West Coast University Catalog
Catalog Links

Nursing Admissions Requirements and Program Information

West Coast University (WCU) is committed to the education of students who have the desire to enter or advance in the nursing profession at various levels of experience.  Nursing students are supported through innovative methods to develop critical thinking skills necessary to provide nursing interventions to a diverse population. The mission of the College of Nursing is to provide evidence‐based and innovative nursing education to culturally diverse learners; preparing nurses to provide quality and compassionate care responsive to the needs of the community and the global society. The philosophy of the College of Nursing is that education is a continuous process occurring in phases throughout an individual’s lifetime. Nurses are lifelong learners and critical thinkers.

The purpose of the Nursing programs at WCU is to provide the essential body of knowledge and experiences necessary to prepare students for the program of their choice based on their level of experience.  WCU offers the Bachelor of Science (BSN) degree in Nursing for those students desiring to enter the nursing profession.  The University also utilizes a career ladder approach to enable Licensed Vocational Nurses and Registered Nurses who hold an Associate Degree in Nursing to earn their BSN.

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) track prepares students to develop nursing competencies while building upon a liberal arts education that expands their world view of the global community. The curriculum is sequential and integrates theory from the biological and social sciences to develop clinical reasoning and communication skill in graduates who will be expected to serve as leaders in the changing healthcare environment. Content is presented in a simple to complex format and is organized using seven strands to help conceptualize the professional nursing role, including nursing process, research, therapeutic care, teaching/learning, communications, and role development, and incorporates theory and practice to meet the “Essentials for Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice” (AACN, 2008).

Each Essential is presented throughout the curriculum in the classroom and operationalized in clinical settings. Incorporation of the nursing process allows the nursing student to differentiate the independent, dependent, and interdependent functions of nursing. The programs are sequential and integrated theory from biological and social sciences with reasoning and communication skills to develop a graduate who can think critically, solve problems, and communicate effectively.

The General Education courses provide the foundation for the nursing major and continued learning in all educational programs. The addition of both clinical and non-clinical nursing courses in each program prepares graduates for practice at differing levels of experience and responsibility from entry to the nursing profession through the baccalaureate level.

The nursing curriculum provides the opportunity for the student to acquire the professional nursing knowledge and skills necessary to assist clients to an optimal level of health. This is accomplished through an integration of theoretical nursing knowledge with essential clinical skills. Students ;are provided the opportunity to practice in a changing health care environment in acute and long-term care facilities, as well as in community settings.

Admissions Requirements

Applicants for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing (BSN) program must:

  1. Pass the required admission test: HESI with a minimum score of 80% overall (scores 79.5% and higher will be rounded up to 80%); OR

  2. Demonstrate passage of the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS V) with a minimum overall level of proficient: Overall Score = 58.7%, OR

  3. Provide proof of a minimum composite SAT score of 1000 on the older version or 1500 on the current version of the SAT with Essay; OR

  4. Provide proof of a minimum composite ACT score of 20.

BSN Entrance Examination Requirements

BSN applicants will have a maximum of two attempts, a week apart, to successfully pass the admissions exam. If an applicant does not pass the admissions exam after two attempts, he or she must wait a period of 6 months to retest and must provide proof of remediation. WCU only collects Verbal and Quantitative scores for SAT and ACT. HESI exam scores must be within 3 years of enrollment date. TEAS V exam scores must be within 1 year of enrollment date.

BSN Transfer Credit Evaluation

BSN applicants requesting transfer credit evaluation must provide official transcripts to the registrar no later than the first day of the first semester in which the student commences their education at West Coast University. General education, pre-requisites, and core nursing coursework taken from a national or regionally accredited institution will be considered and evaluated for transfer credit. All general education, pre-requisite, and core nursing coursework must have been taken at an appropriately accredited institution. For nursing credits to be considered for transfer credit under any circumstances there can be only one year between the end of the last nursing course taken at a previous institution and the beginning of the first course at West Coast University. The student must be listed in good standing with the prior institution. Science courses must be taken within the last five years to be accepted for transfer credit. Course syllabi for courses previously taken at another nursing program should be submitted for review to the campus dean for nursing.

