to the nursing program. Students must achieve a 75% average or higher on their first or second completion of the A2 exam to be eligible for admission. UNLV pre-nursing students are required to take only four HESI A2 sub-exams: Math, Grammar, Reading Comprehension and Anatomy & Physiology. A 75% average or higher must be obtained on all sub-exams to be eligible to apply. To be admitted into the School of Nursing, an applicant who is a non-native English speaker must provide proof of English language proficiency. A non-native speaker is an individual whose primary language in the home was a language other than English (or a non-English language) or who received a K-12 (or equivalent) education in schools where English was not the medium of instruction. Admission will only be considered if the student scores a 100 points or above on the TOEFL iBT (internet) language proficiency exam. This is the only proficiency exam the SON will accept. Students may formally apply three times a year. Eligibility is verified by a pre-nursing advisor in the Division of Health Sciences Advising Center Classroom Education Building (CEB 399) during a mandatory in-person BSN signing appointment. Please call (702) 895-5448 to schedule an appointment. Students are rank ordered based on the GPA of their required science, math and NURS 299 courses, number of times courses are repeated, and the results of the HESI A2 Entrance Exam. Admission will be offered to those students achieving the highest rank scores first until all openings are filled. Refer to the admission ranking worksheet which is available online at http://www.unlv.edu/sites/default/files/24/Nursing-CalculationWorksheetUpdated-2013.pdf or at the Division of Health Science Advising Center. Students not accepted must reapply for admission in subsequent semesters. Policies regarding process for notification and response are also available on the School of Nursing website.

Transfer Policies

B.S. in Nursing

Transfer students may gain admission eligibility into pre-nursing (PRN) via several routes. If the transfer GPA is 3.00 or above and the prerequisite course work has been completed with the required grades, the student will be admitted into the B.S. nursing program based on rank scoring as noted above. If the transfer GPA is 2.50-2.99, nine credits of UNLV core requirements or prerequisite course work at UNLV must be completed with a GPA of 3.00. If the transfer GPA is 2.00-2.49, students must complete a probationary contract in which 15 UNLV core requirements or prerequisite course work must be completed with a 3.00 GPA to remove the probationary status. Transferring into the program from another nursing program is considered on a case-by-case basis. Transfer students must have a letter of “good academic standing” from their prior School of Nursing Dean sent directly to the School of Nursing Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.

Nursing Student Handbook

Students accepted into the B.S. in Nursing Program should obtain a copy of the Nursing Student Handbook from the School of Nursing website for identification of additional policies and procedures. Students are accountable for observing the policies in the handbook. Prior to beginning nursing courses, students will be asked to:

1. Sign a waiver releasing the School of Nursing and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, from responsibility for injury or illness resulting from exposure to disease, medicines, or treatments while in the clinical setting.
2. Evidence of IGRA blood testing (QuantiFERON-TB Gold in tube (QFT)); or Evidence of chest x-ray and medical follow-up for those with past history of positive reactivity.
3. Provide documentation of measles, mumps, rubella, varicella diphtheria and tetanus immunizations according to the most recent CDC guidelines. While attending the program, the vaccinations must be within the 10-year time frame.
4. Provide evidence of completion of the hepatitis B vaccine series, a titer indicating presumptive immunity, or a statement from a health care provider indicating that the vaccination is contraindicated for health reasons.
5. Provide evidence of the flu shot every fall.
6. Provide documentation of physical examination within one year prior to admission to nursing program demonstrating the student’s ability to perform the essential functions of the registered nurse, with or without reasonable accommodations (Essential functions can be found on the School of Nursing website.)
7. Provide evidence of a negative drug screen. Further information provided in the nursing orientation.
8. Provide certification of completion of BLS health care provider skills offered by the American Heart Association.
9. Complete a criminal background check as identified on the School of Nursing website.
10. Provide evidence of current health insurance. The student is responsible to determine that health insurance coverage includes provisions of a needle stick or other high-risk exposure in the clinical setting, as well as the cost of anti-HIV drugs if warranted. Proof of health insurance coverage is required each semester.

Credit

Clinical contact hour ratio: one credit = three contact hours.

Progression

To progress in the B.S. in Nursing Program, students must achieve a minimum of a C (2.00) in each of the required nursing courses.

If a student receives less than a C (2.00) in a nursing class and it is the first occurrence, the student will be allowed to repeat the nursing course. (The student must renegotiate the nursing program contract and will be placed in the needed course at the next opportunity that class space is available.)

If a student is unsuccessful in an additional course with the NURS prefix (in the same semester or later semesters), the student will be dismissed from the school. Unsuccessful is defined as:

1. Dropping a class in which the student has an average below C at the date of withdrawal from classes.
2. Completion of the course with a grade average below C (2.00).
3. An F grade resulting from failure to withdraw from the class.
4. Having an average below C (2.00) at the time of complete withdrawal from the university.
5. Failing the clinical portion of a clinical course.

Reinstatement to the baccalaureate program requires approval of the School of Nursing Student Affairs Council. If reinstatement is recommended, the recommendation may include stipulations. Reinstatement is not automatic and is dependent upon the student’s total record of performance. The privilege of reinstatement is granted only once.

If the failed course in which the student was unsuccessful is a prerequisite or co-requisite (requiring concurrent enrollment) to other nursing courses, as identified in the current catalog, the student will not be allowed to progress. All prerequisite or co-requisites must be successfully completed prior to progression to any course scheduled in subsequent semesters. This policy would affect students as illustrated in the following example: NURS 320 identifies the following courses as prerequisites (NURS 305, 306, and 307). If the student has not completed all of those courses with a satisfactory grade, he or she could not enroll in NURS 320.

Policies Specific to B.S. in Nursing

Incoming Student Orientation

Incoming students are required to attend a student orientation. At the orientation session, information concerning the program will be provided and student data collected.

Medication Calculation Policy

Students must demonstrate continuing and growing competence in medication calculation specific to various clinical areas. The student must demonstrate on a designated exam a grade of 100% in each course that has a clinical component. If 100% score is not obtained in three attempts, the student will not progress to the following semester.

Standardized Competency Exams

Undergraduate students participate in a standardized testing program throughout the nursing program. Selected tests are required each semester and are calculated as part of the student’s final grade. See the BSN Student Handbook for procedural aspects of this policy. 

Fees

Students will be assessed course fees each semester.

Advisement

After admission to the nursing program, all students will be assigned a nursing advisor from the undergraduate nursing faculty. Students are encouraged to meet with their advisor once a semester or as needed.

Nursing Program Contracts

All pre-nursing (PRN) and nursing majors (NUR4YR) are required to negotiate a program contract. Pre-nursing students meet with the Pre-nursing Advisor. The Pre-nursing program contract provides a semester-by-semester schedule identifying prerequisite classes needed to establish eligibility for admission to the nursing program. Nursing majors (NURS4YR) meet with the BSN Coordinator to sign nursing program contracts.

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