Idaho State University's Accelerated Nursing undergraduate degree is offered to individuals who have a completed bachelor's degree in another discipline and wish to make a career change. Students earn a nursing bachelor’s degree in three semesters and enter the workforce just one year following program admission (please review the list of specific prerequisites required to apply). The Accelerated Program provides learning opportunities for undergraduate students in a variety of classroom and clinical settings to prepare students to take the National Council Licensure Examination Registered Nurse (NCLEX-RN) to secure licensure as a professional nurse.
Previously only available in Meridian and Pocatello, The School of Nursing has joined forces with Kootenai Health in Coeur d’Alene starting in Summer 2024!
- Program is available on the ISU Meridian Campus, Pocatello main campus, and starting Summer 2024 we will offer the Accelerated program in partnership with Kootenai Health in Coeur d’Alene.
- Courses are delivered through a combination of classroom and online formats, with simulation and clinical experiences throughout the state.
- Participation in the Accelerated Nursing program requires students be located within daily commuting distance to their admitted campus.
More Information
Questions related to this degree program should be addressed to:

Program Overview
Program Information and Outcomes
The School of Nursing offers one program application a year that opens in the Fall semester and is due in early Spring semester. The Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program will admit up to 50 students to the Meridian campus and up to 20 students to the Pocatello campus for the start of the Summer Semester, around the second week in May. Admission to the Pocatello cohort is dependent on a full cohort as determined by the School of Nursing.
Please see the Accelerated BSN Program Curriculum for the upper division nursing courses and structure of the 3-semester nursing program.
If you have questions after looking through the School of Nursing website, please see the Undergraduate Frequently Asked Questions page for more information.
Undergraduate Nursing Programs Student Handbook
Program Outcomes
Completion of the undergraduate program provides the graduate with the abilities to:
- Evaluate critical thinking skills based upon nursing knowledge integration, the sciences and the humanities, in planning direct and indirect care for diverse populations in rural or urban settings.
- Develop individual traits and personal power to interact constructively with clients, families and communities.
- Evaluate the broad range of technology requirements.
- Create effective communication with clients, families, communities and other health care providers using verbal, non-verbal, electronic and/or written modalities.
- Evaluate the principles of population health needs.
- Value behaviors congruent with current standards of professional practice, and promote the nursing profession.
- Appraise basic nursing science information and develop expertise in the comprehensive care of clients, families, and communities.
Professional Licensure Disclosure
The Importance of a Bachelor's Degree in Nursing
The Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing is a critical first step for a career in professional nursing. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), the national voice for baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs, recognizes the BS degree in nursing as the minimum educational requirement for a professional nursing practice. Recommendations by AACN state that education has a significant impact on the knowledge and competencies of the nurse clinician.
Nurses with BS degrees are well-prepared to meet the demands placed on today's nurse. Bachelor of Science nurses are prized for their skills in critical thinking, leadership, case management, and health promotion, and for their ability to practice across a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings. Nurse executives, federal agencies, the military, leading nursing organizations, health care foundations, community hospitals, and minority nurse advocacy groups all recognize the unique value that baccalaureate-prepared nurses bring to the practice setting. Following the nursing curriculum prepares students to become professional registered nurses and includes the following essential components of all baccalaureate nursing programs: a liberal education, professional values, core competencies, core knowledge, and role development.
Finances
Cost of Attendance
Costs for tuition and fees at ISU are listed on the Cost of Attendance web page on the Finance and Administration website.
Professional Fees
In addition to ISU tuition and fees, a professional fee is assessed for all undergraduate and graduate students in the School of Nursing. Professional fees for the nursing programs are used to support faculty salaries, instruction support services, durable & disposable equipment and supplies, faculty and staff program travel, capital equipment and a reserve for maintenance and purchase of major capital items.
The list of current professional fees for all School of Nursing programs can be found here on the Professional Fees page.
Scholarships
Idaho State University Scholarships
The School of Nursing annually awards over $100,000 in scholarships, and the School of Nursing scholarship application is available annually in April in the Bengal Online Scholarship System (BOSS).
Please see the Scholarship Office website for more information about scholarship opportunities available through ISU.
Nursing Education Scholarship awarded by Travel Nursing career organization.
Amount: $1,000.
Requirements: Accepted to or currently attending a full-time nursing or medical program at an accredited institution.
Travel Nursing Scholarship.
CampusRN has $15,000 in Scholarships Available to Nursing & Allied Health Students.
Career Opportunities
Search Thousands of Entry Level Jobs, Externships, & Scholarship Opportunities on CampusRN.
Apply for opportunities to teach right here at the Idaho State University School of Nursing.
Browse their Free Job Board, Publications and Events
Prerequisite Courses
Our 14 prerequisite courses are separated into 2 different lists, labeled as Set A and Set B courses. All prerequisite courses must be completed with a C grade or higher.
The Set A courses are used to calculate an applicant's nursing application GPA and must be completed prior to applying to the nursing program. A minimum 3.0 GPA is required for the nursing application and the Set A GPA calculation is 40% of an applicant's ranking in the application process. All Set A prerequisite courses must be completed within 10 years of application date.
The Set B courses can be in progress during the semester applicant applies in, so long as they are successfully completed before starting the program. Most students will have two or three of the Set B courses completed and then finish the remaining courses during the semester they apply in. All Set B prerequisite courses must be completed within 10 years of application date, with Pathobiology and Pharmacotherapy completed with 5 years of application date.
If courses are taken outside of Idaho State University, official transcripts verifying successful completion must be submitted to the ISU Registrar’s Office as part of the ISU application process.
Petitions to the School of Nursing may be required to establish equivalency for courses taken from other colleges or universities.