Applicants for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing, LVN to BSN program must:

  1. Provide proof of current unobstructed licensure as a Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) in Texas; and

  2. Meet all admission requirements for the Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN) program as noted above.

LVN to BSN Licensure Requirements

LVN to BSN Applicants who possess a current unobstructed LVN license may be admitted into the West Coast University LVN to BSN program without requiring transcripts if they meet all other specific program admission requirements which would include military trained LVN’s who were able to obtain their LVN license using their military training as the academic qualifier and those who have graduated from a school that has since closed and transcripts are no longer available.

LVN to BSN Transfer Credit Evaluation

LVN to BSN applicants requesting transfer credit evaluation must provide official transcripts to the registrar no later than the first day of the first semester in which the student commences their education at West Coast University. General education, pre-requisites, and core nursing coursework taken from a national or regionally accredited institution will be considered and evaluated for transfer credit. All general education, pre-requisite, and core nursing coursework must have been taken at an appropriately accredited institution. For nursing credits to be considered for transfer credit under any circumstances there can be only one year between the end of the last nursing course taken at a previous institution and the beginning of the first course at West Coast University. The student must be listed in good standing with the prior institution. Science courses must be taken within the last five years to be accepted for transfer credit. Course syllabi for courses previously taken at another nursing program should be submitted for review to the campus dean for nursing.

Applicants for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing, RN to BSN program must:

  1. Provide proof of current unobstructed professional licensure as a Registered Nurse (RN) from the state of Texas;

  2. Official transcripts from a Board of Nursing licensed Associate Degree or Diploma in Nursing program;

a. Official transcripts must be submitted to document program completion. A maximum of 35 semester units will be posted as NURS 198B for transfer of nursing credits. General education requirements must be met for completion of the BSN. There is no science recency requirement for RN-BSN students. If the pre-licensure nursing program did not require one of the science pre-requisites, a substitute course may be considered.

RN to BSN Transfer Credit Evaluation

RN to BSN applicants requesting transfer credit evaluation must provide official transcripts no later than the first day of the first semester in which the student commences their education at West Coast University. General education and pre-requisite coursework taken from a national or regionally accredited institution will be considered and evaluated for transfer credit. All general education, pre-requisite, and core nursing coursework must have been taken at an appropriately licensed and accredited institution. The RN to BSN program will post a block of 35 semester credits for transfer for nursing core courses.

NURS 493 Comprehensive Predictor Policy

Each student will take the ATI Comprehensive Predictor Assessment during the last week of the NURS 493 (formerly NURS 220) course. Each student must achieve an ATI predictive probability of passing NCLEX at or above 92%. Each student will have ONE (1) attempt to meet the benchmark.

NURS 493 (formerly NURS 220) is graded on a Pass/No Pass scale. Only students who meet the benchmark will be given a “Pass” (P) for the course and be allowed to graduate from the program. Students who do not achieve a score of 92%, will be given a “No Pass” (NP) grade and will need to repeat NURS 493 (formerly NURS 220) the following term.

Students scoring at or above a 92% probability of NCLEX success on the ATI

Comprehensive Predictor given in week 9 of the course will:

  1. Complete a focused review of the Comprehensive Predictor

  2. Attend the full ATI Live Review

  3. Work through the ATI Live Review Study plan to prepare for NCLEX.

  4. Students graduating at the end of Summer I Term 2014 will be enrolled into the Virtual ATI online NCLEX review for post-graduation support to prepare for NCLEX.

Students scoring below 92% probability of NCLEX success on the ATI Comprehensive Predictor will be required to complete the following:

  1. Complete a focused review of the Comprehensive Predictor

  2. Attend the full ATI Live Review

  3. Work through the ATI Live Review Study plan.

  4. Repeat the NURS 493 course including:

    1. Completing alternative capstone assignments

    2. Completing ATI assessments

    3. Retaking the ATI Comprehensive Predictor

    4. Attending the ATI Live Review

  5. Students who have repeated NURS 493 (formerly NURS 220) and passed the course will be identified as needing additional support and, after attending the Live Review and meeting all University requirements to graduate and test for NCLEX, will be enrolled in the Virtual- ATI online NCLEX review for continued post-graduation review and support to prepare for NCLEX.