Nursing, AS

Nursing Degree

Nurses function as caregivers and patient advocates in the promotion and restoration of health, and the prevention of disease. The practice of nursing requires substantial specialized knowledge, clinical reasoning abilities, and technical skills based on physiological and psycho-social sciences and the growing body of nursing concepts/knowledge. Nursing encompasses caring for a multicultural patient population across the life span of individuals in any setting where healthcare is needed.

Courses in the humanities contribute to the knowledge used when providing services to the whole person, in a caring, compassionate manner, while courses in the social, psychological, and biological sciences, give nurses a scientific basis for practice. BCCC’s Nursing programs provide individual attention and flexible scheduling, to meet the needs of a diverse group of students, including recent high school graduates, homemakers, and people already employed in other fields. To help students acquire and develop their skills, the programs provide a simulation laboratory, and a media center equipped with DVDs and interactive computer programs.

Before admission to any nursing course/program, all science courses must be completed with a grade of “C” or better and be no more than five years old at the time of entry into the Nursing Program. The General Education Requirements may be taken in any order, as agreed upon by the student and his/her Program Adviser. Students have the opportunity to practice their nursing skills and apply their classroom-learned theory at a variety of local hospitals, clinics, daycare centers, and other community-based settings. During the course of study, students care for adult patients, patients with mental illnesses, children, and parents during child-bearing years. Students will be required to take nationally normed tests throughout the curriculum. In the last semester, students will be required to meet end of program completion requirements and achieve a satisfactory score on a comprehensive exam prior to taking the licensing exam.

 

Application for Admission

All interested applicants must hold a high school diploma or its equivalent and meet/complete the following:

1. All required developmental coursework (math, reading and writing sequence).
2. PRE 100 - Preparation for Academic Achievement .
3. All students must meet the college’s computer literacy requirement.
4. Completion of BIO 202 , BIO 203 , and BIO 212 .
5. A grade of “C” or better must be achieved in all science courses. Science courses must be completed within five (5) years of starting the nursing program. A science course can only be repeated once within 5 years.
6. Minimum G.P.A. of 2.5 or greater.
7. All students must have resident BCCC courses (minimum 6 credits).
8. All students must take the current Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS). The TEAS must be completed by the application deadline and be no more than one-year old.
9. All students must attend a Nursing Information Session.

Note: Because the Nursing programs have special entrance requirements, prospective applicants must meet with the Selective Admissions Counselor in the Office of Admissions, Recruitment and Orientation. Students must meet the entry requirements as published by the Nursing Program when applying for admission.

Eligibility for Licensure: Eligibility for admission to and continued enrollment in the Nursing programs is conditional upon an applicant’s eligibility for licensure by the Maryland Board of Nursing. Under Maryland law, the Maryland Board of Nursing may deny a license to any applicant for reasons that include, but are not limited to, an applicant’s conviction or pleading guilty or nolo contendere to a felony, or to a crime involving moral turpitude, whether or not any appeal or other proceeding is pending to have the conviction or plea set aside. The Maryland Board of Nursing mandates that new graduates submit to a criminal background check and fingerprinting prior to licensure.

All Nursing students must submit to a criminal background check. If an applicant for admission or an enrolled student has an unexpunged conviction or is convicted at any time prior to admission or enrollment into the Nursing programs, or during participation in the Nursing course sequence, the applicant or enrolled student must immediately notify the Nursing Department. Failure to disclose an arrest or conviction may result in ineligibility for admission to, or suspension or termination from Nursing programs.

Upon acceptance into the Program, students:

1. Must complete an American Heart Association CPR course. A copy of both sides of the card must be provided on the first day of class.
2. Are required to carry health insurance as long as they are enrolled in the program. Students are responsible for any charges that occur related to health and safety in the classrooms and clinical areas.
3. Must show proof of currrent health status by physical exam less than a year old at the time of admission.
4. Have up-to-date immunization/titers:
   1. The Purified Protein Derivative (PPD) must be done annually
   2. Rubella, Rubeola and Mumps titer and immunization, if necessary
   3. Varicella (chicken pox) titer and immunization, if necessary
   4. Hepatitis B screening, vaccine if necessary, or written waiver
   5. Seasonal flu and other immunization are required by the assigned clinical health care facility.
   6. Fully vaccinated against COVID-19
5. Are required to have a criminal background check and a drug screen at their own expense. Information on how to obtain a criminal background check will be provided.
6. Must maintain a minimum of “C” in each nursing and science course to progress through the course and semester sequence.

In addition students:

1. Will incur expenses for books, tuition, uniforms and other media products etc.
2. Are responsible for their own transportation to and from clinical practicums.

The Associate of Science Degree prepares graduates to take the licensing examination (NCLEX-RN) to become registered nurses in the State of Maryland. The ADN program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), 3343 Peachtree Road NE, Suite 850, Atlanta, Georgia 30326.

Note: BCCC reserves the right to modify the above regulations/requirements at any time in the student’s enrollment.

Suggested Sequence of Courses

** All BCCC students must meet the College’s Computer Literacy requirements in order to receive a degree or a certificate. All first-time, full- and part-time degree and certificate seeking students are required to complete the PRE 100  course within the first six credits.