Bachelor of Science in Nursing

• Junior Standing – 60 Semester or 90 Quarter Credits Completed
• Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • This includes all college level coursework ever attempted. Official transcripts from every college and/or university you have attended will be required during the application process.
• Completion of prerequisite courses
  • Please note that you must have an average minimum prerequisite GPA of a 3.0 GPA
  • Further, every individual prerequisite course must be at least a C grade/2.0 GPA
  • Prerequisite course information can be found on our BSN Transfer Guide.
• Minimum TEAS exam score of 70%
  • Versions 7 of the TEAS are accepted
  • TEAS must have been taken within a year of application submission
  • For more detailed information, and study suggestions, please refer to our TEAS page for details.
• Work and/or volunteer experience within the last 3 years.
  • Up to 500 total hours will be counted in your overall applicant score, but there is no minimum hour amount to apply.
  • Healthcare-related hours will be weighed more heavily than non-healthcare-related hours.
  • Reference contact information will be asked of you during the application step to verify those hours.
• Successful Completion of NursingCAS application.
  • Additional details are outlined below in Steps to Apply.

Before Starting NursingCAS Application

• Review the Application Requirements above to ensure you meet the requirements
• Recommended – consult with an academic advisor at the primary campus where you plan to apply to confirm you are set.
• Review the application support documentation below and/or our tutorial videos.

Navigate to NursingCAS to begin process

• Select the ‘Apply Now!’ button at the bottom of this section.
• Select ‘Create Account’ or sign in with an already established NursingCAS account.
  • If you are setting up a new account be sure to check your junk mail and spam folder for the initial account confirmation to ensure that NursingCAS emails are safely going to your inbox. 
• You have two ways that you can find WSU applications that are currently available.
  • Once you have either created or signed in to a NursingCAS account you can use this link to view available programs.; OR
  • Select “Add a Program.” Search for “Washington State University.” Select “BSN Fall 2023.” Depending on when you apply, there might be additional applications open for WSU, so it’s important you select the “BSN Fall 2023” so your application goes to the right place.
• Once you’ve found the program(s) you’re looking for, click the blue ‘+’ to add them to your application.
  • If you wish to remove a program, you’ll do so from this list. Click the green checkmark next to the program and it will ask if you’d like to delete that program from your application.
• Note: In NursingCAS, all WSU campuses are combined as Spokane/Tri-Cities/Yakima, WA. After you begin the application, you will be able to select up to two campuses you want to apply for. The campus selection is a required question so you will have to answer it. You only need to choose one campus, but you are allowed to indicate a second campus if you like. Once you submit your application, your campus decision(s) cannot be changed.
  • To help determine which campus(es) to pick, please check out our campus overview
• Select the My Application tab to begin filling out your application

Personal Information

• Fill out all 7 sections. Make sure you click “save and continue” at the bottom of each section.
• Ensure that your contact info is accurate – your email is what we use to contact you for issues and info.

Academic History

• Fill out all 4 sections
• For Colleges Attended, click “add a college” and input every college you have ever attended. Complete the questions asked for each college you added.
  • PLEASE NOTE: You must input every institution of higher education in which you have been enrolled AND provide a transcript for each. NursingCAS will reject your application if coursework from an unreported institution shows on a submitted transcript, or if a transcript for an attended institution is not submitted. Note that this includes coursework taken as part of a study abroad program. 
• You will need to order official transcripts for every college/university you have attended. We recommend ordering an electronic transcript if possible. If you school does not offer electronic transcripts through one of the 3 companies that NursingCAS uses, please follow the instructions for “Option 2: Order a Mailed Paper Transcript.”
• For Transcript Entry, input every course exactly as it appears on that institution’s transcript. NursingCAS will reject an application if the transcript entry does not match the transcript.
• We recommend pulling up an unofficial transcript so you can copy over the classes accurately
  • Note: If you use the Professional Transcript Entry (PTE) function, please allow a large amount of time for CAS to finish that process. If you are late on a deadline or miss something due to PTE the responsibility is still with you. After you receive notification from NursingCAS that the PTE is complete, you must log back into your application and approve the coursework entry before your application will be submitted.
  • Note: do your best with the course subject drop-down. It will not cover every option possible, and as long as it is close enough we will know what you are going for. It is the other components that are blank fields (grades/credits) that are the most important to us.
• Once you have completed the transcript entry, choose to review and finalize your transcripts.
• Ensure that you accurately indicate repeated classes. Type out exactly what is on your transcript.
• For the BSN program, we require a TEAS test score of 70 or higher. In the Academic History section, select Standardized Tests. Scroll down to TEAS. Click the pencil to add in your TEAS score (scores are good for 12-months). Be aware that you will also need to upload your TEAS Individual Performance Profile in the Documents section located in Program Materials.

