Kentucky State University

RN-BSN Policies

Admission Requirements

In order to be admitted to the RN-BSN program the applicant must:

  1. Be admitted to the University (an official copy of all transcripts must be sent to the university).
  2. Be a graduate of an accredited associate degree nursing program or a diploma program. *
  3. Submit a copy of a current license to practice nursing in the state of Kentucky. Registered nurses with a license that has been limited, suspended, or revoked are not eligible for admission.
  4. Have a g.p.a. of 2.0 or better in ADN/diploma coursework.

Nurses graduating from a diploma program will be awarded 36 credits in nursing after successfully completing 15 hours ofupper level (300-400) nursing courses.

Progression through the Program

The curriculum is divided into liberal studies courses and nursing courses. The liberal studies courses make up 26 credit hours of the program. Nursing courses comprise 31 credit hours of the RN to BSN curriculum. The total credit hours in the RN to BSN completion program (57 credit hours) will be added to the total credit hours transferred from the student’s associate degree nursing program. The total credit hours from the RN-BSN completion program and the transferred hours must total at least 128 hours in order for the student to graduate. The courses required in the RN-BSN program are as follows. Liberal studies courses: ART 130 or MUS130, ENG 211, HIS 103, foreign language (6 credit hours of the same language), POS 101 or ECO 200, and SPE 103. Nursing courses: NUR 301, 303, 305, 306, 307, 401, 402, 403, 404, 406, and 407. Students must achieve a letter grade of “C” or better in all nursing courses in order to remain in the program. RN-BSN students may enroll either part-time or full-time and may begin the program any semester. Nursing courses do not have to be taken in sequence and liberal studies courses may be taken at any time during the program. It is expected that a RN to BSN student will complete the program within a 5 year period.

Practicum Courses

Four courses in the RN to BSN curriculum require a practicum component. These courses are NUR 303, NUR 305, NUR 402, and NUR 403. Each practicum requires 60 hours of practicum practice. The student will select a practicum and develop objectives based on the objectives of the class. The practicum and the objectives must be approved by the instructor.

In order to do practicum the student must have:

  1. A current TB skin test (within 1 year).
  2. Immunizations and criminal background check as required by the institution in which the student is utilizing as a practicum.
  3. Liability insurance. (If the student does not have professional liability insurance, the student must purchase liability insurance at the time of registration.)
  4. A name badge which identifies the student as a RN-BSN student at Kentucky State University (available in the bookstore).
  5. A preceptor agreement on file for the practicum practice. This agreement is between the preceptor and the student with the practicum instructor’s approval.

The student is expected to follow the uniform policy of the selected institution for the practicum.

The School of Nursing is responsible for maintaining contracts with all institutions where the RN-BSN students select practicums.

Graduation Requirements

The School of Nursing follows the policies of the University. These are:

III. Academic Requirements for Graduation

In the last semester of the sophomore year all students must take the Rising Junior Assessment prior to being allowed to register for further courses, and they must pass the Assessment prior to acquiring 96 hours of collegiate-level credits. Students who fail to meet the minimum pass criteria for any part or parts of the Rising Junior Assessment must:

  1. Seek appropriate remediation, and
  2. Retake the part or parts they failed each time the Assessment is offered until they have passed all portions.The Assessment is administered twice each year, October and March, and
  3. Pay for the cost of retakes at the prevailing rate for each portion of the test each time the Assessment is re-administered.

Students must submit a completed application for a degree to their major department according to the prescribed schedule in the Academic Calendar. No late applications will be accepted. Students must submit a new application for a degree if they have been unsuccessful with a graduation attempt. A non-refundable graduation fee is assessed each time a student applies for graduation.

No later than the semester of expected graduation, students must successfully complete a comprehensive exit assessment in the subject matter of the student’s major. An assessment may include, but is not limited to, a portfolio, a written examination, a presentation, a recital, and/or a capstone course.

A student must receive a grade of "C" or better in all courses except free electives.

A student must have a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0 or better in all University courses.

