Associate Degree Nursing

The Associate Degree Nursing curriculum provides knowledge, skills, and strategies to integrate safety and quality into nursing care, to practice in a dynamic environment, and to meet individual needs which impact health, quality of life, and achievement of potential.

Course work includes and builds upon the domains of healthcare, nursing practice, and the holistic individual. Content emphasizes the nurse as a member of the interdisciplinary team providing safe, individualized care while employing evidence-based practice, quality improvement, and informatics.

Graduates of this program are eligible to apply to take the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN). Employment opportunities are vast within the global health care system and may include
positions within acute, chronic, extended, industrial, and community health care facilities.

Admission to Program

Students are encouraged to begin the admissions process early so that there will be time for them to complete any required pre-admission coursework before the SCC Associate Degree Nursing Program (ADN) application due date. The application due date (deadline) is available on the appropriate program Student Readiness Checklist which is available on the SCC Nursing and Health Technologies webpage. Two or more semesters may be required to complete the pre-admission coursework.

SCC Requirements

• Completion and return of the SCC Admissions Application. Students applying for admission must have a current SCC application on file.
• Submission of a copy of high school diploma or GED/HSE certificate.
• Submission of official transcripts from any community college or university previously attended.
• Complete all SCC requirements to be admitted as a degree-seeking student.
• Meet with the program advisor to discuss requirements, connected careers, and possible transfer opportunities.

Associate Degree Nursing Program Requirements

• Current program requirements are listed on the Student Readiness Checklist which is available on the SCC Nursing and Health Technologies webpage.
• Once all requirements for application have been met, the applicant must make an appointment to meet with the director of nursing and health technologies, or his/her designee, to complete and sign a formal application package. (Students applying for admission must apply each year and may apply for admission to one program at a time).
• Applicants are chosen for admission to the nursing program using an objective point system. The point system is compiled from the following categories found on the Student Readiness Checklist: evaluation of the cumulative SCC GPA, TEAS test scores, number of "major" required courses taken at SCC, and grades in any of the major courses previously taken.
• Admission to the nursing program is competitive. Meeting the requirements to complete the formal application does not guarantee admission to the program. The number of applicants chosen will be determined by the nursing application faculty review committee based on space and resources available.
• Students eligible to apply for admission to the nursing program, who were previously enrolled in a nursing program at another college are required to provide a letter from the dean/director/faculty chair of that program stating that the student left the program in good standing and were not dismissed for issues related to safety or gross negligence in the clinical setting.

Continuation in Program

Submission of Required Documentation

Enrollment and continuation in the associate degree nursing program is contingent upon the submission of the required documentation on or before the specified date communicated by the college and/or tracking system in use. Admission requirements and continuation requirements include, but are not limited to:

• Completed SCC Health Forms Packet (included in the acceptance letter)
• Recorded compliance and maintenance with all immunization requirements (included on the SCC Immunization Guidelines and Immunization Record Checklist)
• Certification of ability to perform essential functions (signed Essential Criteria, Function, and Abilities Standard form)
• Proof of malpractice insurance (found on tuition receipt)
• OSHA training (after admission to the program)
• Certification from student’s physician/healthcare provider that provides evidence that the student meets the conditions of physical health and/or physical capability at a level that is acceptable to and in keeping with safe nursing care to the public (included on the SCC Physical Examination Form)
• Certification from student’s physician/healthcare provider that provides evidence that the student meets the conditions of emotional health at a level that is acceptable to and in keeping with safe nursing care to the public (included on the SCC Physical Examination Form)

A copy of the SCC Nursing and Health Technologies Health Forms Packet, which includes health-related detailed admission requirements, along with the Essential Criteria, Functions, and Abilities Standards form is available in the nursing department and will be enclosed in the acceptance package. The Health Forms Packet includes the following: Immunization Guidelines, Immunization Record Checklist, Hep B/Varicella Form, and Physical Examination Form.

Students accepted into the associate degree nursing program with pre-existing physical, emotional, or behavioral problems that conflict with the safety essential to nursing practice must provide professional certification that appropriate treatment and/or counseling has taken place and that the problem has been adequately accommodated and/or resolved.

The nursing faculty reserves the right to deny admission to students who have demonstrated past behaviors which conflict with the safety essential to nursing practice.

Coursework

It is recommended that students in the associate degree nursing program take courses in the sequence of the curriculum master plan. Students must achieve a grade of “C” or better in all nursing and other major required courses to graduate from the program. Anatomy and Physiology and Developmental Psychology must be current within ten years.

