Last Updated: October 1, 2026
Program Overview
Cal State San Marcos offers a five-semester, in-person ABSN with fall and spring cohorts based in San Marcos and a summer cohort based in Temecula.
CSUSM’s Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing is designed for students with a non-nursing bachelor’s degree who have not completed LVN or RN coursework. The full-time program includes summer study and 67 semester units of nursing and required program support courses.
Students progress with a cohort through classroom instruction, skills laboratories and clinical rotations. Regardless of their cohort’s home location, they should expect to attend classes or labs at both San Marcos and Temecula.
Accreditation
CSUSM’s baccalaureate nursing program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, and its prelicensure nursing options are approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing. Graduates are prepared to take the NCLEX-RN.
Admissions
Minimum Academics
- A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution. Applicants may apply while the degree is in progress if all other minimum requirements are met and the degree is documented before the program starts.
- 2.5 GPA in the last 60 semester units or 90 quarter units.
- 2.75 GPA in the pre-nursing core.
- TEAS Version 7 composite score of at least 71%. CSUSM permits multiple attempts and considers the highest score.
- All pre-nursing core courses completed before applying, with grades of C or better; C− is not accepted.
Selection uses a points system based on the last-60-unit GPA, pre-nursing core GPA and TEAS score. Meeting the minimums does not guarantee admission; work experience, volunteer hours and recommendation letters do not add selection points.
Pre-Nursing Core
The core is separate from the 67-unit ABSN curriculum:
- Anatomy and physiology I and II with laboratories, or separate anatomy and physiology courses with laboratories.
- Microbiology with laboratory.
- Chemistry with laboratory.
- Statistics.
- Oral communication, written communication and critical thinking.
CSUSM accepts qualifying online prerequisites, including laboratory courses, from regionally accredited institutions. Prerequisites do not expire. The university reviews equivalencies during application review; ASSIST and its transfer-equivalency resources can help applicants assess their coursework beforehand.
Applications and Priority Deadlines
Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis. The current ABSN program page lists these priority deadlines:
- Summer 2027 entry: November 4, 2026.
- Fall 2027 entry: February 3, 2027.
Submit the Cal State Apply application, official transcripts from every college attended, applicable AP scores and the required TEAS score documentation. Incomplete applications are not reviewed. Recommendation letters are neither required nor considered.
The admissions guide explains document submission and the cohort-offer process. An evaluated, eligible application remains in admission consideration for one calendar year; applicants must reapply after that period if they still wish to be considered.
Clinical Clearance
Admitted students must meet clinical onboarding requirements, including health insurance, immunization documentation, CPR and required background and drug screening. Proof of health insurance is due by the date communicated at orientation, rather than the application deadline.
After accepting an offer, students generally have about two weeks to order the background check and complete the drug screen. Some clinical sites also require Live Scan clearance; failure to clear site requirements can prevent placement and progression.
Curriculum
The 67-unit curriculum includes 61 nursing units and six required support units in bioethics and medical anthropology. These are the same 67 units used in the tuition calculation; prerequisite courses and any outstanding transfer-dependent requirements are separate.
Students begin with nursing fundamentals, assessment, professional practice and research. Adult health, mental health, childbearing and pediatric study lead into complex care, leadership, community nursing and a final transition-to-practice experience.
The tables group the program’s required courses by subject. Students follow their assigned cohort schedule, which may differ from the representative semester sequence on the university website.
