RN-BSN Prerequisite Courses

Prospective students must complete nine (9) prerequisite courses to qualify for admission to the RN-BSN pathway. Prerequisite courses may be in progress at the time of application but must be complete at least one term prior to starting the pathway. All prerequisite courses must be college level and a grade of C or better must be achieved in each. There is no time limit or recency requirement for any of the prerequisite courses. To summarize, prerequisite courses:

  • Can be in progress at time of application
  • Must be complete prior to starting the pathway
  • Must be college level
  • Grade of C or better
  • Must be transferable at time of completion
  • No expiration

SCHOOL OF NURSING PREREQUISITE COURSES

Human Anatomy, with lab

Human Physiology, with lab

Microbiology, with lab

Chemistry (Intro or General)

Statistics

DETAILED PREREQUISITE COURSE INFORMATION

Oral Communications

This is typically a public speaking/speech course. Approved courses are designed to emphasize the content of communication as well as the form and should provide an understanding of the psychological basis and the social significance of communication. The course should view communication as the process of human symbolic interaction from the rhetorical perspective: reasoning and advocacy, organization, critical evaluation and reporting of information in both speaking and writing. It must include active participation and practice in oral and written communication. Any course from the CSU GE Area A1 will satisfy this prerequisite. This course must have been completed at a regionally accredited college/university in the United States.

Written Communications

This is typically a freshmen English or English Composition course. Any course from the CSU GE Area A2 will satisfy this prerequisite. This course must have been completed at a regionally accredited college/university in the United States.

Critical Thinking

There are several classes that fulfill this requirement. Approved courses are designed to achieve an understanding of the relationship of language to logic, which should lead to the ability to analyze, criticize, and advocate ideas, to reason inductively and deductively, and to reach factual conclusions. Examples of courses that often meet this requirement include Intro Logic, Critical Thinking, Argumentation and Debate, Critical Reasoning, and sometimes the second half of a yearlong English class will satisfy this requirement. Any course from the CSU GE Area A3 will satisfy this prerequisite. This course must have been completed at a regionally accredited college/university. If you completed this course at a foreign institution, you must provide an official foreign transcript evaluation showing US course equivalency.

Math

You must take a transferable math class to satisfy this requirement. Examples include College Algebra, Intro Statistics, and Liberal Arts Math. Intermediate and Elementary Algebra do NOT satisfy this requirement. Any course from the CSU GE Area B4 will satisfy this prerequisite. This course must have been completed at a regionally accredited college/university. If you completed this course at a foreign institution, you must provide an official foreign transcript evaluation showing US course equivalency. The School of Nursing recommends you take a Statistics course that meets the University Math requirement as this will also then satisfy the Nursing statistics prerequisite.

Human Anatomy, With Lab

In general, if you completed an Associate Degree in Nursing from a California community college, the anatomy course required for your ADN program will satisfy the RN-BSN prerequisite. If you completed your nursing degree at a foreign institution, you may be required to submit a course description or syllabus from your previous science classes to determine if the content completed satisfies this requirement.

Human Physiology, With Lab

In general, if you completed an Associate Degree in Nursing from a California community college, the physiology course required for your ADN program will satisfy the RN-BSN prerequisite. If you completed your nursing degree at a foreign institution, you may be required to submit a course description or syllabus from your previous science classes to determine if the content completed satisfies this requirement.

Microbiology, With Lab

In general, if you completed an Associate Degree in Nursing from a California community college, the microbiology course required for your ADN program will satisfy the RN-BSN prerequisite. If you completed your nursing degree at a foreign institution, you may be required to submit a course description or syllabus from your previous science classes to determine if the content completed satisfies this requirement.

Chemistry

Introductory or General Chemistry courses will satisfy the nursing prerequisite. It is not necessary to have organic, inorganic and biochem although it is recommended by the CSU for nursing students. Chemistry can be completed with or without lab. If the institution where you choose to complete Chemistry offers a lab component, then you should take both the lecture and lab. If the institution does not offer a lab with the lecture, no lab is required to meet the prerequisite.

Statistics

Any CSU B4 certified Statistics course will meet the requirement. Many colleges offer statistics through varying departments (ex: Math, Sociology, Psychology). You may take a Statistics course through any department as long as it is a B4 certified course. If you have already satisfied the university math requirement with a different B4 certified course (i.e. college algebra, calculus, etc), you may be able to take a non-certified statistics course. To meet the nursing requirement, the course must include ANOVA and inferential statistics.

 

Will My Previous Courses Meet The Golden Four University Requirements?

If you are unsure if the courses you have completed meet the university requirements, you can usewww.assist.orgOpens in new window to double check. This website lists all the California Community Colleges and all transferable courses at those colleges. This is a very helpful resource for checking your Golden Four prerequisite classes.

To double check a course on www.assist.orgOpens in new window , follow these steps:

  1. Go to www.assist.orgOpens in new window
  2. From the drop down menu in the middle of the page, select the community college you attended.
  3. When the next page opens, click “CSU GE Breadth Certification Courses”.
  4. Then from the “Select a CSU GE Breadth Area” drop down menu, you can select which GE area you would like to look up (ex: A1 – Oral Communications).
  5. The next page that opens will show you all the courses at that college that satisfy the GE area you chose.

If you need more guidance using www.assist.orgOpens in new window , the website has a tutorial which will walk you through the process of checking your courses. Click the following link to access the tutorial: ASSIST Tutorial