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Bachelor’s Program

Traditional BS
Accelerated BS
RN-BS Completion Program

Traditional BS

Admission Requirements – To be considered for the Traditional BS track, applicants must:

  • Be eligible for readmission or be in good standing at the last college attended.
  • Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 on all college coursework.
  • Have either a minimum SAT of 900 (on the critical thinking and math sections only with neither score below 400) or ACT composite score of 19. 
    • Send test scores directly to VCU (SAT code: 5570. ACT code: 4379).
The following prerequisite courses must be completed prior to enrollment:
Course VCU Course(s) Credits
English Composition I UNIV 111 3 credits
English Composition II UNIV 112 3 credits
Intro Psychology PSYC 101 4 credits
General Sociology SOCY 101 3 credits
General Biology BIOL/Z 101 4 credits
Second Lab Science* BIOL/Z 151,152, 201, BIOL 103, CHEM/Z101, PHYS/Z 101, OR PHYS 107 4 credits
Anatomy** BIOL 205 4 credits
Nutrition BIOL 217 3 credits
* Select from College Biology, College Chemistry, College Physics. Four credits must be college chemistry if applicant did not receive a “C” or better in a high school or developmental chemistry course.
** Applicants attending colleges or universities which offer anatomy and physiology as a combined 2 semester course must complete the entire course sequence prior to enrolling in the School of Nursing. One semester of a combined anatomy and physiology course will not transfer, nor can one semester of a combined anatomy and physiology course be used in conjunction with a stand-alone anatomy or physiology course to fulfill this requirement. If taking stand-alone anatomy and physiology courses, human or comparative anatomy and human or animal physiology are accepted.

Accelerated BS

Admission Requirements – To be considered for the Accelerated BS track, applicants must:

  • Have a bachelor’s degree in a field other than nursing from a regionally-accredited college or university.
  • Be eligible for readmission or be in good standing at the last college attended.
  • Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 on all college coursework.
  • Have either a minimum SAT or GRE of 900 (on the critical thinking and math sections only with neither score below 400) or ACT composite score of 19.
    • Send test scores directly to VCU (SAT code: 5570; ACT code: 4379; GRE code: 5570).
  • Complete the following VCU courses prior to enrollment: BIOL 205 (anatomy), PHIS/Z 206 (physiology), BIOL/Z 209 (microbiology), PSYCH 304 (developmental psychology covering the lifespan), and STAT 210 (statistics).
    • Refer to the VCU Transfer Guide for transferrable courses offered at other universities and colleges.  
  • Electronically submit the online VCU undergraduate application, School of Nursing supplemental application materials and all required documents by November 1.

RN-BS Completion Program

Admission Requirements – To be considered for the RN-BS Completion Program, applicants must:

  • Be eligible for readmission or be in good standing at the last college attended.
  • Be a graduate of an accredited (NLNAC) diploma or associate degree program in nursing.
  • Have current unencumbered RN license or an authorization to practice as an RN in Virginia, the District of Columbia or a US possession or territory.
  • Have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 on all college coursework.
The following prerequisite courses must be completed prior to enrollment:
Course Credits
English Composition I 3 credits
English Composition II 3 credits
Anatomy 4 credits
Physiology 4 credits
The following course must be completed prior to enrolling in NURS 307:
Statistics 3 credits
A minimum of 24 hours of the following courses must be completed prior to enrolling. All general education courses must be completed prior to enrolling in the final nursing course.
Introductory psychology 3 credits
Developmental psychology 3 credits
General sociology 3 credits
Laboratory science I* 4 credits
Laboratory science II* 4 credits
Microbiology** 4 credits
Nutrition** 3 credits
Philosophy 3 credits
Humanities I*** 3 credits
Humanities II*** 3 credits
Humanities III*** 3 credits
Courses must have been taken at an accredited college or university and passed with a “C” or better.
* Select from College Biology, College Chemistry, College Physics. Four credits must be college chemistry if applicant did not receive a “C” or better in a high school or developmental chemistry course.
** National League of Nursing (NLN) Proficiency Exams are available for RN-BS applicants who do not have academic credit for Microbiology or Nutrition.
***Humanities – select from literature, speech, religion, foreign language, sign language, history, government, geography, music, art, drama, or philosophy

Automatic admission/Guaranteed admission criteria

In addition to the requirements for admission to the RN-BS Completion Program, highly qualified applicants to the RN-BS Completion Program who meet the following criteria are eligible for guaranteed admission:

  • Cumulative GPA of 3.0 on all college courses.
  • No grade less than “B” on any nursing class.
  • Three recommendations that highly recommend or recommend without reservation.