2005-2006 Undergraduate Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Nursing
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Endicott College offers a Bachelor of Science with a major in Nursing for students without prior educational background in nursing; the College also offers advanced placement programs for RNs interested in earning a Bachelor degree.
Accreditation
The Nursing Program is accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC), 61 Broadway – 33rd Floor, New York, NY 10006; telephone: 800-669-1656, ext. 153.
National Student Nurses Association
Nursing students have an opportunity to be a member of the National Student Nurses Association at Endicott College. Membership in the professional organization exposes the student to the nursing profession through conferences, journals and service activities.
Bachelor of Science in Nursing
The objectives of the baccalaureate program are to educate nurses who:
- Think critically about the health needs and problems of individuals, families and communities throughout the life cycle.
- Use effective communication strategies in professional relationships.
- Synthesize knowledge from the physical, behavioral, social sciences and humanities into the practice of nursing.
- Assess their own nursing practice in relation to professional practice standards, ethical considerations and legal implications.
- Perform therapeutic nursing interventions to promote, maintain, and restore health for diverse clients in a variety of settings, across the health/illness continuum.
- Develop a commitment to life-long learning, professional development, and active involvement in professional nursing organizations.
The faculty is concerned with assisting the student toward growth and advancement in the dynamic and rapidly changing field of health care. The baccalaureate program provides theoretical components based on the physical, behavioral and biological sciences accompanied by practical clinical application. A strong liberal arts component enhances the student’s ability to understand and influence the individual’s work environment. Clinical nursing courses include extensive clinical experience in such areas as geriatric, medical-surgical, maternity, pediatric, psychiatric, and community health nursing.
The Endicott Nursing program prepares students to take the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) which graduates must pass to obtain the initial license to practice nursing as a registered nurse (RN). Persons with a court record or past conviction should check with the Board of Registration in Nursing in the state in which they plan to work to determine if their court record will be a barrier to eligibility for licensure as a registered nurse. Once licensed, graduates are then able to be employed in a variety of settings such as community health agencies, schools, hospitals, and long term care facilities.
Endicott College fosters the educational mobility of nurses. The nursing program prepares students for graduate education and provides opportunities for nurses to obtain a Bachelor degree in nursing. The College has articulation agreements with NLNAC-accredited Associate degree programs to facilitate the transition of graduates from those schools to Endicott College.
Clinical Education Experiences
Clinical nursing courses allow students to apply what they are learning in class in a clinical setting on a weekly basis throughout the semester. In addition, students have opportunities to work independently with a nurse preceptor during their internship experiences. Clinical settings vary widely depending on the course objectives. Clinical sites might include schools, home care agencies, clinics, public health departments, adult day care programs, and wellness centers as well as hospitals, rehabilitation centers and long term care facilities.
Examples of Clinical Education Experiences
While learning about pediatric nursing, students care for children in the hospital and in classrooms for children with multiple handicaps. Students may also have the opportunity to spend a day at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and to attend a program at the Shriner’s Burn Institute.
The majority of the clinical experiences related to maternity nursing are in the hospital where students provide nursing care to childbearing families during labor, birth, and after birth. In addition, students may work with nurses in an obstetrician’s office or may accompany nurses who make home visits to families.
During clinical experiences in an acute care hospital students care for a variety of patients with medical and/or surgical problems. Students are responsible for assessing their patient, planning and providing care including such activities as giving medications, changing dressings, and evaluating the care they give. They have the opportunity to observe surgery. In other acute care settings, students have experiences in the Intensive Care Unit and on telemetry units using technology to assist with patient care.
While learning about psychosocial nursing students care for clients in hospital-based mental health settings where they can explore the range of services available including: acute care, emergency psychiatric services, substance abuse services, and day treatment-outpatient programs.
Community health clinical experiences are provided in a variety of community and public health settings.
Selected Clinical Affiliations
To ensure strong clinical placements, Endicott has formed affiliations with Lahey Clinic Hospital (Burlington), Beverly, North Shore Children’s, Bayridge, Brigham and Women’s, Massachusetts General, Melrose-Wakefield, Lynn Union, Salem, and Boston Children’s Hospitals; North Shore Medical Center; Shaughnessy-Kaplan Rehabilitation Center; Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston; Seacoast Nursing and Retirement Center; Kindred Hospital; Peabody, Beverly, Salem and Lawrence Public Schools; the North Shore Education Consortium; VNA Care Network; North Shore Community Health Center; Hospice of the North Shore; and Tufts NEMC.
Requirements for the Nursing Program
A. Applicants desiring admission into the Endicott College Nursing program must meet the regular admission requirements as outlined in the Catalog, a combined SAT score of at least 1050, and the following criteria:
The minimum science requirement for admission is one year of high school chemistry with a lab and one year of high school biology or anatomy and physiology with a lab, or equivalent higher-level laboratory science courses.