Relationship with Clinical Agency

The contract between SCC and a clinical agency requires that the college abides by the existing rules and regulations of the agency. Clinical agencies may require acceptable criminal background checks and drug screens prior to allowing student participation in clinical. From a safety perspective, the users of alcohol and drugs may impair the well-being of themselves and the clients they serve in the clinical settings. The college follows agency protocol regarding drug screening and criminal background checks. The college agrees to not assign or to withdraw any students from the clinical agency when the students are unacceptable to the agency because of health, performance, a positive criminal background check, or other reasonable causes. Without access to the clinical facilities, students will be unable to satisfactorily complete the nursing courses.

Students may be required, at their own expense, to be tested for consumption of alcohol/drugs for cause at any time while in this program. Clinical sites control and can refuse to allow individuals to work in their facility.

Dismissal of Students

Nursing faculty follow published college and nursing department guidelines and practices that provide for identification and dismissal of students who:

• demonstrate physical or emotional health problems which conflict with the safety essential to nursing practice and do not respond to appropriate treatment and/or counseling within a reasonable period of time.
• demonstrate unsafe or unethical clinical practices or behavior that conflicts with safety essential to nursing practice. Students who demonstrate behavior that conflicts with safety essential to nursing practice can be dismissed from the associate degree nursing program regardless of whether treatment or counseling has occurred.

Transfer

Students desiring to transfer into the associate degree nursing program at SCC must follow the nursing department procedure for the Consideration of Transfer Credits in Nursing which includes, but is not limited to, the following:

• meet with the Director of Nursing and Health technologies to verify that all program admissions criteria have been met.
• have been enrolled in a state Board of Nursing approved associate degree, diploma, or baccalaureate degree nursing program at the former institution within the past twelve months.
• have written verification of good academic standing and clinical performance from the former institution's nursing program director.

All transfer nursing courses will be evaluated by SCC's Director of Nursing and Health Technologies. To be eligible to transfer, courses must be equivalent to courses offered at SCC in both theory and clinical experience. The transferability of general education courses will be determined by the director of student services.

Admission – Readmission Guidelines

All students applying for admission or readmission must meet current admission requirements. Students may apply to only one program at a time and are required to resubmit a formal application for each program and cohort they wish to be considered for.

A student is allowed only one entry-level admission to the associate degree nursing program and one re-entry level admission to the associate degree nursing program. Students who are unsuccessful in the associate degree nursing program after two attempts are not allowed to reapply for admission. This guideline applies to all students, including those who desire transfer from another program/school.

Students who have been unsuccessful in any practical nursing program (regardless of school) are not eligible to apply to the associate degree nursing program at SCC until the successful completion of a practical nursing program and licensure as a Licensed Practical Nurse.

Students seeking re-entry/readmission to the nursing program must have demonstrated safe practice in the clinical and lab settings to be. considered for re-entry/readmission. Students should write a letter to the Director of Nursing and Health Technologies explaining the circumstances surrounding their inability to complete the program upon initial enrollment and outline reasons that re-entry/readmission should consider.

Re-entry/readmission must occur the next time the course is offered within the academic year that begins immediately following the semester in which the student left the nursing program.

These students must meet the current admission requirements to be considered for re-entry/re-admission. These requirements are listed in the Nursing Programs Student Guidelines Handbook which is available on the SCC website.

Criteria

Criteria for readmission to entry-level semesters is based on the space availability and the current admission requirements. Space availability is determined by the number of students currently enrolled in the program and the availability of resources.

Any SCC student who drops, withdraws, fails, or is dismissed from any health technology course with unresolved safety issues is not eligible for readmission to any other health program at SCC. Unsafe clinical practice is defined as any clinical practice or act that threatens the safety and well-being of the public (see Dismissal of Students).

Readmission of students who were dismissed from the program for physical, emotional, or behavioral problems which conflicted with the safety essential to nursing practice is contingent on professional documentation that appropriate treatment and/or counseling has taken place and that the problem has been adequately accommodated.

Due to the changing nature of the subject matter, readmission students may be required to retake some or all of the program courses to make sure current competencies are covered and the student is prepared to be successful in the program and in the workplace.

Upon acceptance to the nursing program the readmission students may request permission to repeat for credit previous nursing courses for which they earned a grade of C or better. When a student is allowed to repeat a nursing course for which they previously earned a grade of C or better, the grade earned for the repeated nursing course will be the only grade used for program progression consideration. The most recent grade earned is most reflective of the student’s current knowledge and its application to safe healthcare practice.