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Nursing - RN to BS Option

Statement of Purpose

The philosophy of the nursing program is articulated as follows:

“The Stevenson University nursing program, as an integral part of its parent institution, is dedicated to the pursuit of higher learning grounded in the arts, sciences, and humanities. The philosophy and curricular focus of the nursing program emphasizes the ethic of caring, critical thinking, and a spirit of inquiry in education, practice, service, and research. The nursing faculty believes nursing is a professional discipline with academic and practice dimensions. The nursing faculty values scholarship and academic integrity and seeks to foster professional involvement and life-long learning in students and graduates. The essence of nursing is grounded in the philosophy of caring. The nursing faculty believes that caring exists in authentic relationships through which all persons are respected and nurtured. Within these co-created relationships, caring opens the possibility of transformation, inviting growth, healing, and wholeness of persons, families, and communities. In the reflective practice of nursing and nursing education, a caring environment affirms diversity in ways of being and ways of knowing.”

Description

Stevenson University offers the RN to BS option for registered nurses who would like to obtain a bachelor’s degree in nursing. The curriculum is offered in an accelerated format and designed to enable adult learners to complete the baccalaureate degree in nursing as a part-time student taking one nursing course at a time.

All RN to BS courses are offered in 8-week sessions, with the exception of NURS 424 – Health in the Community, which is offered in a full 16-week semester. Multiple entry and exit points along the way enable registered nurses to complete requirements according to professional and personal goals. Some RN to BS courses are offered in a hybrid format, combining online and face-to-face delivery, at various locations throughout Maryland. All RNBS courses are offered online throughout the year, allowing RNs to schedule their academic work in keeping with family and work responsibilities.

The RN to BS option is a concentrated program for the registered nurse, who is highly motivated, self-directed, and able to participate in independent learning activities. The Stevenson University nursing program is fully accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and is approved by the Maryland Board of Nursing.

Qualified registered nurses must successfully complete a total of 120 credits, of which 30 credits must be from upper-level courses taken at Stevenson University. RNs may transfer prerequisite non-nursing courses and college core courses, but the RNBS nursing program requirements must be taken at Stevenson University. Students who take community college courses are required to submit official transcripts at the completion of their courses in order to obtain credit for these courses. The RN to BS courses required at Stevenson University total 30 credits. In accordance with the Maryland Articulation Model, Stevenson University will award 30 upper-division nursing credits to the registered nurse with an active, unencumbered Maryland or compact state nursing license upon enrollment in the RN to BS Option.

The RN to BS Option at Stevenson University partners with several community colleges across the state. In order to increase RNs' accessibility to baccalaureate education, curricular articulation agreements are in place with the following colleges:

  • Anne Arundel Community College
  • Baltimore City Community College
  • Carroll Community College
  • Chesapeake College
  • College of Southern Maryland
  • Community College of Baltimore County
  • Harford Community College
  • Howard Community College
  • Montgomery College
  • Prince George's Community College

Articulation agreements allow registered nurses to complete all non-nursing program requirements at the community college. The RN to BS courses will be completed through Stevenson University, at the Owings Mills site, at a hospital partner site, at the community college site, or online.

Prior to enrolling in NURS 424 - Health in the Community, the student will be required to:

  • Submit proof of health insurance coverage.
  • Submit current CPR certification.
  • Substantiate adherence to the Department of Nursing's Health Requirements.

Course Requirements for RN to BS Students

Course Requirements Prior to Acceptance into the RNBS Option at Stevenson

  • English Composition
  • Introduction to Literature

Course Requirements Prior to Taking 300-level RNBS Courses

Registered nurses with an associate's degree or diploma from an accredited nursing program will have completed most of the prerequisite courses as a part of their basic education. The following courses must be successfully completed prior to taking 300-level RNBS courses:

  • Anatomy and Physiology I and II
  • Microbiology
  • Introduction to Psychology
  • Introduction to Sociology
  • Human Growth and Development
  • Communication

Course Requirements Prior to Taking 400-level RNBS Courses

The following courses must be successfully completed before taking 400-level RNBS courses:

  • English writing at the 200-level or above
  • Chemistry
  • Nutrition
  • Statistics
  • Four humanities courses from three different disciplines: philosophy, history, literature, or religion.
    • An ethics course (listed as philosophy) must be one of the four courses.
  • Fine Arts

Objectives

Based upon the concepts of person, health, environment, nursing and facilitation of learning as identified in the philosophy of the Stevenson University nursing program, the faculty subscribes to an organizing framework in which caring is firmly established in the practice of professional nursing. Graduates will be prepared to practice professional nursing.

