Who can apply

Application requiremts for first time college students

Matriculation requirements for first time college students

Application requirements for transfer students

Matriculation requirements for transfer students

Technical Standards and Immunization Requirements

Who can apply

First-Time College Student: CNUCHS defines a First-Time College Student (FTCS) applicant as one who is either currently enrolled in, or has graduated from, a high school and has not registered in a regular session at any collegiate level institution since high school graduation. An applicant who has completed college courses while in high school or in a summer session immediately following high school graduation is still considered a First-Time College Student applicant.

Transfer Students: CNUCHS defines a Transfer Student (TS) applicant as a student who has been a registered student in a regular term at a college, university or in college-level extension classes since graduating from high school. A summer session attended immediately following high school graduation is excluded in this definition. TS applicants may not disregard any of their college records or apply for admission as a FTCS applicant. Students with 25 or more college credits are considered TS applicants.

If you already earned a Bachelor's degree, you are not eligible for the CNUCHS BSN at this time. Please stay in touch with CNUCHS for additional program updates for Second Bachelors prospective applicants. 

Application Requirements for First Time College Students

  • Be a US citizen or legal permanent resident
  • First Time College Student (FTCS) applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.7 from high school
  • FTCS applicants must have completed the following classes with a grade of B- or better:
    • 4 years of English
    • 3 years of mathematics at the level of Algebra I or higher
    • 2 years of natural science with lab (minimum)
    • 2 years of social sciences
  • A minimum composite score of 65% must be achieved on the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) within the last 3 years.
  • All applicants must submit a minimum of 2 (max 3) recommendation requests. See our NursingCAS application for instructions and procedures for your recommendation requests.
  • All applicants must submit a curriculum vitae (CV) or résumé through NursingCAS document portal.
  • Complete the NursingCAS general application and the supplemental CNU BSN Program Application
  • Pay all NursingCAS fees

All CNUCHS BSN admitted students will need to:

Submit final official transcripts to Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu. Final official high school transcripts must include date of graduation. Electronic transcripts are preferred. If electronic submission is unavailable, please send the final official transcripts to:

California Northstate UNiversity
Undergraduate College of Health Science
2910 Prospect Park Dr. Rancho Cordova, CA 95670

Must meet all Technical Standards, Immunization Requirements, and Health Insurance Requirements for the BSN as described in the school catalog.

Pass a criminal background check prior to enrollment. CNUCHS Student Affairs will contact you with information on how to initiate the process. A clear background check is also required for continued enrollment.

For more information about the CNUCHS BSN program, please see our General Catalog.

All CNUCHS BSN admitted students will need to:

  • Submit final official transcripts to Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu. Final official high school transcripts must include date of graduation. Electronic transcripts are preferred. If electronic submission is unavailable, please send the final official transcripts to:

      California Northstate University
      Undergraduate College of Health Sciences
      2910 Prospect Park Dr.
      Rancho Cordova, CA 95670

  • Must meet all Technical Standards, Immunization Requirements, and Health Insurance Requirements for the BSN as described in the school catalog
  • pass a criminal background check prior to enrollment. CNUCHS Student Affairs will contact you with information on how to initiate the process. A clear background check is a lso required for continued enrollment.

Application Requirements for Transfer Students

  • Be a US citizen or legal permanent resident
  • Transfer Student (TS) applicants must have earned cumulative GPA of 2.7 from college or better.
  • TS applicants must have completed, or will complete, a minimum of 25 college semester units (or 37.5 college quarter units) by the time of transfer. Additionally, a minimum grade of B is required in all natural and behavioral science courses completed within the past five years to be eligible for transfer.
  • A minimum composite score of 65% must be achieved on the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) within the last 3 years.
  • All applicants must submit a minimum of 2 (max 3) recommendation requests. See our NursingCAS application for instructions and procedures for your recommendation requests.
  • All applicants must submit a curriculum vitae (CV) or résumé through NursingCAS document portal.
  • Complete the NursingCAS general application and the supplemental CNU BSN Program Application
  • Pay all NursingCAS fees
  • Military healthcare experience and coursework may qualify for credit after evaluation if certain criteria are met. For more information, please reach out to our Admissions Office (Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu or 916-686-7813).
  • BSN applicants who have LPN/LVN healthcare experience and coursework may be eligible for transfer credit. If certain criteria are met, eligibility will be determined following an evaluation process which may include challenge examinations. For more information, please reach out to our Admissions Office (Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu or 916-686-7813).
  • CNUCHS provides BSN applicants with a qualified LPN/LVN license an opportunity for the LPN/LVN 30-unit Non-Degree Option. Intention for the 30-unit, non-degree option must be submitted at the time of application. For more information, please reach out to our Admissions Office (Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu or 916-686-7813). Acceptance is limited to seat availability.

