College of Wooster Pre-Health Program | Pre-Medicine

Nursing is an essential component of modern health care. The many different levels and sub-fields of nursing are described in more detail on the Exploring Health Careers page. Like other professional progams, nursing schools use undergraduate coursework, grade point average, and entrance exam scores as criteria for admission. Most students interested in nursing remain at Wooster for four years and enroll in a graduate entry nursing program that serves as a gateway for students with a bachelor's degree in any non-nursing field to enter at the advanced practice level. Most graduate entry programs involve an accelerated curriculum that leads to a CPN certificate, RN certification, followed by an MSN and/or DNP degree.

Wooster students may choose to pursue the accelerated 3-4 DNP Program with Case Western Reserve University described below.

COURSEWORK

As with medicine, the undergraduate record is more important than the undergraduate major. Most graduate entry nursing programs, however, do have course prerequisites that include:

one semester of microbiology with lab
one semester of introductory chemistry with lab
one semester of organic chemistry with lab (or sometimes biochemistry)
one semester of statistics
one semester of sociology or anthropology
one semester of psychology
one semester of English (FYS usually counts)
two semesters of Human Anatomy and Physiology with lab*
one semester of Human Growth and Development Across the Lifespan*

* The College of Wooster does not currently offer these two courses, so they must be taken off-campus. Some students enroll in summer courses while others take evening courses at Wayne College (affiliated with The University of Akron) in Orrville.

You should also be aware that some of the courses listed above have prerequisites or are only offered in the spring or fall. Microbiology (BIOL 335), for example, is a fall course and requires both BIOL 201 (Gateway to Molecular and Cellular Biology) and CHEM 112 (Introductory College Chemistry II) as prerequisites in addition to recommending CHEM 211 (Organic Chemistry I). Students interested in nursing are strongly encouraged to enroll in CHEM 111 (Introductory College Chemistry I) and BIOL 101 (Foundations of Biology) during their first semester at Wooster.

As with medical school, there is no universal set of requirements and some programs have additional requirements. It is therefore very important that you begin looking early at specific programs so that you can take their requirements into consideration as you plan your courses at Wooster. Frequent communication with your academic advisor, members of the Pre-Health Advising Committee, and Pre-Health Coordinator will be essential to make sure that you are on track with your courses.

GRADE POINT AVERAGE

Most graduate entry programs require a 3.0 grade point average in the sciences and/or overall. Again, it is important to investigate specific programs to get the most accurate and detailed information. The 3-4 DNP Program with Case Western Reserve University requires an overall GPA of 3.0 and a grade of C or higher in all prerequisite courses.

ENTRANCE EXAM SCORE

Most graduate entry programs will accept the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) for admissions. There is no score that guarantees admission, but a competitive score is always helpful. The 3-4 DNP Program with Case Western Reserve University requires minimum GRE scores of 500 Verbal Reasoning, 500 Quantitative Reasoning, and 4.0 Analytical Writing. Alternatively, some programs will accept the Miller Analogies Test (MAT) instead of the GRE. For the MAT, a minimum score of 400 is desirable.

THE 3-4 DNP PROGRAM WITH CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY

About the program
The College of Wooster has a dual degree agreement with the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University in which students spend three years at the College of Wooster followed by four years at Case Western Reserve University. As a graduate entry program, this opportunity leads to earning an advanced practice Master's of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree and then ultimately the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree. As with other dual degree programs, students with the "in absentia" priviledge will obtain their Bachelor of Arts degree from Wooster upon successful completion of the first year of nursing school. Students interested in pursuing the 3-4 option should apply to the program as early as possible, but by the end of the sophomore year at the latest.

The graduate entry program has three phases:

1) CPN: The first segment of the graduate program is a pre-licensure component, which is an accelerated 16-month program after which a Certificate of Professional Nursing is awarded that qualifies students to sit for the NCLEX-RN exam. Upon successful completion of the CPN phase, the student is prepared to practice as a novice, generalist Registered Nurse and move on to the MSN.

2) MSN: Upon successful completion of the MSN degree program, the student is prepared to apply for certification in an advanced specialty. Options include: Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Certified Nurse Midwife, Certified Nurse Anesthetist, nurse informaticist and nurse administrator. (Certain MSN specialties, such as Nurse Anesthetist and Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, require experience as an RN before being admitted into the MSN program)

3) DNP: Upon successful completion of the DNP degree, the student is prepared to develop as a leader in clinical practice or nursing.

Course Requirements:
As early as possible, it is highly recommended to make sure the courses you have taken or are planning to take will satisfy their requirements. Communicate frequently with the Graduate Entry Program representative from Case and get verification of course acceptance prior to applying.

English Composition: one course or integrated equivalent
Chemistry: one course in general or inorganic chemistry plus one course in organic chemistry or biochemistry.
Microbiology: one course with lab
Sociology or Anthropology: one course
Psychology: one course
Statistics: one course (either MATH 102 or PSYC 250)
* Human Anatomy and Physiology with labs: equivalent to six credits total
* Human Growth and Development Across the Lifespan: one course

How to Apply:

Before applying, students should have a good understanding of Advanced Practice Nursing and how it differs from practice as a Registered Nurse.
Students interested in the 3-4 DNP Program are strongly encouraged to contact the Chair of the Pre-Health Advising Committee or the Pre-Health Advising Coordinator as early as possible. Students should also contact the 3-4 DNP representative at Case early on to discuss course requirements and planning.
Students must apply in writing to the Dean of The College of Wooster to graduate “in absentia” by the end of their sophomore year. This permission, which is given in writing, is required to be able to apply directly to Case.
Students must complete the formal application for the DNP Program at Case and take the GRE or the Miller Analogies Test (MAT). A grade of C or better for requisite courses and a 3.0 overall GPA is required. For the GRE, the required scores are: Verbal-500, Quantitative-500, and either Analytical-500 OR Analytic Writing 4.0. For the MAT, you must receive a minimum score of 400.

Contact at Case Western Reserve University:
Dr. Deborah Lindell, 216-368-3740, deborah.lindell@case.edu

Students are of course free to apply to the Graduate Entry Program at the end of their junior year as they would any graduate program; the 3-4 option is just a special opportunity for students intent on accelerating their graduate education.