Last Updated: October 2, 2026
Program Overview
A 12-month, campus-based second-degree BSN with May and December entry points and nursing study across summer, fall, winter and spring.
Southern Connecticut State University’s Accelerated BSN serves students who already hold a bachelor’s degree. Its published plan includes 53 nursing credits, combining classroom study, skills labs, simulation and clinical practice.
Prerequisites must be completed by the application deadline. Students learn alongside other degree holders in a full-time program; clinical assignments can occur during the week or on weekends.
Admissions and Acceptance
Admission is competitive. Applicants must hold a conferred bachelor’s degree from a fully accredited institution with a minimum cumulative 3.0 GPA (across all post-secondary work) and complete every prerequisite with a grade of C+ or higher by the application deadline.
- No more than two repeated prerequisite courses are allowed
- Applicants may not apply to both the ABSN and traditional BSN at the same time
- Applicants previously dismissed from any nursing program are ineligible
- Official transcripts from all post-secondary schools must reach the Transfer Admissions & Services Office by the deadline
The ABSN does not require TEAS, high school transcripts or SAT/ACT scores. Resumes and recommendation/reference letters are not accepted. Applicants previously enrolled in another nursing program must submit the Nursing Disclosure Form; prior nursing credits do not replace Southern’s nursing curriculum.
Application Dates
- Summer 2027: Applications opened July 16, 2026 and close December 15, 2026.
- Winter entry: The recurring deadline is July 15; the winter 2026 cycle is closed.
The ABSN admissions page requires the degree, prerequisites, official transcripts and any applicable AP/CLEP results by the relevant deadline. Start terms are May and December; applicants should use the cohort dates in their admission materials.
Prerequisite Courses
All prerequisites require a C+ or higher. Pass/Fail grades are not accepted except for the university’s Spring 2020 exception. Science prerequisites need an in-person lab and four credits; separately graded lecture and lab components both require C+ or higher. Southern currently sets no general expiration date, but department chairs may evaluate course equivalency.
- Anatomy & Physiology I (4cr, with lab)
- Anatomy & Physiology II (4cr, with lab)
- Basic Microbiology (4cr, with lab)
- General Chemistry (4cr, with lab)
- Introduction to Nutrition (3cr)
- Elementary Statistics (3cr)
- Math for Natural Sciences (3cr)
- Introduction to Psychology (3cr)
- Lifespan Development (3cr)
Non-science prerequisites may be completed online. Connecticut applicants can check course equivalencies using SCSU’s TES Public View transfer tool before applying.
Curriculum
The pathway’s 53-credit plan moves from assessment, foundational interventions and pharmacology into adult and specialty care, public health, leadership and a clinical capstone. The tables follow the published summer-entry sequence; winter entrants complete the same requirements in a different order.
Required Courses and Credits
Summer — 15 credits
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NUR 340 — Theoretical Foundations of Professional Nursing | 3.0 | Introduces core concepts of professional nursing, emphasizing patient-centered care, safety, quality, teamwork, and evidence-based practice through foundational theories and frameworks. |
NUR 341 — Health Assessment | 3.0 | Focuses on developing skills for comprehensive health assessments, including clinical reasoning, communication, physical exams, and documentation, with attention to variations across the lifespan. |
NUR 342 — Evidence-Based Nursing Interventions | 3.0 | Covers foundational nursing interventions with lab practice, emphasizing evidence-based techniques, psychomotor skills, patient responses, documentation, and delegation. |
NUR 343 — Integrated Pathophysiology and Pharmacology I | 3.0 | Explores the principles of pathophysiology and pharmacology, linking concepts to nursing practice through an evidence-based approach. |
NUR 344 — Gerontological Nursing | 3.0 | Examines the unique needs of older adults, focusing on evidence-based, patient-centered care with an emphasis on clinical judgment and teamwork. |
Fall — 17 credits
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NUR 351 — Nursing Research | 2.0 | Provides a foundation for evidence-based nursing, teaching students to appraise research, identify issues, and integrate findings to improve patient outcomes. |
NUR 352 — Adult Health Nursing | 5.0 | Applies the nursing process to care for adults with acute and chronic conditions, emphasizing the effects of illness and disability across the care continuum. Includes clinical experiences. |
NUR 353 — Integrated Pathophysiology and Pharmacology II | 3.0 | Continues the integration of pathophysiology and pharmacology principles, focusing on treatments, risk factors, and quality of life issues. |
NUR 354 — Mental Health Nursing | 3.0 | Covers major psychiatric conditions, adaptive behaviors, and high-risk populations, with clinical experiences to apply theoretical knowledge. |
NUR 355 — Nursing Interventions Lab | 1.0 | Provides focused lab practice to reinforce and advance core nursing intervention skills alongside the concurrent nursing courses. |
