INFORMATION FOR APPLICANTS of the INCOMING CLINICAL CLASS OF FALL 2017 to the REGISTERED NURSE (RN) ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE DEGREE (AAS) at RARITAN VALLEY COMMUNITY COLLEGE

CONTENTS I. OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRAM II. APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO THE COLLEGE (PRE-CLINICAL) III. APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO NURSING COURSES (CLINICAL) IV. ADMISSION TO CLINICAL NURSING COURSES V. OTHER INFORMATION

PLEASE NOTE: Students interested in pursuing the nursing program will initially be enrolled into the AS in Health Science degree as pre-nursing students. Students must complete the prerequisites in or- der to become eligible to apply for selective admission for entrance into the nursing program. Pending review of the selective admission criteria with ranking of scores and acceptance into the nursing pro- gram, the major will be changed to the AAS in Nursing/RN degree upon official notification of accep- tance into the clinical nursing program.

I. OVERVIEW OF THE PROGRAM

The Registered Nurse (RN) program at Raritan Valley Community College is a rigorous 68-70 academic credit program involving non-nursing and nursing academic courses. Students completing the program receive an Associate Degree in Applied Science in Nursing and qualify to take the RN- NCLEX RN exam for Registered Nurse Licensure.

Applicants should be aware that the program:  will require a substantial commitment of time and energy;  makes holding a job (part-time or full-time) extremely difficult;  necessitates significant changes in lifestyle and household responsibilities.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the volume of applications for Nursing Program, only applicants who live or work in Somerset or Hunterdon County are eligible for admission at this time.

II. APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO THE COLLEGE (PRE-CLINICAL)

STEP I: To become a student at Raritan Valley Community College, applicants must submit all of the following items to Enrollment Services:

Page 1 of 5 A. The application to the Associate Degree Nursing Program at RVCC is a two-step process. First, you must apply to RVCC with Pre-nursing (AS in Health Science) as your intended major – you then are considered a PRE- NURSING STUDENT. When you have completed all prerequisites, you may then apply to the clinical nursing program. B. RVCC Application fee C. All OFFICIAL transcripts from: a.1. Any prior college attended a.2. High School showing graduation or proof of high school equivalency (GED) D. Immunization record showing two doses of Measles, Mumps and Rubella and 3 doses of Hepatitis B according to State of NJ Dept. of Health requirements (for full time students)

*You cannot complete the next step until your application to the college is complete.

III. APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO NURSING COURSES (CLINICAL)

Applicants must have a complete RVCC application on file and meet each of the following requirements in order to be considered qualified for admission to clinical courses:

A. Complete college-credited laboratory science courses in BIOL-124 & BIOL-125, with a grade of “C” or better in each course. Each course must be four (4) college credits.

Nursing program policy states: “A student shall be dismissed from the Nursing Program if they fail two required science courses, two nursing courses, or one science course and one nursing course with a grade of D, F, W, or AU after the 10th day of class.” This means that any two (2) D, F, AU or W grades in BIOL-124, BIOL- 125 or BIOL-133 disqualifies an applicant.

B. Complete any developmental course required in reading and writing, including ESL (English as a Second Language) courses.

C. Complete mathematics through Elementary Algebra (MATH 020 at RVCC). Intermediate Algebra is recommended, but not required.

D. Demonstrate computer literacy by successful completion of CISY 102, 103, 105 or equivalent. Applicants may take the Technological Competency proficiency exam in the Testing Center to satisfy this requirement. This requirement must have been completed within seven (7) years prior to application, as per the Computer Science Department Policy. Older courses will not be accepted for transfer.

E. Maintain an overall GPA of 2.75 or higher at RVCC. Applicants with prior college experience only from a school other than RVCC must have an overall GPA of at least 2.75 from the last college attended. Those with a lower GPA may qualify by completing at least six credits at RVCC with an overall GPA of 2.75 or above.

F. Complete the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) by Assessment Technologies Institute (www.atitesting.com) at RVCC or submit ATI TEAS Version V results if taken elsewhere. Results must be from September 2013 or later and the ATI TEAS Version V test must contain all four scores of the test (English, Math, Reading & Science) for Fall 2014 admission. TEAS may be taken once every 4 months. Scores used to determine admission.

Page 2 of 5 G. Attend a Nursing Information Session to obtain an “Application to Clinical Nursing Courses” form.

When all of the above prerequisites and requirements are met, the applicant must submit the Application to Clinical, including acceptable proof of residency and a clear criminal history background check done through Adamsafeguard, to the Nursing Office, (H-220) via postal mail (118 Lamington Rd Branchburg, NJ 08876)

ALL students are required to complete criminal history background checks (CHBC) no later than 45- 60 days before applying to the clinical nursing program. This is done in order to be authorized to at- tend clinical site rotations to fulfill clinical course objectives. This is a requirement of the clinical agencies and the New Jersey Board of Nursing for RN licensure and is intended to protect patients in all practice setting. It is important to know that if you have a unfavorable criminal history, you will not be admitted to the nursing program. CHBC’s must be done through Adamsafeguard. The re- sults must be attached to the clinical application. In addition to the criminal background check, mandatory drug screening will also be required ONLY after the student is admitted to the clinical nurs- ing program. Students with positive drug screen results will not be permitted to be admitted or contin- ue and progress in the clinical nursing program The cost of the criminal history background check and mandatory drug screening is the responsibility of the individual student.

