Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing - Admission Requirements

Admission Requirements

Applicants are considered for admission to CSUN when they meet both university and individual department eligibility requirements.

To be admitted to the program, applicants must possess the following *:

• An earned bachelor’s degree from an accredited U.S. institution or international equivalent with a GPA of 3.21 or higher or a master’s degree with a GPA of 3.0 or higher.
• All prerequisite course grades must be “C” or higher. Priority will be given to applicants who clearly demonstrate they have met all prerequisites.
  1. Courses taken at an Upper Division undergraduate-level, or those that combine prerequisite content, will be considered on a case-by-case basis as potentially meeting minimum requirements.
  2. All pre-requisite coursework must be reflected on transcripts by the application deadline, and no in-progress pre-requisite courses, or degrees, will be considered.
• A personal interview may be requested of any applicants to the Accelerated Bachelor of Science Nursing program.

* Please note: Application requirements are subject to change. Please continue to refer to this page for the most up-to-date information.

Applicants must submit a complete application by the posted final application deadline:

• An online application (see the Apply page), that includes:
  
  1. A well-written statement of purpose
  2. A resume
  3. Recent Volunteer Experience with Validating Documents (if applicable, not required for admission) - applicants with unpaid volunteer experience that included patient care in a clinical setting within 24 months prior to the application deadline will be asked to include details about: the location/institution name(s), amount of hours completed, and a brief description of the volunteering responsibilities/duties. Please note that CNA/EMT etc. school training/clinical hours are not considered volunteer hours.
     • You will also need to upload documentation to validate. Acceptable documentation can be in the form of:
       • Written letter verification from a supervisor or manager who oversaw volunteer/un-paid experience, on organization letterhead, detailing duties and hours
       • Timesheet/Log of hours - Please note that due to technical limitations, individual file sizes can be no larger than 2MB
  4. Clinical Certifications and/or Licenses (if applicable, not required for admission) - applicants in possession of appropriate clinical certifications and/or licenses (Examples: LVN, CNA, EMT, Clinical Care Extender Certificate, Phlebotomy, EKG/Monitor Tech, etc.) will be asked to list them and the dates they were completed in the online application.
     • You will also need to upload documentation to validate. Acceptable documentation can be in the form of:
       • PDF copy or scanned image of certificate or license
  5. ABSN Science Prerequisite Information – in the online application, applicants are asked to enter the Grade, Number of Units, Date Completed (Term and Year), Course Number, and Educational Institution where you completed the course, for each science prerequisite.
     • More information about the prerequisites can be found further down on this page, and on the ABSN Document Upload and Additional Applicant Guidance (see the Apply page, under STEP 1)
  6. Acknowledgement of Self-Disclosure of Scheduling Availability – All applicants to the CSUN ABSN program are required to thoroughly read and confirm their understanding of the responsibilities outlined in the Self-Disclosure of Scheduling Availability Agreement, before commencing their application. The link to the current Agreement is linked under STEP 1 on the Application Instructions webpage, and here: https://tsengcollege.csun.edu/sites/default/files/programs/ABSN_Agreement.pdf A question in the online application will ask you to acknowledge your understanding of the Self-Disclosure of Scheduling Availability Agreement.
• Official transcripts from all post-secondary schools attended, regardless of whether or not credits were earned, transferred, or applied to a degree. Applicants previously enrolled at CSUN do not need to submit CSUN transcripts.
  1. Applicants who have earned a bachelor's or master's degree from a college or university outside the U.S. (i.e. have a non U.S. degree) should carefully review the “Applicants with a degree from outside the United States” information below, and follow Step 2b of the Application Instructions for additional guidance to ensure a complete application.

Total Prerequisite Courses (19 units)

Any of the following courses or their equivalents that were completed as part of the first degree program do not need to be repeated. Course equivalencies can be checked at assist.org if taken at a public California community college, or at most California State Universities. If you cannot cannot find an appropriate articulation agreement from your campus, you may contact a counselor at your campus or the department at csunnursing@csun.edu. If emailing the department, you must include the full course name, course number and course description (usually found in the institution's catalog) for review.