Supporting Information

• Fill out all 3 sections. We don’t require you to include any “achievements” or “licensure and certifications,” but you can if you want to or if you are applying to other schools that require it. If you are not including any achievements or licensure & certifications, click on each tab and select “I am not adding any…” to complete the section.
• To add experiences, select Experiences. Select Add an Experience. From the Experience Type, select either Employment, Patient/Healthcare Experience, or Community Enrichment (select all that apply).
  • Note: Employment = any job NOT related to healthcare (ex. customer service, retail, restaurant job, etc.)
  • Patient/Healthcare experience = any work/volunteer experience that provides patient contact (ex. CNA/long term care volunteer/hospital volunteer)
  • Community Enrichment = any volunteer work not related to healthcare (ex. Volunteering at animal rescue center, Big Brothers/Big Sisters-type mentoring programs)
• Fill out the Organization, Supervisor, Experience Dates, and Experience Details for EACH experience you selected. Save and continue. If you are adding an additional experience, select Add an Experience. If you are done, you can move on to the next section.

Program Materials

• Review the home tab first, then fill out the remaining 3 tabs (Questions, Documents, Prerequisites)
• For Questions, thoroughly read through each and answer appropriately – if you answer yes to a question, and later it turns out you should have answered no, you risk ineligibility.
• For Documents, upload the Individual Performance Profile of your TEAS test (under Test Score Report)
• For Prerequisites, select the assign course button to match your courses to each specific prerequisite course. Use the prerequisite descriptions to make sure you are including all that you need to include.
  • Note: Use your best matching possible from what you have taken, but we will correct it after you submit your application. If you are unsure about whether or not a class will count as a prerequisite, reach out to the campus immediately as the course may not meet our prerequisite requirement.

Submitting Your Application

• Navigate to “Submit Application” on the top of the page and pay application fee. Note that the deadline time is 11:59pm EST of that date
• Wait – we will send updates via email following our application timeline.
• Remember – Email us early on if you anticipate any issues. Triple-check the checklist as well, particularly the red sections that cause the most ineligibilities.

Tips for submitting your application

• Select one campus (Spokane, Tri-Cities, or Yakima) you would like to attend. The campus you indicate on your application is where you will be expected to attend in-person classes. If you select one campus and intend to change later, you may lose your place in the program as we cannot ensure space for you at another campus location. Including your current home address will help us to verify you applied at the correct campus.
• Include an email address you check regularly. Most contact during the admissions process will be done via email. Failure to respond may jeopardize your chances for admission.
• Make sure your official transcripts are received by NursingCAS by the deadline. All deadlines are listed on the BSN application & admission timeline. Please note that a copy of a transcript from every college and/or university you have attended will be required.
• The College of Nursing does not review letters of recommendation or personal essays. Please do not send them to NursingCAS or to the College of Nursing.

After you submit your application

• DO NOT apply to WSU at this time. If you are admitted to the nursing program, you will receive instructions to apply to the University.
• Apply for financial aid. Deadline to apply is January 31 for the following academic year. WSU’s FAFSA code is 003800.
• You will be notified approximately 4-5 months after application deadline if you have been selected for an interview.
  Refer to our BSN application & admission timeline for more information.
• If you do not complete all requirements in your last quarter or semester prior to admission with a 2.0 grade or higher, or if you fail a prerequisite course, your application will not be considered.
• If you are invited for a personal interview, you must participate to complete the application process.

What does it cost to attend the program?
Visit the WSU Student Financial Services website for information on tuition and expenses.

How much does it cost to apply?
Nursing CAS itself will cost $55. Applicants who are invited to the final step of an interview will be charged approximately $15 in Kira Talent fees. Finally, folks who are new to WSU (such as incoming transfer students) will need to pay a $70 WSU application fee.

What support can I get with financial aid?
Please see our Financial Aid page for information on scholarships.

Junior Year – Semester I

CRN	Title	Credits
306	Professional Development I: Contexts of Care	3
311	Pathophysiology and Pharmacology in Nursing	3
315	Nursing Practice: Health and Illness	4
316	Introduction to Nursing Practice in Health and Illness: Theory	2
317	Health Assessment	3
	Total	15

Junior Year – Semester II

CRN	Title	Credits
308	Professional Development II: Evidence Based Practice	3
322	Health Equity in the Context of Care	2
324	Nursing Concepts in Acute and Chronic Illness in the Adult	5
325	Nursing Practice in Acute and Chronic Illness in Adult	5
	Total	15

Senior Year – Semester III

CRN	Title	Credits
408	Professional Development III: Leadership and Management	3
412	Family and Community as a Context of Care	2
414	Child and Family Health: Theory	3
415	Children and Families as the Focus of Nursing Care	2
416	Childbearing Health of the Family	3
417	Nursing Care of Childbearing Families	2
	Total	15