A minimum of 128 semester credit hours (excluding any college preparatory and remedial courses and any courses numbered below the 100 level) is required for the awarding of a baccalaureate degree. This includes a minimum of 45 semester credit hours in upper-level courses.

IV. Residency Requirements for Graduation

A minimum of 25% of all required semester hours for degree completion must be earned at Kentucky State University.

At least one-half of a student’s major field academic requirements must be earned at Kentucky State University.

In order to receive a baccalaureate or an associate degree from Kentucky State University, a student must complete the last 32 or 16 semester credit hours, respectively, at the University. If extenuating circumstances exist, the Vice President for Academic Affairs may grant, upon the recommendation of the appropriate dean, a student's request to take no more than six (6) of his/her last 32 or 16 semester credit hours at another accredited institution.

V. Graduation Honors

Graduation honors are awarded only to baccalaureate degree students who have earned at least 64 semester credit hours at Kentucky State University. Students who maintain a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.8 and who have received no grades of “D” or “F” in any attempt at a course are awarded the baccalaureate degree summa cum laude. Students who maintain a cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.5 and who have received no grades of “D” or “F” in any attempt at a course are awarded the baccalaureate degree magna cum laude. Students who maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.2 are awarded the baccalaureate degree cum laude. Students who have a GPA of 3.5 or higher and who have received a “D” or “F” in any attempt of a course are awarded the baccalaureate degree cum laude.

The baccalaureate degree or the associate degree with departmental honors will be conferred upon the student who, in addition to having completed the requirements for the degree, shall have maintained a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 and a grade-point average of at least 3.3 in courses required for the major. In computing academic major grade-point averages, all courses taken in a major will be counted. To be considered for academic program honors, one or two years of residence work at Kentucky State University are required of associate or baccalaureate degree recipients respectively, with at least half of the major courses taken at the University.

KSU Catalogue, 2005-2006

Variance to University Policy on Credit Hours

Since the RN-BSN completion program is a transfer (second degree) program, RN-BSN students are not required to complete the requisite 45 credit hours of upper division courses. All RN-BSN students must complete at least 31 credit hours of upper division courses.

Grading Policy

The RN-BSN completion program in the School of Nursing utilizes the following grading scale for the courses in the curriculum:

A 90 - 100
B 80 - 89
C 70 - 79
D 60 - 69
F Below 60
Four courses in the RN-BSN curriculum require a practicum component. These courses are NUR 303, NUR 305, NUR 402, and NUR 403. The student must receive a satisfactory practicum evaluation as part of the course grade. This evaluation is based on the practicum objectives developed by the student, preceptor and faculty member.
Communication

RN-BSN students are required to have a current Kentucky State University e-mail address. Students must be able to access the Blackboard and e-mail.

Probation Policy

If faculty deem a student *unsafe and/or that the student demonstrates **inappropriate behavior either on campus or in the clinical setting, the faculty members will meet and determine consequences of the student’s behavior. The student may be placed on probation. If the student demonstrates further unsafe practice and or inappropriate behavior he/she will be dismissed from the program. Faculty reserve the right to determine if automatic/immediate dismissal is necessary.

*unsafe practice is defined as a threat to self, patients, and/or others.
**inappropriate behavior is defined as behavior that would be inconsistent with
expected behavior of a reasonably prudent nursing student.
Technical Standards Policy

RN-BSN students must meet the following technical standards:

  1. Sufficient visual acuity, such as is needed in preparation and administration of medications, and for the observation necessary for patient assessment and nursing care.
  2. Sufficient auditory perception to receive verbal communication from patients and members of the health team and to assess health needs of people through the use of monitoring devices such as cardiac monitors, stethoscopes, IV infusion pumps, Doptones, fire alarms, etc.
  3. Sufficient gross and fine motor coordination to respond promptly and to implement the skills, including the manipulation of equipment, required in meeting health needs.
  4. Sufficient communication skills (speech, reading, writing) to interact with individuals and to communicate their needs promptly and effectively, as may be necessary in the individual’s interest.
  5. Sufficient intellectual and emotional functions to plan and implement care for individuals.
Important Websites and Addresses

Additional information about the university and the School of Nursing can be found at the following sources:

KSU Website - www.kysu.edu

KSU Mailing Address - Kentucky State University, 400 East Main St., Frankfort, KY 40601. School of Nursing phone number: (502)597-5957.

