Accelerated BSN Admission
Eligibility Requirements
The following requirements must be met to be eligible to apply:
- Must hold a Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution. All prospective second Baccalaureate students must be admissible to SF State in accordance with existing criteria as stated in the Graduate Admissions Requirements section of the University Bulletin.
- Residency
Must be a California resident or be eligible for in-state tuition. - Minimum Grade Point Average
Prerequisite GPA must be 3.0 or higher at the time of School of Nursing supplemental application. - Score 78 or higher on the ATI TEAS (Test of Essential Academic Skills) within three attempts.Online remote proctored test during pandemic is acceptable.
- Prerequisite Coursework
Must complete all prerequisite courses below from an accredited College or University by the time of application.
Course Title | Description | SF State Course Number |
| Human Anatomy with Lab * | Human Anatomy w/Lab; or Part 1 of a combined Anatomy & Physiology series. | BIOL 220 (4 semester units) |
| Human Physiology with Lab * | Human Physiology w/Lab; or Part 2 of a combined Anatomy & Physiology course series. | BIOL 212/ 213 (4 semester units) |
| Survey of Chemistry with Lab * | General, inorganic, organic, or integrated (any combination of general, organic, or biochemistry) chemistry courses are acceptable | CHEM 101/ 102 (4 semester units) |
| General Microbiology with Lab * | A Microbiology and corresponding laboratory course | BIOL 210/ 211 (4 semester units) |
| Written Communication *** | Freshman or Sophomore Composition course; Area A2 at CA community colleges. | (Please refer to SF State Bulletin) |
Oral Communication | A course in public speaking, interpersonal communication. Includes skill development in listening, speech preparation, and oral presentation; Area A1 at CA community colleges. | (Please refer to SF State Bulletin) |
| Critical Thinking *** | A course in logic, argumentation, or debate. This includes Advanced Composition courses which include writing reasoned discourse and providing evaluation of arguments. Area A3 at CA community colleges; ENG 3, Writing II, WR3RC or equivalent at many UCs. | (Please refer to SF State Bulletin) |
| Statistics | Statistics. Business Stats or Psych Stats are also acceptable. | Math 124 (3 semester units) |
* Science courses must be taken for a letter grade of C or better within the last seven years. Prerequisite GPA will count these four science courses along with statistics.
*** Students who hold a Bachelor degree from a regionally accredited institution will be considered to have these requirements fulfilled. Prerequisite GPA will not count these courses but they are still required for admission.
Please consult Assist to determine comparable or articulated coursework taken at California community colleges or CSUs.
Supplemental Criteria
These documents are optional, but highly recommended. Please note that volunteer experience will get points only if it's more than 120 hours. In addition, Letter of verification needs to be on letterhead from organization(s):
- Veteran or active duty military status
- Letter of verification for health related work or volunteer experiences. Please use this health related work letter template or volunteer experience template.
- Letter of verification for Service to Underserved Community or volunteer experiences. Please use this service to underserved community template or underserved community volunteer experience template.
- Letter of verification for multi-linguistic fluency within health-related or service to underserved community experiences.
Courses required for RN licensure in California
While not required for admission, prospective students should be aware that the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN) requires students to have completed a minimum of 16 semester units comprising natural sciences, behavioral, and social sciences. To complement the anatomy, physiology, and microbiology prerequisites, students should plan to complete a General Psychology or Developmental Psychology course prior to taking NURS 328 Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing Theory and Practicum and any additional behavioral or social science course, as needed to fulfill the BRN's requirement.
Note:These courses may also satisfy GE requirements.
Pre-Licensure Course Credit By Examination
Applicants for credit by examination will be held to all existing BSN program requirements, including admission requirements, prerequisite courses, supporting courses, courses in the major, and graduation requirements. Information on the awarding of course credit for previous education or other acquired knowledge, including military education and experience can be found on Nursing Student Handbook.