Senior Year – Semester IV

CRN	Title	Credits
409	Professional Development IV: Transition to Practice	2
424	Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing Concepts	3
425	Nursing Practice: Psychiatric/Mental Health	2
426	Community Health Nursing Theory	2
427	Community Health Nursing Practice	2
430	Senior Practicum	4S
	Total	15

BSN Total Required Credits – 60

1. Formulate nursing practice decisions using the foundation of a liberal education and evolving knowledge from nursing science, the biological and behavioral sciences, and the humanities.
2. Apply leadership concepts, skills, and decision-making in the provision of high-quality nursing care, healthcare team coordination, and the oversight and accountability for safe care delivery in a variety of settings.
3. Integrate reliable evidence from multiple credible sources of knowledge including basic and health sciences to inform practice and make clinical judgments.
4. Demonstrate skills in using patient care technologies, information systems, and communication devices that support safety and quality nursing practice.
5. Demonstrate basic understanding of the role of nurses in advocating for patients, communities and populations in discussions related to healthcare policy, finance, and regulations.
6. Use inter-and intra-professional communication and collaborative skills to advocate for safe, evidence-based, high-quality patient-centered care.
7. Demonstrate basic understanding of the role of health promotion, and disease/injury prevention in improving population health across the lifespan.
8. Demonstrate the values central to nursing practice including altruism, autonomy, human dignity, integrity, advocacy, social justice and life-long learning.
9. Provide safe, competent, compassionate, ethical, culturally sensitive, and evidence-based nursing care to individuals, families, groups, communities and populations through promotion, maintenance and restoration of health; prevention of illness, and physical, emotional, and spiritual support throughout the life span including end of life, and across the continuum of health care environments.

(Updated 5/2019)

General Application & Admissions Questions

1. How are applications evaluated?
   1. Applications are evaluated using the Holistic Admissions Process. This means we take into account attributes and experiences that are not normally reviewed as part of the standard admissions process. For more information, please view the Washington Center for Nursing’s video on Holistic Admissions.
2. Should I include a letter of recommendation with my application?
   1. WSU College of Nursing currently does not review or accept letters of recommendation or essay responses.
3. If I meet all the admission criteria, will I be admitted?
   1. Since the number of applications to the College of Nursing frequently exceeds the number that can be admitted, there is no assurance that everyone meeting the admission criteria will be selected. Nursing prerequisites and overall grade point averages are weighted heavily in our admission decisions. This information is factored into a weighted formula and prospective students are invited to complete an in-person interview. All interviews are conducted remotely, via Kira Talent, with 2 faculty members of the College of Nursing. Admission is determined by the combined GPA and interview score. For transfer students, the average cumulative and nursing prerequisite GPA is 3.8.
4. What is the University Writing Portfolio?
   1. The University Writing Portfolio is a mid-career diagnostic to determine if students’ writing abilities have advanced in ways that can handle the writing demands of upper-division courses and courses in their major. Specific submission guidelines and forms are online and available for download as pdfs. They include step-by-step instructions on how to complete the writing portfolio. Visit WSU’s University Writing Portfolio page for more information.
5. Do all WSU students have to complete the writing portfolio?
   1. Successful completion of the University Writing Portfolio during the junior year is a requirement for graduation at Washington State University. The writing portfolio may not be required if you have already earned a bachelor’s degree from another institution.

NursingCAS FAQs – General

1. How will I hear about decisions or issues with my application?
   1. All communication happens through the NursingCAS webadmit tool. Make sure you create an account with an email you check regularly, and check spam and junk emails regularly as well. Verify your information is accurate in the Personal Information section as well. Both WSU and NursingCAS can/will contact you through the email you provided when applying.
2. What happens if I never get an email?
   1. Luckily for you, we also send you an email when you are fully reviewed! If you get an email saying that you have been reviewed, that means there were no errors in your application and you may rest easy until decisions go out.
3. What happens if I get an email about issues I have?
   1. If the issues with your application are minimal and not duplicitous, we will reach out via email and give approximately 2 business days to update your application with fixed information. Again, for that reason, regularly check for emails from NursingCAS itself and in all folders.
      
      Replying to that email will put you in contact with your reviewer, so if you do not understand what you need to fix, or have fixed what you needed to, please let your reviewer know. This will continue the review process of your application. There is often something called an Academic Update needed, which can take time. Letting us know you’ve seen what you need to do and are working on it is good practice.
4. I was asked a question on how COVID impacted my life, why was this asked?
   1. That was a question included by NursingCAS itself. We will not use the answer in our admissions process, so you may opt out of answering that if you so wish.
5. Why am I not able to submit my application?
   1. There could be a few issues. First, double check that everything is filled out (all 4 quadrant circles are green) to show you’ve completed everything. If that is the case and you still are not sure, contact your campus advisor who can look over it with you.
6. How do I reach out to NursingCAS?
   1. If you look at your name on the application, there will be a “?” icon next to it. If you click that you will be connected with the CAS helpdesk as well as find their contact email.