Kentucky Board of Nursing Website - http://kbn.ky.gov

Kentucky Board of Nursing Mailing Address - 312 Whittington Pkwy, Suite 300, Louisville, KY 40222-5172. (800)305-2042.

National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission Website - www.nlnac.org

National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission Mailing Address -
61 Broadway, New York, NY 10006.
Attendance Policy

The RN-BSN program follows the University Policy on attendance as stated in the Kentucky State University Catalogue.

Academic Honesty

The RN-BSN program follows the University policy on academic honesty as stated in the Kentucky State University Catalogue and in the KSU Student Handbook which can be found on the web.

Chain of Command

In the School of Nursing, we follow the chain of command in solving problems. Nursing students are expected to follow the chain of command as well. A nursing student with a problem or complaint should speak to her/his faculty advisor. If the problem involves a faculty member, the student should request a conference with the faculty member to discuss the problem. If the student is not satisfied, the student may then bring the problem to the attention of the course coordinator or chairperson. If the student is still not satisfied, the problem should then be taken to the Dean of the College of Mathematics, Science, Technology, and Health. Students should be prepared to put their complaint in writing.

Student Advising

Each student enrolled in the RN-BSN completion program will be advised by the RN-BSN completion program coordinator, Cathy Cooke. The coordinator can be reached at (502) 597-6963 or email: catherine.cooke@kysu.edu.

Student Representation in the Nursing Program

At the beginning of the fall semester the RN-BSN students will be given a questionnaire to determine if anyone is interested in serving as a RN-BSN representative at the Nursing faculty meetings. This student is to bring student concerns, questions, comments to the faculty and keep the RN-BSN students aware of issues relating to them. Communication will be done through a list serve for all RN-BSN students wanting to be informed.

Criminal Background Check

Students enrolled in the four RN-BSN practicum courses must have a criminal background check if it is required by the institution selected for the practicum.

Children in the Classroom, Nursing Lab, and Practicum

The School of Nursing does not allow children to be present in the classroom, nursing lab, or at the practicum site. The reasons for this rule are:

  1. Children, no matter how well behaved, are a distraction to you, faculty, and other students.
  2. Lecture content is often inappropriate for children.
  3. Lab activities are often inappropriate for children.
  4. The lab contains equipment that could injure children.
  5. Children in the practicum area may cause a violation of our contract with the practicum site.
  6. The presence of children presents a liability risk to the School of Nursing ,the university, and the practicum site.

If you have children who must be supervised while you attend school, make sure that you have child care. It is also wise to have a back-up person to fill in if your usual child care provider is unavailable.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)

HIPAA is a regulation from the federal government that provides greater assurance to patients that their medical records are kept confidential. All health care providers should be aware of the HIPAA regulations and must follow this mandate–including nursing students. You must view a video on HIPAA in the School of Nursing lab and sign the form in the back of this handbook before going to clinical. The HIPAA regulations can be found in the Federal Register: August 14, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 157, pp. 53181-53273). Copies of the Federal Register are in the School of Nursing audio-visual lab and on reserve in Blazer Library.


You cannot attend clinical if you have not viewed the HIPAA video and signed the HIPAA confidentiality form. Any violation of client confidentiality could result in dismissal from the nursing program.







KENTUCKY STATE UNIVERSITY
School of Nursing

Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPPA)

Department of Health and Human Services

Student Statement of Confidentiality of Patient Information

I have been informed of and understand the current HIPAA privacy regulations that are relevant to my practice as an RN-BSN completion program student. I agree to abide by the HIPAA privacy regulations.



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Adopted 2003
Revised 2005
KENTUCKY STATE UNIVERSITY
School of Nursing

HANDBOOK VERIFICATION FORM

The following signature indicates that I have received the RN-BSN Student Handbook (2005-06) and I agree to abide by the policies as stated in this book.





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Witness Date









Please tear off this page and return it to the School of Nursing.