School of Nursing

4-Year Traditional BSN Program Eligibility Requirements & Application Process

4-Year Traditional BSN Program Eligibility Requirements & Application Process

Admission Requirements 

Prior to applying to the nursing program, all students first need to be admitted to the University of South Carolina Aiken (Apply to USCA).  Students are advised to do this at least 8 weeks in advance of the SON application deadline to prevent delays when applying to the program or in progression to degree completion. 

A copy of the USCA acceptance letter must be included as part of the application materials submitted.  

Preparing to Apply  

The USCA School of Nursing offers academic advising assistance and support to prospective four-year traditional track students. Please contact the SON Student Services Program Coordinator, Ms. Kathy Simmons ([email protected]) to schedule an appointment to meet.  

Academic Preparation and Eligibility Requirements 

Students must demonstrate academic preparedness for the program's rigors by completing 30 semester hours. The hours are accrued by completing 9 courses known as the prerequisite core courses. Please see the BSN Program of Study for a listing of core courses. 

BSN Program of Study

To ensure students’ academic readiness, all transcripts need to display a final course grade for the core courses at the time of application.  The School of Nursing faculty reviews official transcripts during the application evaluation process. 

• Ensure that transcripts for all coursework completed at other institutions have been received and uploaded to the USCA SSC system. 

• Students who have completed courses at colleges and universities other than USCA are encouraged to have their transcripts evaluated by the School of Nursing Academic Advisor to ensure all requisite core courses meet established parameters. Interested students should submit documents at least 2 months in advance of the application deadline to Ms. Kathy Simmons at [email protected]  

• Evaluation of transfer credits may take longer during campus-wide advisement periods: February - March and September - October. 

All science courses need to be completed no more than 10 years before applying to the nursing program. 

Minimum grade point average criteria include: 

• All general education courses are completed with a C (2.0) or better.
• The GPA for prerequisite core courses must be 3.0 or higher. No exceptions. 
• AP courses, IB courses, and CLEP are accepted and included in the GPA calculation: 

• • AP courses: A = 5; B+ = 4, B = 3 
  • IB courses: A = 7; B+ = 6; B = 4 and 5 
  • CLEP: A = successful score 

• Regardless of how credit hours were assigned for these courses, all science courses are valued as 4 credit hours and non-science courses are valued as 3 credit hours.
• All grades from repeated courses must be included in the GPA calculation. 
• Any D, F, or WF received at institutions other than USCA must be included in the GPA calculation.
• Attach an explanatory letter for any final grades appearing as D, F, or WF on your academic transcript. 

Application to the School of Nursing

To access the application, you will login as a 'Returning User,' not a 'First Time User.'  Use the same email address and password you used to apply for admission to the university. If you do not remember the email you used, call the Admissions Office at 803-641-3366 and they can assist you.