Please carefully review the following - Science prerequisite courses:

Science Prerequisites (19 units)

All science prerequisites must have been completed (and all final grades posted on submitted transcripts) within seven (7) years of the application deadline. We will accept online prerequisite labs taken from 2020 to 2023 due to the COVID-19 crisis. The lecture and lab portion of each prerequisite must be taken concurrently to satisfy the prerequisite requirements for the CSUN Nursing program.

• BIOL 211/212: Human Anatomy and Lab (2/1)
• BIOL 215/L: Introductory Microbiology and Lab (2/2)
• BIOL 281/282: Human Physiology and Lab (3/1)
• CHEM 103/L: Introductory Chemistry I and Lab (3/1)
• MATH 140: Introductory Statistics (4) - This course can fall outside the seven (7) year application deadline requirement.

Applicants with a degree from outside the United States

To be admitted to the program, applicants must submit the following:

• Official transcripts for a bachelor’s degree. Degrees from outside the U.S. must be equivalent to a U.S. 4-year degree.*
• An international credential evaluation report that includes a course-by-course analysis indicating the type of degree received, the U.S. equivalency of the degree (if applicable), the graduation date and a cumulative grade point average from a member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES).
• Both complete transcripts/degree certification in original language and official English translation. If translated within the U.S., must be done by a member of the American Translators Association (ATA), a certified court interpreter or translator, or staff of a foreign consulate.
• One complete set (front and back) of legible photocopies of the above documentation (official transcript/degree certification, evaluation report, English translation). Note, if you are submitting sealed official documentation, the photocopy requirement is waived.

* If you prefer to submit your original international transcript/degree certification in person, email collexl@csun.edu to schedule an appointment.

English Proficiency Requirements
The English language tests and minimum scores listed in the table below are accepted by CSUN for the Accelerated Bachelor of Science.

Test Name and Website	Minimum Score Required for Graduate Students	Send Score Directly To CSUN
Cambridge C1 Advanced English (formerly CAE)	180	Email “Confirmation of Entry” page to intladm@csun.edu.
DET – Duolingo English Test	105	Online through your Duolingo Account. See Sending Your Results.
EIKEN CSE – Common Scale for English	2630 (1)	Contact EIKEN online; they will send the score directly to us.
GTEC CBT – Global Test of English Communication Computer-Based Test	1200	Have GTEC send a copy of your "Official Score Certificate" to CSUN.
IELTS - International English Language Test System	6.5	Have IELTS send a copy of your "Test Report Form" to CSUN.
iTEP Academic - International Test of English Proficiency	4.0	Have iTEP send your score to CSUN.
PTE Academic - Pearson’s Test of English	58	Online through your PTE Academic Account
TOEFL - Test of English as a Foreign Language	— Internet Based score: 80 — Paper-based score: 550 We do not accept TOEFL ITP.	Use CSUN School Code 4707.

Exception: If a graduate applicant has earned a bachelor's or master's degree from a regionally accredited institution in the U.S., the TOEFL or other English language proficiency exam is not required.

If a graduate applicant has earned a bachelor's or master's degree from a college or university outside the U.S. where English is the principal language of instruction, the TOEFL or other English language proficiency exam is not required. Please note:

• CSUN interprets "where English is the principal language of instruction" to mean that a school is located in a country where English is the daily medium of communication for the majority of residents, and that students receive academic instruction in English at all levels of education.
• Countries currently meeting the above requirement are: Australia, Belize, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, plus a few nations in the Commonwealth Caribbean (Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, and Trinidad and Tobago).

International students, please note:

Currently, students on F-1 visas are not authorized to participate in the A-BSN program.

No I-20s are available for the A-BSN program at this time.