A practical nursing certificate will be awarded to the student who successfully completes the 3-semester curriculum, which consists of forty-five (45) credit hours, including twenty (20) credit hours of general education and twenty-five (25) credit hours of nursing core coursework. Stackable credentials include a nursing assistant certificate of completion and/or practical nursing certificate. Following completion of NUR 112: Fundamental Concepts of Nursing, or the first semester of the 3-semester curriculum, the student will be qualified to apply to take the Alabama Nurse Aide Certification Exam. After completing NUR 113: Nursing Concepts I, the student will be qualified to apply for the Medication Aide Certification Exam. Upon successfully completing all three semesters of the Practical Nursing curriculum, the student will be qualified to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination: NCLEX-PN.
Required General Education Courses
Required Nursing Courses
Notes
*BIO 201: Must complete pre-requisite BIO 103 if not accepted into the Nursing program.
**PSY 210: Must complete pre-requisite PSY 200 if not accepted into the Nursing program.
Suggested Course Sequence
| First Term | Second Term | Third Term |
|---|---|---|
|
BIO 201 |
PSY 210 |
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general admission requirements for the College, admission into the Nursing program requires:
- Unconditional admission to the College.
- Receipt of completed application for admission to Nursing program before published deadline.
- A minimum established score on accepted examination:
- ATI TEAS - a minimum TOTAL score of 65% on the TEAS exam. Scores valid for three years or;
- NLN Pre-Admission (PAX) examination - a minimum composite score of 120 on the PAX exam. Scores valid for three years or;
- ACT - a minimum COMPOSITE score of 21 on ACT exam. Scores are valid for three years.
- A minimum of 2.5 GPA for Nursing required academic core courses.
- A minimum of 2.5 GPA cumulative high school GPA for students without prior college courses (GED will be used if applicable).
- Meet the essential functions for nursing.
- Eligible for ENG 101, BIO 201 and MTH 100.
Admission to the nursing program is competitive and the number of students admitted is limited by the number of faculty and availability of clinical facilities. Meeting minimal requirements does not guarantee acceptance into the Nursing program.