Course details

B.S.N. Completion students

Registered nurses may choose to take the basic track or participate in the B.S.N. completion track described below. The B.S.N. completion program is offered in collaboration between the Goshen College nursing department and Division of Adult and External Studies (DAES). Transcripts from previous nursing education programs are evaluated individually and credits are transferred accordingly. Credit by examination is also an option for general education and supporting courses.

Overview

This track allows registered nurses to complete a B.S.N. in about 19 months. The track is designed to affirm personal and professional strengths. Students are actively involved in identifying their strengths and their learning needs. Self-directed study is promoted. Study guides are provided to maximize off-campus study and in-class activities. The collaborative education process makes student experiences and insights a vital part of classroom activities. Each group of R.N.s progresses through the courses as a cohort group. Classes meet one night a week for four hours and vary in length from two to seven weeks. The same night of the week is used for a group throughout the program. Clinical experiences for specified courses will be arranged at other times during the week. There are 13 courses providing 40 credit hours, of which 28 are upper-level nursing credits and 12 are general education credits.

Purpose

The B.S.N. completion track completes the purpose of the basic nursing program and provides a program that is designed for the working registered nurse.

Admission requirements

• An associate degree or diploma in nursing from an accredited program.
• A cumulative grade point average of 2.5 or higher in prior academic work.
• Completion of all prerequisite supporting courses (listed below).
• Transfer of a minimum of 60 credit hours from an accredited college.
• Current licensure as an R.N. in Indiana or a neighboring state where the clinical component can be completed.
• Equivalence of one year of full-time employment as a registered nurse in a health-care delivery setting. Currency and relevance of work experience will be evaluated individually.

Prerequisites

Prior to assignment to a group and beginning progression through the track, the following courses (or their achievement test equivalent) must be completed.

General education		minimum hours
	English composition	3
Supporting courses
	Anatomy & Physiology	4
	Principles of Sociology/General Psychology	3

Graduation requirements

• Completion of 120 credit hours accepted by Goshen College.
• Completion of the B.S.N. completion track.
• Cumulative GPA of 2.5 or above in this program.
• Completion of general education and supporting-course requirements outlined above.

Courses for the B.S.N. Completion Program

Nurs 331 Philosophy and Theories of Nursing 3
Bridge course that prepares adult learners for upper-level college study. The metaparadigm of nursing is utilized as the organizing framework for exploration of self and nursing. The evolution of nursing science, theory, research, and practice are studied.

Nurs 332 Holistic Client Assessment* 3
Builds on prior learning, expanding history taking and physical assessment skills across the life span. Includes spiritual, cultural and family assessment.

Nurs 333 Nursing Research 4
Basic concepts of nursing research are examined. Focuses on critical analysis of published nursing research as a basis for using research in clinical practice. The Quality Assessment Project is introduced. Students will identify a clinical nursing quality assessment project to conduct as a major part of Nursing Research II.

Nurs 334 Communication Skills for Professional Nurses 3
This course responds to the challenges of professional communication and the expectations for registered nurses who are baccalaureate students. The focus is on critique and the development of individual written and oral communication for content, style and effectiveness. Access and management of information will be discussed.

Reln 305 Enduring Issues in Christian Perspectives 3
Examines the biblical heritage and major doctrines of Christian faith. Explores basic issues such as individualism and community, personal decision-making, social justice, and relating to other religious traditions. Class members will be challenged to think through their own responses to these issues.

Socn 305 Social Systems 3
Family and organizational systems within their cultural and societal context are examined from a social-theory perspective. Functional/dysfunctional systems and change theory are studied.

Hist 202 American History II (1877 to present) or 3
Hist 203 World History II (1500 to present) 3
See history section of the catalog for course descriptions.

Nurs 437 Cross-Cultural Aspects of Health and Illness* 4
Health, illness and various health-care systems are explored. Theory relative to culture, ethnography, and specific aggregates will be studied.

Hum 323 Humanities: Music and Art or 3
Hum 325 Humanities: Art and Theater 3
See humanities section of the catalog for course descriptions.

Nurs 438 Community Health Nursing* 4
Applies a synthesis of nursing and public health theories to the assessment and care of aggregates in the community. Community health planning for aggregates is done using various community agencies and resources. The public health delivery system is differentiated from the private health care delivery system in its emphasis on social justice.

Nurs 439 Health-Care Ethics 2
In this course, students will actively reflect on ethical issues which are present in health care for practitioners and consumers. The focus will be on the process of ethical inquiry rather than decision outcomes. In the process of analyzing bio-ethical issues, student will be introduced to ethical theory and modes of ethical analysis informed by the Christian faith.

Nurs 447 Issues Seminar 1
The focus of this course is on integration of current issues in the practice of professional nursing. Students articulate their own philosophy of health care and nursing including their faith beliefs, rights of clients and responsibility to deliver quality nursing care.

Nurs 449 Leadership in Nursing* 4
Leadership and management principles are applied to clinical practice. Clinical practice component of course will be arranged with each student.

* Denotes courses with clinical component or practice-based project.