Accelerated BSN Program Requirements
Set A Prerequisite Courses |
||
Set A (completed before applying to SON) |
ISU Course |
ISU Credits |
Introductory Microbiology with Lab | BIOL 2233 & 2233L | 4 |
Anatomy & Physiology 1 with Lab | BIOL 2227 & 2227L or BIOL 3301 & 3301L | 4 |
Anatomy & Physiology 2 with Lab | BIOL 2228 & 2228L or BIOL 3302 & 3302L | 4 |
Introduction to General Chemistry | CHEM 1101 or CHEM 1111 & 1111L | 3 or 5 |
Introduction to Psychology | PSYC 1101 | 3 |
Child Development | PSYC 2225 | 3 |
Cultural Diversity Course |
Use Objective 9 in the ISU General Education
Program for guidance
|
3 |
Set B Prerequisite Courses |
||
Set B (completed before starting program) |
ISU Course |
ISU Credits |
Introduction to Pathobiology | BIOL 2229 or BIOL 3306 | 3 |
Essentials of Organic & Biochemistry with Lab | CHEM 1102 & 1103 | 4 |
Nutrition for Health Professionals | NTD 3340 | 3 |
Introduction to Information Research | LLIB 1115 | 3 |
Medical Ethics | PHIL 2230 | 3 |
Statistical Reasoning | MATH 1153 | 3 |
Pharmacology for Nursing | DHS 3315 | 4 |
School of Nursing Petition Process
School of Nursing Undergraduate Petition Form
Petitioning Courses
For any course that does not transfer into ISU as equivalent, students are welcome to submit a petition to the School of Nursing to see if the faculty will accept their course in place of the given School of Nursing undergraduate requirement. Students are also welcome to submit a petition for a course they would like to take to see if the School of Nursing would pre-approve the course for our undergraduate requirements.
Petitions must include:
- A completed form, including a signature and date
- A copy of the course description for the course (a course syllabus is preferred)
- An unofficial transcript with course completion (not needed if seeking preapproval for a course)
Please send the completed information to the School of Nursing via email at sonadvis@isu.edu. Staff will process your petition and send to the faculty for review for the final decision. If the faculty approves your petition, an approved nursing petition means that your course will satisfy the undergraduate nursing requirement but will not show as equivalent to the ISU course in your ISU transcript. The petition process usually takes 2-3 weeks.
Petitioning Other Requirements
In some cases, students may want to petition School of Nursing requirements other than courses. These may include, but are not limited to, undergraduate nursing application requirements, undergraduate nursing admission requirements, or graduation requirements. These petitions must include:
- A completed form, including a signature and date
- A statement explaining the need for the petition
- Any documentation you may have to support the petition
Students should contact the School of Nursing Academic Advisor for guidance on their nursing petition and/or University Petition.
Eligibility and Selection
Applicants are required to be admitted to ISU and apply separately to the School of Nursing.
To apply for admission to Idaho State University, please fill out an Undergraduate Application.
- Apply as a degree-seeking student, Undergraduate, Pre-Nursing major.
- *There is a $50.00 application fee to Idaho State University.
Acceptance to the School of Nursing is competitive and meeting admission requirements does not guarantee acceptance.
The Accelerated application will open each year at 8 am on November 10th and close at 5 pm on February 10th.
Applicants must meet the following criteria to be considered for acceptance into the Accelerated Bachelors of Science in Nursing program.
- Earned Bachelor of Science (B.S.) or Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) from a regionally accredited college or university before applying.
- Completion of all Set A nursing prerequisite courses with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 (40% of application score.)
- Set B prerequisites must be completed, or enrolled in progress, prior to the applicant's anticipated Nursing program start date.
- Completion of the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS)
- The "BSN Program Percentile Rank" score is used for application ranking (20% of application score)
- Please visit https://www.atitesting.com/ for more information about the TEAS exam.
- Applicants may test up to 3 times in a calendar year (January to December ) with 30 days between each exam.
- Applicants can schedule their TEAS exam at any ISU testing center or other approved ATI testing locations.
- Test results received outside an ISU testing center should be sent to School of Nursing at ID State U BSN
- Personal Interview - Applicants with completed applications will be contact for personal interview to be completed in February (40% of application score.)
Please review the Accelerated BSN Program Application Instructions for more detailed information regarding application criteria, including important deadlines.
Application and Admission Requirements
Applicants are required to meet with a School of Nursing Academic Advisor to determine their eligibility, no less than two (2) weeks prior to the application period closing; however applicants are strongly encouraged to meet with an advisor prior to the application opening in November.
School of Nursing Advisor will confirm an applicant's eligibility to apply by reviewing the following items:
- Approval of any required course petitions must be received no less than 15 days prior to the application closing date.
- Submit the School of Nursing Undergraduate Petition Form and required documentation to sonadvis@isu.edu
- Completion of Set A prerequisite courses with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.
- Completion of or enrolled in-progress Set B prerequisite courses.
- Completion of the ATI TEAS exam
- Once the Advisor confirms an applicant's eligibility, they will provide the applicant with the application enrollment key to begin the School of Nursing applications in ISU Community Moodle.
Admission decisions will be made and sent out via email in early March. Applicants will be scored and offers of acceptance will be based on their campus of preference (Meridian, Pocatello, and Kootenai.)
If not accepted, contact a Nursing Academic Advisor to discuss options.
Admission Process Once Accepted
- Accepted students must attend the mandatory orientation to be held approximately 4 weeks prior to the start of the summer semester classes.
- Successfully complete remaining Set B prerequisite courses.
- Applicants must have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher among Set A and Set B prerequisite courses at the start of the program in summer semester.
- All prerequisite course grades must be a C or higher.
- Complete admission requirements.