Nursing (A.D.) Associate of Science

The program is approved by the Minnesota Board of Nursing and is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, Inc., 3390 Peachtree Road NE, Suite 1400, Atlanta, GA 30326 (www.acenursing.org)

Program Overview:

The associate degree nurse is prepared to practice nursing in situations involving direct patient care, most frequently in the hospital or long-term care facility. Graduates are prepared to function as defined in Minnesota statutes by (a) providing a nursing assessment of the community; (b) providing nursing care supportive to or restorative of life functions such as skilled ministration of nursing care, supervising and teaching nursing personnel, health teaching and counseling, case finding and referral to other health resources; and (c) evaluating these actions. After successful completion of this program, which includes classes at RCTC and care of patients in the Mayo Foundation Hospitals in addition to area nursing homes and selected community agencies, graduates are eligible to apply to take the National Council Licensure Examination -Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN).

Program Outcomes:

Upon completion of the Associate Degree Nursing program at RCTC, students will achieve the following outcomes:

• Practice within the ethical and legal framework of the nursing profession. (Professionalism)
• Identify individual learning goals for personal and professional development within a changing healthcare environment. (Professionalism)
• Integrate evidence-based knowledge, clinical reasoning, and the nursing process to formulate safe nursing judgments when providing quality care. (Critical Thinking)
• Demonstrate an attitude of positive regard, respect for diversity, empathy, and integrity when providing relationship centered care. (Caring)
• Collaborate with the patient, family, and health care team utilizing evidence-based health information/informatics to achieve quality outcomes. (Collaboration)
• Perform nursing interventions safely for individuals and families in a variety of settings. (Nursing Interventions)

Additional Information:

The Nursing Program is a four-semester course sequence, which begins both Fall and Spring Semester. Biology, Chemistry, English, Psychology, Sociology, and Philosophy (Humanities) courses may be taken prior to admission into the Nursing Program. Grade of C or better is required of all general education and nursing course requirements. All general education requirements may be taken through the Post-Secondary Enrollment Option Program (PSEOP).

Upon successful completion of the program, students are eligible to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination – Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN) and enter the profession of nursing as defined by Minnesota statutes (148.171 Subd. 15, Practice of Professional Nursing).

RCTC class hours are 50 minutes in length, 1 credit is a minimum of 16 hours of classroom contact. The College has an expectation that students spend two hours of preparatory work for every one hour in the classroom. Nursing clinical assignments are calculated on a ratio of 1:3. Three hours are spent in clinical work for every one credit. Science course labs are assigned two hours for one credit.

Notice of Minnesota Background Check Requirement Minnesota Statute 245C requires that students who have contact with individuals in licensed institutions complete an annual background study with the Minnesota Department of Human Services. Individuals who do not pass the background check will not be allowed to participate in clinical activities. A list of disqualifying offenses is available at https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=245C.15. Students in the program will also be required to complete a National Criminal background Study. Information about completing the background study will be available from program faculty.

NURSING A.D. AS

MINNESOTA TRANSFER CURRICULUM (MnTC)/GENERAL REQUIREMENTS (30 CREDITS)

GOAL 1: COMMUNICATION (4 CREDITS)

• ENGL 1117 – Reading and Writing Critically I (4 cr)

GOAL 3: NATURAL SCIENCES (16 CREDITS)

• BIOL 1217 – Anatomy and Physiology I (4 cr)
• BIOL 1218 – Anatomy and Physiology II (4 cr)
• BIOL 2021 – General Microbiology (4 cr)
• CHEM 1117 – General, Organic and Biological Chemistry I (4 cr)

GOAL 5: HISTORY AND THE SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES (7 CREDITS)

• PSYC 2618 – General Psychology (4 cr)
• SOC 1614 – Introduction to Sociology (3 cr)

GOAL 6: HUMANITIES AND THE FINE ARTS (3 CREDITS)

• PHIL 1125 – Ethics (3 cr) OR PHIL 1135 – Bioethics (3 cr) Recommended

PROGRAM CORE REQUIREMENTS (34 CREDITS)

• NURS 1117 – Fundamentals of Nursing (6 cr)
• NURS 1118 – Adult Nursing I (6 cr)
• NURS 2217 – Adult Nursing II (6 cr)
• NURS 2207 – Maternal Newborn Nursing (3 cr)
• NURS 2208 – Mental Health Nursing (3 cr)
• NURS 2209 – Pediatric Nursing (3 cr)
• NURS 2218 – Advanced Concepts in Nursing (3 cr)
• NURS 2219 – Leadership and Management in Nursing (4 cr)

RECOMMENDED COURSE SEQUENCES

FULL-TIME

• Semester 1 (18 CREDITS): BIOL 1217, CHEM 1117, ENGL 1117, NURS 1117
• Semester 2 (18 CREDITS): BIOL 1218, BIOL 2021, NURS 1118, PSYC 2618
• Semester 3 (15 CREDITS): NURS 2207, NURS 2208, NURS 2217, SOC 1614
• Semester 4 (13 CREDITS): NURS 2209, NURS 2218, NURS 2219, PHIL 1125 OR PHIL 1135

Course descriptions can be found at: RCTC course descriptions