Admission Requirements for Transfer Students

All CNUCHS BSN admitted students will need to:

  • Any outstanding Final official transcripts that were not submitted through NursingCAS must be sent to Admissions.CHS@cnsu.edu. Electronic transcripts are preferred. If electronic submission is unavailable, please send the final official transcripts to:
    • California Northstate University
      Undergraduate College of Health Sciences
      2910 Prospect Park Dr.
      Rancho Cordova, CA 95670

  • Must meet all Technical Standards, Immunization Requirements, and Health Insurance Requirements for the BSN as described in the school catalog.
  • Pass a criminal background check prior to enrollment. CNUCHS Student Affairs will contact you with information on how to initiate the process. A clear background check is also required for continued enrollment.
  • For more information about the CNUCHS BSN program, please see our General Catalog.

Technical Standards

Technical Standards for Admission and Progression

The Bachelor of Science Nursing degree adheres to these regulations and has the following technical standards for admission and progression:

CNUCHS values inclusivity. We celebrate the diversity of embodiments and acknowledge the adaptations that we all implement to navigate our world in different ways. To that end, we encourage potential applicants and students who identify as having a disability to see the following technical standards as examples of how to navigate the physicality of nursing.

In the process of learning to ensure the best possible patient care, BSN students will engage in a range of diverse and complex practices specific to the various constituencies and settings that nurses serve. While students may aim to practice in a particular subset of nursing, they will learn and demonstrate competence across the full curriculum. The examples offered do not encompass the entirety of what students may be required to perform. To uphold the ethical commitments of nursing, and CNU’s commitment to patient care, students will need to the following capabilities or their equivalent:

Behavioral and Emotional/Social Standards

Applicants and BSN students must be able to engage with patients in stressful situations in complex, heightened environments. They will need to:

  • utilize appropriate and competent judgement in clinical decision-making.
  • demonstrate behavior appropriate to their specific situations.
  • cope with stress in healthy ways within their support systems.
  • establish responsive, professional, and effective relationships with patients even and especially under stressful conditions.
  • respect differences in ethnicity, social and economic positions, cultural practices, religious and political preferences, gender and sexuality, and physical and cognitive abilities.

Interpersonal Communication Standards

Applicants and BSN students must be able to interact with patients, colleagues and other professionals in the care team, and navigate those various relationships. This includes clear articulation of their own ideas, feelings, and boundaries, and engaged understanding of others’ ideas, feelings, and boundaries in the context of patient-centered care. They will need to be able to:

  • maintain healthy and mature relationships with patients, other students, faculty, staff, and all other professionals in a team.
  • communicate effectively through speaking and writing, using appropriate technologies as necessary.
  • convey and exchange information clearly and efficiently (example: taking patient health history; explanation of treatment to patients; communicating between healthcare professionals).
  • receive critique and feedback respectfully and integrate it appropriately into their practice.

Observation Standards

Applicants and BSN students must be able to assess and evaluate patient responses and perform care interventions safely and accurately using a variety of instruments. Using reasonable adaptations as necessary, students will need the following acuity:

  • Sufficient use of visual, auditory, and olfactory senses in combination to perform their duties (examples: perform a physical examination; note patient distress; attend to visual or auditory alerts from instruments).
  • Ability to perform physical inspections using instruments as necessary (examples: palpation, auscultation, percussion).

Motor/Physical Standards

Applicants and BSN students must be able to manipulate a variety of instruments, aid patients in movement, and navigate busy environments. They will need to:

  • navigate clinical settings and environments.
  • continue to provide care in physically strenuous situations (examples: aiding in an operating room; assisting in labor and delivery; moving patients’ bodies).  
  • achieve competence in gross and fine-motor abilities to provide therapeutic nursing interventions according to safety standards (examples: placing a catheter; drawing blood; moving a patient on/to a bed; administering medication). 
  • For more information about the CNUCHS BSN Technical Standards, please see our General Catalog
  • Immunization Requirements

    CNUCHS Immunization Requirements

    REQUIRED IMMUNIZATIONS

    DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS

    Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR)

    Documentation of ONE of the following:

    • 2 Vaccination dates
    • Positive titer showing immunity (if the titer is negative or equivocal, student must repeat the series AND provide documentation of the 2nd titer.

    Varicella (Chickenpox)

    Documentation of ONE of the following:

    • 2 Vaccination dates
    • Positive titer showing immunity (if the titer is negative or equivocal, student must repeat the series AND provide documentation of the 2nd titer.

    Tetanus, Diphtheria, and Pertussis (T-DAP)

    Proof of booster from within the past 10 years.

    Upon receiving the booster, set expiration date 10 years from the date of your T-DAP.

    Hepatitis B

    Proof of all three vaccinations AND Positive Titer showing immunity.

    Tuberculosis

    Proof of a 2-step TB Skin Test or negative TB QuantiFERON Gold Test (blood test).

    Meningococcal

    Proof of Meningococcal vaccination.

    COVID-19

    • If Pfizer, 2 vaccines dates
    • If Moderna, 2 vaccines dates
    • OR, CNU Waiver for Vaccine Refusal.

    For any questions regarding the immunization requirements, please contact CHS Student Affairs (chs.studentaffairs@cnsu.edu)