NursingCAS FAQs – Academic History & Transcripts

1. What if I took classes in high school, like Dual Enrollment classes?
   1. Those are technically college credits and will be included in your history as well. Make sure you list that institution and order transcripts from them as well.
2. What if I did AP credit instead?
   1. You will also need to enter these so we know. It can be tricky as you combine them into one sum of units. For example, if you took AP U.S. History and AP English Literature, and you got 3 units of work for history and 4 units of work for English, you would list it as: “AP Credits” for 7 units total for your first term for the school that granted you the credit. For the grade you may put CR to indicate it is for credit.
3. Do I really need to order official transcripts from everywhere I’ve been?
   1. Yes. We need CAS to verify your coursework before we can take a look as reviewers, and CAS only verifies once they have everything. We recommend ordering your transcripts as soon as you can to mitigate issues.
4. How do I order my transcripts then?
   1. For 99% of institutions, you will be able to order them through the application on NursingCAS. If your college is not listed within CAS, please contact us.
5. Where do my transcripts go to? What if there is a mail delay?
   1. You want to make sure your transcripts go to NursingCAS, and NOT to WSU. We are unable to pass them to CAS if you send them to us. Please make sure that transcripts are ordered at minimum 6 weeks before the start of the term as well.
      
      Additionally, we understand that life does happen, and tech issues may rarely occur. We recommend that you save ordering receipts for this reason. Further, you are able to submit your completed CAS application with pending transcripts if this does happen.
      
      Lastly, it can take a few days for CAS to process your transcripts. It is normal to get confirmation they were sent, then have a few days before CAS notes them as received on your account. If it has been more than a week between sending and receiving, please reach out, otherwise the timing is normal.
6. Do I need high school transcripts too?
   1. Luckily no! CAS will ask you where you attended, but you do not need to provide proof or transcripts for that section.
7. When I put in my classes, what do I pick for the status?
   1. You can do your best guess here. If you were taking it early on, it’s okay to put first year/freshman there. Same thing if it’s been about a year you can put sophomore. We do not look in detail at this section, so you do not need to worry about mistakes here.
8. I took a random class, what do I put for the subject area?
   1. Subject is another part that doesn’t matter as much to us. Use your best guess as to what makes sense, and when in doubt you can pick the “Special Topics” option without issue.

What type of experience counts toward this requirement?
The goal of the experience is to have a better understanding of the role of professional nurses in healthcare. All volunteer/paid experiences should be in the last 3 years. 

Sample of approved experiences:

• Long-term care agencies
• Formal hospital volunteer programs
• Camps for disabled/chronically ill children (e.g., diabetes)
• Special Olympics involvement
• Homeless shelters with a healthcare clinic
• Free health clinics
• Volunteer with school nurse in health-related activities
• Certified Nursing Assistant
• Emergency Nurse Technician
• Outreach programs or health-related missions
• Volunteer at First Aid stations

If you have other experiences that you think could count, please contact your nursing advisor.

How should I track my volunteer or work experience and how do I submit this information to the college?
We will ask you this as part of your Nursing CAS application. You will not need a reference letter, but you will need to provide reference contact information. We will then use that as part of a random audit process.

What is the TEAS test and when should I take it?
The Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) test is a proctored online multiple choice exam that measures entry-level skills and abilities of applicants to nursing programs. The TEAS measures science, math, language, and reading knowledge and skills. Prospective students must score a minimum of 70% on the TEAS. Visit our TEAS Test page for more information.

What computer skills and technology are required?

• Microsoft Office – Word and PowerPoint
• Internet and email
• Canvas software (WSU will provide instruction)
• High-speed internet

Will I need to obtain a College of Nursing photo ID?

Yes, you will need to purchase a photo ID, and the cost will be $10. For further details, contact the advisor at your campus:

• Spokane Students – contact Jared Cramer at jared.k.cramer@wsu.edu
• Tri-Cities & Walla Walla Students – contact Heather Kriss at heather.kriss@wsu.edu
• Yakima Students – contact Mary Gonzalez at gonzalez@wsu.edu
• Vancouver Students – contact Jenny Schrock at schrock@wsu.edu

Where do I get my books?
Order your books from WSU’s Official Campus Bookstore.

• Select Spokane campus for Spokane and Yakima courses.
• Select Tri-Cities campus for Tri-Cities and Walla Walla courses.
• Select Vancouver campus for Vancouver courses.
• Select WSU online for non-nursing electives available online.

Will I need to wear a uniform for my clinical courses?
School-branded scrubs are required in simulation, practice, and clinical coursework.