Required Courses and Credits
Foundations, assessment and evidence
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NURS 300 — Fundamentals of Nursing Communication and Skills | 4 | Nursing process, basic skills, communication, cultural care and legal and ethical responsibilities. |
NURS 301 — Practicum: Fundamentals of Nursing | 2 | Simulation and long-term-care practice in clinical skills, medication administration and communication. |
NURS 304 — Introduction to Professionalism in Nursing Practice | 2 | RN roles, scope, teamwork, safety, ethics, conflict management and care of diverse populations. |
NURS 314 — Health Assessment, Teaching, and Health Promotion | 3 | Health histories, physical examinations, documentation and patient education across the lifespan. |
NURS 315 — Practicum: Health Assessment and Teaching | 2 | Practice assessment in the skills laboratory and develop education plans in long-term care. |
NURS 352 — Nursing Research | 3 | Read, analyze and critique research for use in clinical practice. |
Adult health and mental health
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NURS 316A — Pathophysiology and Pharmacology I | 2 | Disease processes and medications for endocrine, skin, sensory, musculoskeletal, gastrointestinal and chronic cardiopulmonary conditions. |
NURS 322 — Nursing of Adults in the Acute Care Setting I | 4 | Nursing assessment and interventions for adult and older-adult system disorders in acute care. |
NURS 323 — Practicum: Nursing of Adults in the Acute Care Setting I | 3 | Supervised adult care using the nursing process and Orem’s Self-Care model. |
NURS 360 — Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing | 2 | Therapeutic communication, psychiatric care, treatment approaches and mental-health promotion. |
NURS 361 — Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing Laboratory | 2 | Apply therapeutic interventions across the mental-health and illness continuum. |
NURS 316B — Pathophysiology and Pharmacology II | 2 | Acute cardiopulmonary, hematologic, neurologic, renal and oncology conditions and their drug therapies. |
NURS 324 — Nursing of Adults in the Acute Care Setting II | 4 | Complex adult illness, trauma, critical care and multisystem failure. |
NURS 325 — Practicum: Nursing of Adults in the Acute Care Setting II | 3 | Practice nursing care with high-acuity adults in acute and critical-care settings. |
Children and families
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NURS 330 — Nursing Care of the Childbearing Family | 2 | Normal and high-risk childbearing, prevention and family health promotion. |
NURS 331 — Nursing Care of the Childbearing Family Laboratory | 2 | Direct care and teaching for childbearing patients and families in clinical settings. |
NURS 332 — Nursing Care of Children | 2 | Family-centered pediatric care, growth and development, health promotion and acute illness. |
NURS 333 — Nursing Care of Children Laboratory | 2 | Apply pediatric nursing in acute and ambulatory settings from infancy through adolescence. |
NURS 480 — Family Nursing: Theory and Practice | 2 | Family assessment, cultural diversity, health patterns and nursing interventions. |
Leadership, community health and transition to practice
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NURS 450 — Nursing Leadership and Professional Issues | 2 | Organizational theory, management, change and contemporary professional issues. |
NURS 451 — Nursing Leadership and Management Laboratory | 1 | Apply leadership and frontline management skills in healthcare settings. |
NURS 440 — Community Health Nursing | 4 | Population health, equity, social determinants, prevention and chronic or supportive care. |
NURS 445 — Practicum: Community-Oriented Nursing and Case Management | 3 | Coordinate care for vulnerable populations, support self-management and reduce avoidable hospitalization. |
NURS 490 — Transition to Nursing Practice Seminar | 1 | Review program content and clinical judgment through cases and standardized NCLEX preparation. |
NURS 491 — Transition to Nursing Practice | 2 | Work with a clinical preceptor to strengthen professional identity and practical nursing skills. |
Required program support courses: included in the 67 units
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
PHIL 345 — Bioethics and Medical Ethics | 3 | Apply ethical theory to healthcare, research, reproductive technologies and biotechnology. |
ANTH 301 — Culture and Medicine: Healers and Healing Practices | 3 | Compare cultural explanations of illness, healing practices and the role of healers. |
Clinical Experience and Graduation Requirements
Theory courses are paired with laboratory or clinical experiences in adult medical-surgical, psychiatric, pediatric, maternal-child and community nursing. NURS 491 provides a supervised clinical preceptorship, while NURS 490 separately reviews clinical judgment and NCLEX content.
PHIL 345 and ANTH 301 must be taken in residence at CSUSM and are scheduled for each cohort. Social-science and psychology-based behavioral-science requirements for the Board of Registered Nursing must be fulfilled by the end of the third semester; prior coursework may already satisfy them.
Clinical placements are primarily in San Diego County and sometimes southwestern Riverside County. Reliable personal transportation is required, and clinical schedules may include evenings, nights or weekends. The School of Nursing’s expectations explain the scheduling and clinical obligations.
Tuition and Costs
CSUSM publishes tuition of $710 per unit, producing $47,570 for 67 units. This is the tuition-only figure shown in Quick Facts. The university cautions that published rates are based on prior academic years and may change; the figure is a current published estimate, not a guaranteed cohort price.
Mandatory university fees are additional. The Extended Learning schedule lists the following campus-based charges, excluding opt-in services:
| Campus | Spring 2026 | Summer 2026 | Fall 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
San Marcos | $852 | $147 | $984 |
Temecula | $989 | $147 | $1,020 |
These are published term amounts, not a five-semester fee total. Charges vary by term and home campus, and taking a required course at another campus does not change the applicable fee assessment. See the Extended Learning fee schedule for the current breakdown.
Books, supplies, transportation, background checks, drug screening, immunizations, insurance and CPR are separate expenses. Federal financial aid and eligible VA benefits may be available; the Cal Vet fee waiver does not apply to this self-support program.
Related CSUSM Nursing Programs
CSUSM also offers traditional BSN and RN-to-BSN pathways, along with nursing options for eligible veterans and advanced nursing study. These have different entry requirements; the ABSN is the pathway for applicants entering nursing after a non-nursing degree.
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