NUR 442 — Public Health Nursing | 3.0 | Examines public health principles, combining nursing, public health, and epidemiology to address prevention, health promotion, and population health at all levels. |
Winter — 3 credits
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NUR 430 — The Childbearing Family | 3.0 | Explores the childbearing process and its impact on families, with clinical experiences addressing physical, emotional, and developmental health challenges. |
Spring — 18 credits
| Course | Credits | What you study |
|---|---|---|
NUR 431 — The Childrearing Family | 3.0 | Focuses on promoting, maintaining, and restoring the health of children and families, emphasizing safety, development, and common childhood health issues through clinical practice. |
NUR 432 — Adult Health II | 5.0 | Builds on Adult Health Nursing, emphasizing advanced care for adults with complex health needs. Includes clinical experiences to integrate theory into practice. |
NUR 443 — Nursing Capstone | 5.0 | A senior-level course synthesizing nursing knowledge and skills, preparing students for professional practice through comprehensive clinical experiences. |
NUR 444 — Leadership, Management, and Health Care Issues in Nursing | 3.0 | Explores nursing leadership and management principles in the context of workplace and global healthcare challenges, addressing perspectives of patients, nurses, and organizations. |
NUR electives — Two approved nursing electives | 2 | Choose two one-credit nursing electives to broaden nursing knowledge and skills. |
Course names above follow the ABSN plan; the current course catalog uses updated titles for several of the same codes. Two one-credit electives are required, but the plan does not prescribe the elective choices. Prerequisite and accepted prior-degree coursework are separate from these 53 nursing credits.
Clinical Experience
Clinical study covers older adults, adult health, mental health, childbearing and childrearing families, public health and the final capstone. Skills labs and simulation support patient-care preparation. The program is in person, and clinical work may occur on weekdays or weekends.
Southern’s February 2026 undergraduate nursing policies require health insurance, healthcare-provider BLS certification, health and immunization documentation, a criminal background check and applicable drug screening before clinical participation. Students arrange their own transportation; assignments are based on program needs rather than a student’s home address.
Clinical sites may impose additional requirements. Failure to meet clearance requirements can prevent attendance and progression. See the nursing student policies for current compliance and technical standards.
Tuition
Estimated full-program tuition for a Connecticut resident in the summer-entry ABSN is $11,373, using the 2026–27 billing schedules across the published 53-credit plan. This tuition-only estimate excludes required fees and is not a university-issued package price.
- Fall and spring: $6,719 per full-time resident term including tuition and listed university fees; the tuition portion is $3,499 and the remaining listed fees total $3,220.
- Summer 2027: The intersession schedule lists $6,664 in course charges plus $55 registration at 12 or more credits, before other applicable fees.
- Winter: $695 per credit plus $55 registration; the summer-entry plan has a three-credit winter course, or $2,140 before nursing fees.
- Nursing program fee: $500 per full-time semester or $50 per credit when part-time.
- Other charges: $200 mandatory new-student orientation and a $50 application fee; books, uniforms, clinical clearance, transportation and living costs are additional.
The tuition estimate assumes full-time billing for the combined 15-credit summer load, 17-credit fall and 18-credit spring, plus three part-time winter credits: (3 × $3,499) + (3 × $292) = $11,373. Southern’s linked fee definitions explain that intersession course fees replace tuition and general fees. The winter rate splits into $292 tuition and $403 general fee per credit; the summer flat charge is allocated using the current full-time tuition rate. These are calculated allocations, not separately published ABSN tuition totals.
Including the listed university, intersession registration, nursing, orientation and application fees gives approximately $24,197 in educational charges, or $12,824 in fees above the tuition estimate. This uses the published part-time winter nursing fee and assumes one combined summer billing assessment. Books, uniforms, clinical clearance, travel and living costs remain additional. Rates may increase during the program; winter-entry billing and separately assessed summer sessions may produce different totals.
Out-of-state fall/spring tuition is $5,249 per full-time term, adding $3,500 across those two terms at current rates. Intersession rates are the same by residency. Winter-entry credit distribution differs, and later rate increases or additional course charges can change the bill.
Accreditation and Outcomes
Southern’s baccalaureate nursing program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Successful ABSN completion prepares graduates to apply for the NCLEX-RN and licensure, subject to the licensing board’s requirements.
The university’s broad historical pass-rate statement covers its undergraduate nursing programs over many years; it is not an ABSN cohort result. Applicants comparing outcomes should use dated, pathway-specific figures from the Connecticut nursing board.