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Application Checklist

Standard Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program

The following must be completed to be considered for the standard B.S.N. program in Brookings, Rapid City or Sioux Falls:

  • Submit an application to the university.
    • Prior to applying to the nursing program, students must apply for admission to SDSU (if you are not already a student). The university application can be completed online through the Admissions Office.
    • Students who are currently enrolled at SDSU do not need to complete the university admissions application.
  • Complete the application for admission to the professional nursing major.
    • The application deadline for spring admission is September 25 (January start). Spring admission is available in Brookings, Rapid City and Sioux Falls. The deadline for fall admission is February 25 (August start). Fall admission is available in Brookings and Rapid City only.
    • Applicants are encouraged not to wait until the last day, especially after business hours or on weekends as staff will not be available to assist with any technical difficulties. 
    • Visit the College of Nursing application to download the application. Any application deadline updates are also posted there.
  • Read the nursing program eligibility requirements.
    • Eligible students may apply to the professional nursing major when all required prerequisite courses are completed or in progress and eligibility requirements are met.
  • Read the technical standards.
    • Students preparing for education in the field of professional nursing must demonstrate a stable personality and the ability to meet the demands of the professional nurse role. For admission to, progression in and completion of the undergraduate program in nursing, the student must meet technical standards for the professional nursing major.
  • Transfer students must attach/submit all transcripts.
    • All courses from other institutions must be transferred and present on the SDSU transcript by the time of application to the major. If this is not possible because of courses in progress at another institution, then attach ALL college transcripts (unofficial transcripts acceptable) to the nursing application.
    • Highlight the prerequisite (or equivalent) courses on the transcripts.
    • If prerequisite courses are in progress at another institution at the time of application to the major, include a current transcript or course schedule which shows these courses.
    • See the eligibility requirements for additional information.
  • Non-native speakers of English must attach/submit TOEFL or IELTS score report.
    • The College of Nursing requires all students who meet the definition of English as a Second Language to complete the TOEFL, IELTS or Duolingo exam, regardless of residency status.
    • The minimum TOEFL score required for admission to the nursing program is 79 (iBT), with a minimum speaking score of 26. The required IELTS band score for admission to the professional program is 6.5, with a minimum of 6.0 in each module. The required DuoLingo score is 110. These scores are required before the student will be accepted into the major.
  • Complete the Legal Questionnaire.
    • The Legal Questionnaire is a separate DocuSign form linked on application page when you apply. 
    • Students who answered “yes” to legal question(s) must attach and submit the required documentation.
    • Students who answered “yes” to any of the legal questions must submit copies of charges or citations and ALL communications with (to and from) the citing agency AND the court of jurisdiction, including evidence of completion/compliance with court requirements.
    • These documents must be uploaded to the Legal Questionnaire itself and will go only to the Director of Nursing Student Services for compliance and legal requirements. These documents will not be seen by the reviewers of your application. 
  • Complete the essay questions.
    • The essay questions are provided in the application. 
    • Students are encouraged to draft and refine their essay responses offline and review them several times.
    • When ready to submit, your essay questions will be copy and pasted into an online platform for scoring.  The link to that online platform will be provided in the application information for each application cycle.
    • Essay questions are scored independently of each other so your response to one should not include a reference to another response.  Essay questions are scored blinded so do not include any identifying information in your essay.
  • Prerequisite Courses
    • The following courses (both pre-nursing and general education) must be completed or in progress at the time of application to the nursing program: 
      • Pre-nursing courses
        • CHEM 106/106L Chemistry Survey & lab (or CHEM 112/112L Gen Chem I & lab)
        • SOC 100 Introduction to Sociology or SOC 150 Social Problems or SOC 240 Sociology of Rural America or ANTH 210 Cultural Anthropology
        • PSYC 101 General Psychology
        • BIOL 221/221L Anatomy & lab
        • HDFS 210 Lifespan Development
        • MICR 231/231L General Microbiology & lab
        • NUTR 315 Human Nutrition
        • BIOL 325/325L Physiology & lab
      • System General Education Requirements (SGRs) and other courses
        • SGR 1 Written Communication: any eligible course
        • SGR 2 Oral Communication: any eligible course
        • SGR 4 Arts & Humanities/Diversity (it is strongly encouraged, but not required, to have 1 of 2 eligible courses completed or in progress at the time of application)
        • SGR 5 Mathematics: MATH 103 or higher course
        • NURS 119 Seminar