RN to BSN

Online

Advance your nursing career at Bushnell University. Our RN to BSN program is designed for working adults who have graduated from an accredited nursing program and want to enrich their nursing education and make a difference in their nursing career, enabling nurses to immediately impact their workplace and positively affect the health of our community.

Credits 30* | Cost/Credit $495 | Completion 12-20 Months | Format Online | Entry Points Per Year 3

*Additional credits may be needed to meet general education and/or prerequisite requirements

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Financial Aid

Contact

JaiLeigh Wiren
Admissions Counselor, RN to BSN program

541-349-5284
jwiren@bushnell.edu

Janet Welch, MSN, RN
Program Director

541-954-7451
jlwelch@bushnell.edu

Why Choose Bushnell?

The School of Nursing embraces Bushnell’s mission to foster wisdom, faith, and service through excellent academic programs grounded in the arts and sciences that demonstrate compassion and respect toward all people served. Our nursing students demonstrate leadership and impact health outcomes through participation in a variety of clinical or project-based practice experiences throughout the community and in acute care settings.

Offered completely online, you’ll have the flexibility to complete your coursework from anywhere and at any time. All nursing courses in the RN to BSN program build upon current knowledge and prepare ethical nurse leaders and educators to be influential in evidence-based quality improvement within a variety of healthcare and educational communities.

Program Highlights

  • Three starts per year
  • 8-week courses
  • Earn your degree in as little as 12 months
  • Flexible, 100% online CCNE-accredited program
  • A supportive academic environment that puts students first
  • Program prepares students for graduate education
  • Project-based practice experiences completed in your local community

Quick Facts for the BSN Major

Prerequisites Active, unencumbered registered nursing license
Cost per Credit $495 per credit (financial aid available)
Total Tuition Cost for BSN Major $14,850
Additional Fees $120 per semester
Estimated Book Cost (new) $680
Delivery Method 100% online
Start Dates 3 entry points per year (August, January, & May)

Program Format

 Credit Hours

  • 30 Credits / 10 Courses

Program Length

  • Part-time enrollment (one course every 8 weeks): 5 semesters*
  • Full-time enrollment (two courses every 8 weeks): 3 semesters*

*Time to completion will vary by student depending on individual progress and credits transferred

Transfer Credits

  • Transfer up to 94 credits at no cost
  • Free, no-obligation transcript evaluation
  • No transfer credit expiration*
  • Free and low-cost test-out options available for select general education courses

Most nurses have completed the majority of the general education requirements as part of their AAS Nursing program, but it varies case by case. To identify any gaps, all applicants receive a free transcript evaluation. If general education courses are needed, students can take them online through Bushnell University (while enrolled in the BSN program) or through a community college. In some cases, test-out options are also available. Enrollment advisors assist students in determining the best options for their situation.

*Computer science courses must have been completed in the last 10 years to satisfy the computer science general education requirement.

Admissions Process

  • Apply for free
  • Request your official transcripts of all college-level coursework
  • Complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and have it sent to Bushnell University (003208) if using financial aid
  • Once we have your application, official transcripts, and proof of your RN license, your application materials will be given to the admissions committee for consideration
  • After being admitted to the program, you can enroll with the next start date that fits your schedule. Your application is valid for one year.

 

Admitted Students

Admitted students will be required to complete a criminal background check and urine drug screen that meet Oregon Health Authority (OHA) requirements.  OHA also requires all health professions students to comply with certain screening and vaccination requirements.  Admitted RN to BSN students must submit proof of completion of the requirements listed below:

  • American Heart Association basic life support certification
  • Immunizations (seasonal flu, hepatitis B and titer, varicella, measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, and full vaccination against COVID-19)
  • 2-step PPD test OR QuantiFERON-TB Gold for TB screening

Students who are unable to validate the above requirements or who have a criminal record might not be allowed into a healthcare facility for their practice experiences. It is not possible to meet the RN to BSN program objectives without having practice experience. Therefore, under certain circumstances, students who cannot meet the above requirements or who have a criminal or abuse history may be required to exit the program. Students who have been arrested or convicted of a crime or have other questions about these requirements are encouraged contact Karla Larson at kalarson@bushnell.edu as needed.

 

Questions?