Clinical agencies mandate immunizations for all individuals engaged in patient care. A student may be exempt from any required immunization if they have a medical contraindication or religious exemp- tion. Failure to receive immunizations may prevent fulfillment of the nursing course objectives. The nursing department shall provide reasonable accommodations to those students whose medical condi- tions or religious beliefs prevent them from being immunized. However, failure to be immunized may prevent the student from meeting the nursing course objective, and therefore, jeopardizes the students’ successful completion of the course and nursing program. Complete immunization requirements for admitted clinical nursing students can be found at www.raritanval.edu/nursing

Early Admission applications for RVCC students must be submitted by February 1. Any RVCC student who completes prerequisite courses at RVCC in the Spring semester may apply for Late Admission by May 09 to be considered for the remaining seats. Any student who applied for Early Admission but did not get a seat will automatically be reconsidered for Late Admission. If an Application is received incomplete or before all of the requirements are completed, it will be sent back to the applicant.

IV. PROCESS FOR ADMISSION TO CLINICAL NURSING COURSES (NURS 101)

A. All applicants who have submitted an Application to Clinical Nursing Courses and are eligible (see section III) will be evaluated for admission. Applicants will be evaluated and ranked based on selective criteria including overall GPA, grades in Anatomy and Physiology I and II, and results from the ATI TEAS testing. If more than one student has the same ranking score, the student’s date of application to RVCC as a pre-nursing major will be used to determine placement on the list. Applicants will be notified of their admission status within 45 days of the deadline date.

B. Seats in NURS 101, Foundations of Nursing, will be offered to the highest ranking applicants All applicants who are offered a seat must fulfill the admission requirements (in section C, below) or they will forfeit the seat.

C. Admission Requirements Page 3 of 5 1. Health Maintenance Meeting- Any student who does not attend a mandatory health maintenance meeting, after being prompted to do so, will automatically forfeit their seat. Several meetings will be offered to provide incoming students with information concerning the requirements before beginning clinical courses, such as:  Professional Liability Insurance – the student must submit proof of malpractice insurance  Health Maintenance and Immunizations Form - the student must submit a satisfactory and complete Health Maintenance and Immunizations Form with documents, and will include urine drug screening, to the HSE Student Services Specialist by the deadline given at this mandatory meeting  American Heart Association BLS CPR certification

2. Pharmacology Calculation Placement Test – the student must complete the test before beginning NURS 101: Foundations of Nursing. Enrollment in a Pharmacology Calculation course during the SUMMER III session is required for students who do not pass with the required satisfactory score on the Pharmacology Calculation Placement test. All admitted clinical nursing students will be required to do a 3 hour Pharmacology remediation before clinical rotations start.

3. Prompt Registration – Registration forms and information will be sent via postal mail to admitted students after the health maintenance meeting. The student must register for FOUNDATIONS OF NURSING (NURS 101) in person during the specified registration period. Anyone who does not register by the deadline indicated in the registration mailing will forfeit their seat. Registration will be authorized only after meeting health and program requirements discussed at the health maintenance meeting.

4. Maintain 2.75 GPA and adhere to nursing policy regarding 2 failures (D, W, F, AU) in any required science courses. Any student whose GPA falls below 2.75 or who earns 2 unsatisfactory grades may be removed from the Admission List.

5. Attend the mandatory nursing program orientation, CAMP I CAN.

6. If a student is accepted to the nursing program, they will need to comply with all mandatory deadlines and requirements, including a mandatory Pharmacology Clinical Calculation test- ing period that will be given and/or disclosed to them within 21 days of the application dead- line. A failing score on the exam will mandatorily require a student to take a Pharmacology Clinical Calculations class. Students not adhering to mandatory deadlines/requirements jeop- ardize their eligibility status in the program and could be removed from the program by the HSE Chairperson.

D. Qualified students who are not offered a seat in NURS 101 at notification time will remain on the admission list for the current year and will be offered admission if seats become available, until the first day of Fall classes. If seats become available, students will be called in sequence. If a student does not respond to an offer of admission within two weeks, the student will be removed from the list and the next student will be called. Students may also be removed if their GPA falls below 2.75, or they are placed on academic alert, suspended or have any other college action taken against them while on the list.

Page 4 of 5 E. Any student who is not admitted to NURS 101 may reapply to be considered for the next admission year – the student must meet that years’ admission requirements. There are no deferrals or rollovers. Students may take steps to improve their ranking, such as taking courses retaking the ATI TEAS (with all 4 parts of test).

V. OTHER INFORMATION

A. OUT OF COUNTY APPLICANTS: Qualified applicants who live or work in Somerset and Hunterdon Counties have priority for admission to clinical at all times. Due to the high volume of nursing applications, only applicants who live or work in Somerset or Hunterdon County are eligible for admission at this time.

B. ADDRESS AND PHONE NUMBER OF RECORD: The College will use the postal mailing address and phone number of record listed on the student’s application. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that the Office of Enrollment Services receives a copy of the Change of Personal Information Form if any changes occur.

Revised : 7.18.16:NML

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