Upon completion of the Stevenson University baccalaureate nursing program, graduates will be able to:

  1. Integrate the concepts of caring in nursing practice in diverse health care settings across the health-illness continuum.
  2. Engage in holistic reflective nursing practice informed by the arts, sciences, and humanities.
  3. Exhibit competencies in critical thinking, communication, evidence-based decision making, scholarly inquiry and technical skills in the practice of nursing.
  4. Integrate professional competencies in the nursing roles of provider, designer, manager, and coordinator of care and participate as an active member of the profession.
  5. Assume ethical and legal responsibility and accountability in nursing practice, exemplifying the values of altruism, autonomy, human dignity, integrity, and social justice.
  6. Apply leadership concepts, skills, and decision-making in creating caring environments to promote health and healing in individuals, families, communities, and global populations.

Policies

Students must achieve a grade of "C" or better in all required Stevenson nursing courses. If a student receives a "C-", "D+", "D", or "F" in any nursing course, the course must be repeated and a "C" or better must be achieved. A maximum of one nursing course may be repeated once throughout the nursing program. Students who earn a second grade of "C-", "D+", "D", or "F" in a nursing course will be automatically dismissed from the RN to BS option.

Requirements

The following are the major courses required for students in the RN/BS option.

Major Requirements:

NURS 312
NURS 313
NURS 315
NURS 414
NURS 415
NURS 418
NURS 424
NURS 434
Upper-level elective

Please refer to the course requirements for RN to BS Students section of the program description for additional course requirements.

Upper-level elective: The upper-level elective must be taken at Stevenson University and may include courses from any discipline, such as sociology, psychology, history, philosophy, or religion.

Students who have been accepted into the RN to MS option will take the first graduate nursing course to fulfill the elective requirement.

Minor in Nursing - RN to BS Option

There is no minor in the nursing - accelerated RN to BS option.

Other Options

RN to BS Option:

Why choose Stevenson's RN to MS option?

This option was designed to give registered nurses who do not yet have a baccalaureate degree in nursing the knowledge and skills necessary to earn a baccalaureate degree. They then proceed directly into the master's program to pursue a concentration in either leadership/management, education, or population-based care coordination.

Although the most important aspect of applying to the RN to MS option at Stevenson may be the student's stated intention of wishing to make a difference in the nursing field, there are several other advantages for students, including:

  • The need to submit only one application for both the undergraduate and graduate programs.
  • The familiarity with Stevenson's educational culture, its policies and procedures, the technology environment, fellow students, and faculty and staff that make for an easier transition from the undergraduate to the graduate program.
  • The ability to take a graduate course to meet the upper-level elective requirement for the bachelor's degree. Credits from that course will then count toward the MS program requirements.
  • The first graduate course is billed at the undergraduate tuition rate.

RN to MS Admissions Criteria

  • To be considered for the RN to MS option, applicants must have an active RN license and a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or above from previous academic work, and they must submit two letters of recommendation.
  • Students meeting these criteria may be accepted to the RN to MS option with conditional acceptance granted for the graduate program. To be admitted to the MS program after earning the BS, students must have a GPA of 3.0 or above in the RN to BS courses, have completed all non-nursing courses, and continue to hold an active RN license.

Students who start the RN to BS option and later decide that the RN to MS option would have been a better choice for them, can still apply. Criteria for admission are the following: completion of at least 12 RNBS credits, GPA of 3.0 or above, and completion of the application form.

ATB Option: The Associate to Bachelors (ATB) option is designed for students who are concurrently enrolled in the Community of College Baltimore County (CCBC) nursing program. Agreements are pending with several other community colleges. Check the Stevenson University website for the current list of participating colleges. In the Stevenson ATB option, students first take classes face-to-face then in a hybrid (blended) model and finally take on-line courses. The ATB option is designed so students can complete a bachelor's degree at Stevenson University one year after graduating from the partner community college.

ATB Admissions Criteria

Only those students who have already been accepted into the participating college’s associate degree nursing program are eligible to apply to the ATB option. Students must fulfill all requirements for the Stevenson University Bachelor’s degree as listed in the RN to BS option including those courses which are prerequisites of the ATB option. Admission to this option is a collaborative decision between Stevenson University and the partner community college.  Students interested in this option should contact the ATB Coordinator.