JaiLeigh Wiren
Admission Counselor

541-349-5284
jwiren@bushnell.edu

Janet Welch, MSN, RN
Program Director

541-954-7451
jwelch@bushnell.edu

Program Objectives

  • Demonstrate critical thinking and ethical discernment in the provision of safe, quality, client-centered nursing care to individuals, families, and communities across the continuum of healthcare environments
  • Utilize leadership principles and knowledge to deliver, manage, and evaluate health care, advance safe, quality, evidence-based nursing practice, and improve health outcomes
  • Demonstrate an ethical and socially just view of nursing as a profession and ministry
  • Integrate knowledge from the liberal arts, humanities, and sciences including nursing science to promote and enhance human flourishing for patients, families, communities, and self
  • Synthesize nursing science and knowledge from other disciplines to make sound, evidence-based nursing judgments
  • Develop a professional identity as a nurse through actions reflecting integrity, standards of ethical, moral, and legal conduct, advocacy, and caring for all patients, families, and communities
  • Demonstrate a spirit of inquiry by acting as an evolving scholar who contributes to the science of nursing through identification of practice issues in need of study, appraisal, and integration of evidence, evaluation of outcomes, and sharing of evidence with the interprofessional team
  • Demonstrate ability to engage in appropriate, effective communication and collaboration with clients, families, and inter-professionally to provide safe, quality, patient-centered care
  • Utilize knowledge of the political process and healthcare policies, including financial and regulatory, to influence safety and quality in healthcare systems and nursing practice
  • Demonstrate a level of professionalism congruent with the values, behaviors, and practice standards of the discipline of nursing

RN to BSN program objectives are based on outcomes/competencies expected of graduates from a baccalaureate nursing program as established by the National League of Nursing (NLN, 2010) and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN, 2008) Essentials for Baccalaureate Educations for Professional Nursing Practice.

Cost of Attendance

Per Semester:

Housing & Food: $5,650
Books & Supplies: $35 per credit
Personal: $700
Transportation: $700
Tech Fee: $150

Courses

NURS 310 Foundations for Lifelong Learning in Nursing*

This introductory nursing course assists students navigate Bushnell University’s online learning, communication, and assessment systems and explore academic support services. Nursing as a ministry, Jesus as healer and behaviors implying the presence of professional values are explored.

NURS 320 Evidence-Based Practice and Health Care Policy in Nursing

This course examines the concept of evidence-based practice in nursing with an emphasis on substantiating nursing judgements in practice with evidence. The way health care policies influence nursing practice and health care systems are explored.

NURS 330 Leadership in Nursing Practice*

A study of leadership in nursing practice, including concepts of team work, communication, and decision making and their role in promoting high-quality, safe patient care within organizational and community arenas. Ways to lead with a different kind of authority in light of nursing as a profession and ministry will be explored.

NURS 340 Role of the Professional Nurse

This course provides an introduction to the identity, attributes, roles, values, and behaviors of the professional nurse. Nursing history and contemporary nursing issues impacting practice, rules and regulation defining and authorizing professional nursing practice, standards of conduct, and the concept of lifelong learning will be explored.

NURS 350 Ethics in Nursing*

In this course students will examine the practice of nursing as a ministry within the context of ethical obligations, including patient rights versus duty to deliver care. Students will develop in-depth knowledge of and reflect on core ethical issues of moral authority, patient autonomy, justice, and the sanctity of human life in light of a variety of ethical situations which traverse the lifespan and are encountered in nursing practice.

NURS 410 Population Health In Nursing

This course examines factors influencing the health of populations and communities with a focus on the role of the nurse to assess, implement, and evaluate culturally appropriate, community-based efforts aimed at promoting and maintaining health.

NURS 420 Health Care Operations and Information Management

This course examines concepts of healthcare operations and information management. The way patient care technologies, finance, and regulatory environments influence health care systems, nursing practice, quality, safety, and patient care outcomes will be explored.

NURS 430 Research in Nursing

This course assists students to develop a spirit of inquiry and to act as an evolving scholar. How evidence is developed, the basic elements of the research process including quantitative and qualitative processes, and the ethical conduct of research will be studied. Methods for locating, retrieving, communicating, and critiquing health and other relevant research literature and sources of evidence will be explored.

