• Cornerstone Requirement
• Information Literacy
• Written English Requirement
• Humanities Requirement
• Social Sciences
  • Life Span Developmental Psychology Core
  • Sociology Core
• Natural Sciences and Mathematics
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology Core
  • Microbiology Core
  • Mathematics
• Arts and Sciences Electives only

Phase I

Transition to the Professional Nurse Role
The knowledge and problems related to discomfort, pain, and sensory impairment. Growth and development and its relationship to health, injury prevention, illness, and continuity of care in a variety of settings are discussed. Chronic illness, disability, and end-of-life needs are addressed. Pertinent ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements, along with the standards of professional nursing practice, are addressed. Principles, concepts, and theories from the natural and social sciences in relation to safe nursing care are applied to patients and families across the life span.

Essentials of Nursing Care: Health Safety
This content focuses on the use of nursing process to provide and manage patient-centered care for persons across the lifespan. Therapeutic communication, stress and adaptation, and patient-teaching are discussed. Documenting and reporting nursing care and the use of informatics in health care are presented. The concepts of health promotion, maintenance, obtaining a health history and the techniques of physical assessment are presented. Attention to safe and effective care with respect to environmental safety needs, emergency preparedness, use of restraints, infection control and the prevention of pressure ulcers is explored. Pharmacology, safe medication administration and related nursing care are also addressed.

Essentials of Nursing Care: Health Differences
Patient-centered care addressing the promotion of health and achievement of optimal outcomes for patients experiencing health problems related to nutrition, elimination, oxygenation, fluid and electrolyte balance, activity and sleep is presented in this requirement. Knowledge of anatomy and physiology and the nursing process is used to support nursing judgment. Ethical and legal implications along with evidence-based standards of nursing practice are presented in relation to safe, quality nursing care for patients and families across the life span.

Foundations in Nursing Practice
This requirement focuses on the application of the nursing process to support nursing judgment for the provision of evidence-based, patient-centered care. This requirement also includes the care of culturally diverse patients experiencing health problems related to discomfort, pain, and sensory impairment. Growth and development and its relationship to health, injury prevention, illness, and continuity of care in a variety of settings are discussed. Chronic illness, disability, and end-of-life needs are addressed. Pertinent ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements, along with the standards of professional nursing practice, are addressed. Principles, concepts, and theories from the natural and social sciences in relation to safe nursing care are applied to patients and families across the life span.

Phase II

Reproductive Health
The care of patients and families across the life span with needs related to human sexuality, childbearing, congenital anomalies, genetic disorders, and male/ female reproductive disorders is the focus of this requirement. Evidence-based, culturally sensitive nursing care, standards of professional nursing practice, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements are addressed. Principles, concepts, and theories from the natural and social sciences in relation to safe, quality nursing care are applied to patients and families across the life span.

Health Differences Across the Life Span 1
This requirement focuses on the application of the nursing process to support nursing judgment and the provision of patient-centered care for patients with acute and chronic cardiovascular and respiratory health problems, impaired blood cell formation, and abnormal cell growth. Evidence-based, culturally sensitive nursing care, standards of professional nursing practice, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements are addressed. The natural and social sciences are applied to the delivery of quality nursing care for patients and families across the life span.

Health Differences Across the Life Span 2
This requirement focuses on the application of the nursing process to support nursing judgment and the provision of patient-centered care. A wide variety of health problems are presented. These include mental health disorders, cognitive impairment, diabetes mellitus, and dysfunction of endocrine, hepatic, biliary, renal, and pancreatic systems. Evidence-based, culturally sensitive nursing care, standards of professional nursing practice, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements are addressed. The application of anatomy and physiology, microbiology, and social science concepts is essential for the provision of safe quality patient care.

Health Differences Across the Life Span 3
This requirement focuses on the application of the nursing process to support nursing judgment and
the provision of patient-centered care for persons with health problems related to infectious and communicable diseases, tissue trauma, neurological dysfunction, and musculoskeletal disorders. Content areas include immune function, chain of infection, perioperative nursing, and neuromuscular functional assessment. Health problems such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, hepatitis, degenerative diseases, stroke, and trauma are highlighted. Evidence-based, culturally sensitive nursing care, standards of professional nursing practice, as well as ethical, legal, and regulatory requirements are addressed. Principles, concepts, and theories from the natural and social sciences in relation to safe quality nursing care are applied to patients and families across the life span.

Clinical Nursing Practicum: Care of Patients Across the Lifespan
In this clinical course, students focus on application of contemporary competencies and practice guidelines for delivery of safe, quality patient care. Laboratory experiences provide opportunity for further development of nursing judgment applicable to the clinical environment. Students provide direct care for patients across the lifespan who are experiencing non-critical medical-surgical conditions in the acute care setting. Students are scheduled for clinical experiences and are required to travel to clinical site during the course term. Satisfactory grades in the laboratory and clinical experience are required to pass the course.

Phase III

Competencies for Contemporary Nursing Practice
This course is designed for students to apply competencies for contemporary nursing practice. Safety, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, leadership and delegation, informatics, and professional role development are studied. Students will engage in weekly, faculty-facilitated virtual clinical experiences while caring for clients in a variety of care settings, across the lifespan. Satisfactory application of competencies in the virtual clinical experience is required to pass the course.

Nursing Capstone: Advanced Clinical Practicum
The content in this clinical course will assist students to further develop their role as a member of the profession and continue to prepare them for professional nursing practice. Emphasis is on advanced skills, knowledge, judgment, and professional values. This course includes a laboratory and a dynamic clinical practice experience caring for multiple patients in a healthcare facility. Students are scheduled for clinical experiences and are required to travel to clinical site during the course term. Satisfactory grades in the laboratory and clinical experience are required to pass the course.

• Use a caring holistic approach to provide and advocate for safe quality care for patients and families in an environment that values the uniqueness, dignity, and diversity of patients.
• Apply the nursing process to make nursing judgements, substantiated with evidence to provide safe, quality patient care across the life span.
• Use principles of management and delegation to implement plans of care with members of the intraprofessional team to achieve safe, quality patient outcomes.
• Demonstrate the standards of professional nursing practice and core values within an ethical and legal framework.
• Apply principles of leadership and interprofessional collaboration to improve patient outcomes.
• Use evidenced-based findings and information technology to improve the quality of care for patients.

Surveys are administered to our nursing program students upon graduation and at one year post-graduation. The survey results are available here.