Mar 19, 2024  
2011-2012 College Catalog 
    
2011-2012 College Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Practical Nursing Certificate


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The Practical Nursing program prepares graduates to sit for the NCLEX-PN licensure exam. A combination of classroom theory, lab, and supervised clinical experiences are offered in a full time program. The nursing courses must be taken in sequential order. Admission to Practical Nursing is a competitive process. The space available at clinical sites and student-teacher ratios required by the Alabama Board of Nursing limit the number of applicants accepted. Twelve months or three consecutive semesters, are required to complete the program with admission occurring in the fall and spring semesters. Selections for each class are made by the Practical Nursing Admissions Committee. The goal of Shelton State Community College is to graduate well-prepared nurses who are strong performers both clinically and in the classroom. To that end, Practical Nursing students should plan to spend 16 hours per week in clinical experience and three or more hours of study time for each hour spent in the classroom. Although clinical hours will be planned as conveniently as possible, there may be some 3-11 non-traditional work hours. Students are discouraged from working while attending the PN program.

The Practical Nursing Program is approved by the Alabama Board of Nursing (ABN), RSA Plaza, Suite 50, 770 Washington Avenue, P.O. Box 303900, Montgomery, AL 36130-3900, telephone 334.242.4060 or 800.656.5318. Visit their Web site at www.ABN.state.al.us.

Note: Nursing Program information, policies and curriculum are subject to change due to statewide standardization of nursing programs.

Minimum Admission Standards for the Practical Nursing Track include:

  1. Unconditional admission to the College.
  2. Reseipt of completed application packet for PN program by June 1st for Fall admission and October 1st for Spring admission.
  3. Minimum of 2.50 GPA on last 24 hours of undergraduate or graduate credit (official college and high school transcripts or GED must be on file in the Nursing Admissions Office).
  4. Minimum of 2.50 cumulative high school GPA for students without prior college coursework (official college and high school transcript or GED must be on file in the Nursing Admissions Office). 
  5. Eligible to enroll in:
    1. ENG 101 - English Composition I  as determined by college placement
    2. MTH 116 - Mathematical Applications  or MTH 100 - Intermediate College Algebra  or higher math as determined by college placement
    3. BIO 201 - Human Anatomy and Physiology I  during the first term of nursing courses.  (BIO 103  is a prerequisite to BIO 201 .
  6. Good standing with the College
  7. Meet the essential functions or technical standards required for nursing
  8. An official Test of Essential Skills V (TEASV) score taken prior to application and taken within the last three years.

Admission to the Practical Nursing program is competitive, and the number of students is limited by the number of faculty and clinical facilities available. Meeting minimum requirements does not guarantee acceptance into the program. 

Information for Admission

After meeting all minimum requirements, applicants are rank-ordered using a point system based on calculation of points for students meeting minimal PN-Track Admission standards.

  1. Official TEASV score, the higher the score the greater the points received for the selection process; (maximum points 150).
  2. Points for selected college courses (i.e., ENG 101 , MTH 116 ) or selected high school courses (i.e. Algebra II or higher level math, highest level biology) are awarded based on grade received in the course. A grade of A is assigned more points than a grade of C; and
  3. Additional Points
 

Additional points (maximum 11)

  Points Criteria  
  2 Completed 18 hours at Shelton State Community College  
  3 Completed Medical Profession Program in High School
Completed or enrolled in Emergency Medical Technician Program (EMT)
Completed or enrolled in Nursing Assistant Program OR
Volunteer/Work in health care field (six months or more)
 
  6 Completed all required academic courses for Practical Nursing (PN)
Track (BIO 201 , BIO 202 , ENG 101 , and MTH 100  or MTH 116 )
 

A total of 170 points is possible with these selection criteria.

Practical Nursing Curriculum


First Semester


Course Total Credit Theory/
lecture*
Hours
Lab
Hours
Clinical
Hours
Total
Contact
Hours
MTH 116 - Mathematical Applications  3 3 0 0 3
*** BIO 201 - Human Anatomy and Physiology I  4 3 2 0 5
NUR 102 - Fundamentals of Nursing  6 3 6 3 12
NUR 103 - Health Assessment  1 0 3 0 3
NUR 104 - Introduction to Pharmacology  1 0 3 0 3
Semester Total
15 9 14 3 26

Second Semester


Course Total Credit Theory/
lecture*
Hours
Lab
Hours
Clinical
Hours
Total
Contact
Hours
ENG 101 - English Composition I  3 3 0 0 3
*** BIO 202 - Human Anatomy and Physiology II  4 3 2 0 5
NUR 105 - Adult Nursing  8 5 3 6 14
NUR 106 - Maternal and Child Nursing  5 4 0 3 7
Semester Total
20 15 5 9 29

Third Semester


Course Total Credit Theory/
lecture*
Hours
Lab
Hours
Clinical
Hours
Total
Contact
Hours
NUR 107 - Adult/Child Nursing   8 5 0 9 14
*** NUR 108 - Psychosocial Nursing  3 2 0 3 5
NUR 109 - Role Transition for the Practical Nurse  3 2 3 0 5
Semester Total
14 9 3 12 24

Total Credit Hours 49 to 53 Hours


* Refer to Clock-Hour to Credit-Hour Ratio guide

Practical Nursing Certificate


Area I - Written Composition: 3 Semester Hours


Area II - Humanities and Fine Arts 0 Semester Hours


Area III - Natural Science or Mathematics: 11 Semester Hours


Area IV - History, Social, and Behavior Sciences 0 Semester Hours


Total Hours Required for Certificate: 49 to 53


 ** BIO 103  is a prerequisite to BIO 201 .

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