NURS 440 The Aging Population

This course incorporates knowledge of the sciences into the study of nursing care of the aging population. Several factors impacting physiological changes experienced by aging adults are examined. Ways to communicate and collaborate with patients, families, and interprofessionally as well as approaches to End of Life and other care options are explored.

NURS 499 Nursing Capstone

Theories, concepts, and knowledge learned in prior BSN coursework are integrated into a Project Based Experiential Learning Experience (PBELE) carried out within the context of an organization or community agency. The PBELE is based on an identified health problem or issue; involves interaction with other providers and/or individuals, families, groups, communities, or populations, and; allows for the transition of student competencies to the baccalaureate level of proficiency.

*These courses satisfy Bushnell’s general education requirement in Bible and Christian Ministry Studies.

 

Clinical Placement Requirements

Admitted students will be required to complete a criminal background check and urine drug screen that meet Oregon Health Authority (OHA) requirements. OHA also requires all health professions students to comply with certain screening and vaccination requirements. Admitted RN to BSN students must submit proof of completion of the requirements listed below:

  • American Heart Association basic life support certification
  • Immunizations (seasonal flu, hepatitis B and titer, varicella, measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, and full vaccination against COVID-19)
  • 2-step PPD test OR QuantiFERON-TB Gold for TB screening

Students who are unable to validate the above requirements or who have a criminal record might not be allowed into a healthcare facility for their practice experiences. It is not possible to meet the RN to BSN program objectives without having practice experience. Therefore, under certain circumstances, students who cannot meet the above requirements or who have a criminal or abuse history may be required to exit the program.

 

Transfer Guides for Oregon RN Programs

Complete all your Bushnell-required general education courses while enrolled in your AAS Nursing program.

Save time and money by following one of Bushnell University’s RN to BSN transfer guides. This will put you on track to meet all of your general education requirements while completing your associate degree.

Contact an enrollment advisor at online@bushnell.edu or 541-684-7201 for more information.

State Authorization

Bushnell University, like other institutions of higher education, must obtain authorization from individual states and territories to enroll students residing outside of Oregon into the RN to BSN program. Most states are authorized or exempt from authorization because the RN to BSN program is 100% online. If you reside outside Oregon, check with your admissions counselor to confirm that we have authorization from your state.

Accreditation

Bushnell University is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). The RN to BSN program at Bushnell University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (www.ccneaccreditation.org).

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Hear From Our Students

Student
"I chose Bushnell University to pursue my BSN for several reasons. First, they offered a fantastic online program that worked well with my schedule as a mom and full-time employee. It was especially helpful as the world was in the throes of a pandemic. It allowed me to fulfill all my commitments while expanding my education. Second, it was affordable. Bushnell really offers a stellar program at a competitive tuition rate. Lastly, Bushnell is faith-based yet they are welcoming to all.
As a person who is a Christian, it was wonderful to be with others with similar faith values but who was also open-minded and loving to those whose values may differ, just as Jesus would do. Completing my BSN degree has allowed me to secure direct patient care positions that I was not even considered for with my ADN."
-Becky Chmela '21
Student
"While I expected that attending a smaller university, it would be easier to reach faculty for questions, I was unprepared for just how quickly they responded and the level of attention each instructor provided. The overall feeling at the campus and certainly in the nursing program, is that every student deserves the best education possible. Coming from my years as a manager and as a nurse who also started with an associate degree, nurses who have a BSN are more quickly able to see the ‘whole’ picture. They not only are able to provide exceptional patient care, but they also can understand the nuances of illness and disease progression, research the most up to date treatment options, lead quality initiatives, and partner easily with providers, executive leaders, and local/national health organizations. By completing my BSN, I have a deeper knowledge and awareness of not only nursing but health care overall."
-Margie Tessin-Mason '21

Meet the Faculty

Janet Welch, RN, MSN Program Director

“You will make a meaningful difference to others: Using a Christian worldview, the Bushnell RN to BSN program provides a flexible online environment, prepares you to translate evidence into practice as an ethical nurse leader and immediately impact the quality and safety of health care in your community.

Faculty and staff will be partners in your learning journey: Bushnell faculty and staff are 100% committed partners who support your learning and are invested in your success.”