The minimum math requirement for admission is two years of high school algebra and one year of high school geometry, or equivalent higher-level math courses.
- RN applicants must meet the requirements outlined in the section of the Catalog entitled “RN Admission Criteria.”
- Transfer Credit
A student who seeks to transfer from another school must have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or better.
Transfer credit for science courses is awarded only if the course was completed within seven (7) years of matriculation at Endicott.
To request transfer credit for a nursing course taken at another institution, the applicant must present a course syllabus for each nursing course and a transcript from the previous program for evaluation by the Nursing Faculty Committee. The applicant may be required to take examination(s) to assess previous learning.
Please note:
A maximum of 85 credits may be transferred to Endicott College. One-hundred-twenty-eight (128) credits are required to earn a Bachelor of Science with a major in Nursing of which a minimum of 43 credits must be completed at Endicott. Twenty-four (24) of the last 30 credits must be taken at Endicott to receive a degree. Students’ cumulative grade point averages are determined only by courses taken at Endicott.
B. Current CPR Certification, Immunization, and TB Clearance.
American Heart Association CPR for the Healthcare Provider (Level C) is required of all students prior to beginning each clinical course. Students are required to be certified in infant, child, and one-person and two-person adult CPR. Immunization and TB clearance is required. Proof of two measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccinations, completion of the Hepatitis B vaccination series, documentation of a varicella (chicken pox) antibody titer or two immunizations with varivax, a tetanus/diptheria booster within ten years, and proof of tuberculosis non-infectivity must be documented and on file in the College Health Service.
C. CORI Check and Drug/Alcohol Screening
Some clinical agencies require students and faculty to have a Criminal Offenders Records Information (CORI) check and/or agree to be subject to drug/alcohol screening prior to participation in a clinical education experience at their agency.
D. Essentials Skills
In order to register for classes, and before you can be officially enrolled in the Nursing program, you must be capable of performing essential functions while in the Nursing program at Endicott. See the Nursing Department Student Manual for details.
E. Transportation to Clinical Sites
Students are responsible for their own transportation to clinical experiences.
F. Full-time Status
All students, except RNs, must be enrolled as full-time students.
Note: Students who may be qualified for part-time enrollment will be reviewed on an individual basis. It is mandatory that the Nursing courses required for each semester all be taken simultaneously within that semester.
G. Relationship of Credits to Class Hours
One credit of class is equivalent to one 50-minute class per week.
One credit of laboratory is equivalent to two or three, 50-minute laboratory sessions per week, depending on the course.
One credit of clinical is equivalent to three, 60-minute sessions of clinical experience per week.
H. Promotion and Graduation
Students must achieve a “C” or better in all nursing courses and the sciences to remain in the Nursing major. To obtain a “C” in a nursing course requires an average of 75 or better. Students must also have a 2.5 GPA each semester in order to progress in the program and be recommended for graduation from the Nursing program. Nursing students may repeat one science course (once) and one nursing course (once), and remain in the nursing major. The student may not enroll in other Nursing courses until earning a “C” or better in the repeated course. At selected points in the program students must pass a comprehensive examination in order to continue in the major. Students must also pass a computerized, comprehensive exit exam in order to be recommended for graduation.
RN Admission Criteria
Registered nurses desiring admission into the Endicott College Bachelor degree program must meet the following criteria:
- Graduation, with a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or better, from an NLNAC accredited Associate degree or diploma nursing program within five years of matriculation at Endicott College, and
- Current RN licensure in Massachusetts.
Applicants who completed their basic nursing program more than five years ago or who did not graduate from an NLNAC accredited program must successfully complete proficiency exams within five years of matriculation at Endicott.
Proficiency examinations must be completed prior to enrollment in nursing courses. Applicants may complete either the ACT/PEP Examinations: Adult Nursing; Maternal/Child Health in Nursing, Baccalaureate; and Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing with a standard score of 45 or better on each exam OR the NLN Nursing Acceleration Challenge Exams (ACE) II RN–BSN: Care of the Adult Client; Care of the Client During Childbearing and Care of the Child; Care of the Client with a Mental Disorder with a decision score of 75 or better on each exam.
Applicants who have two years (full-time equivalent) clinical experience within the last five years may request a waiver for the related portion of the proficiency exam.
Registered Nurses only may receive credit through:
NLN Exam Credits In lieu of Min. Score
Anatomy & 8 SCN 201, 202 60
Physiology (A&P I & II)
Microbiology 4 SCN 207 60
(Microbiology)
Pharmacology in 3 NU 307 60
Clinical Nursing (Pharmacology)
Diet Therapy 3 PE 210 60
and Nutrition Nutrition
Institutional Min.
Challenge Exam Credit In lieu of Score
Pathophysiology 3 SCN 335
(Pathophysiology) 75
Note: Enrollment of RNs in the Bachelor program is on a space-available basis.
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