Nursing

Admitted students who meet enrollment criteria will enroll as pre-nursing majors. Students not eligible to enroll in pre-nursing may enroll in health and human services exploration.

On admission to Ohio State, students spend their first year completing prerequisite courses before applying to the nursing major in January. If they are admitted, they begin nursing course work in their second year.

Admission to the nursing major is highly selective. In order to be eligible for consideration, applicants must meet these requirements:

• 3.2 cumulative grade point average (both undergraduate and graduate)
• completion of the seven prerequisite courses with a grade of C+ or higher (a B or higher if credit comes from an institution that doesn't use a +/- grading scale) by the end of spring semester
• completion of 30 semester undergraduate credit hours

Applicants must also submit an essay and participate in an online interview. In both, we are looking for: 

• experiences that demonstrate leadership, collaboration or community involvement
• ability to overcome obstacles and challenges
• ability and desire to contribute to and engage with a diverse community
• aspiration to make an impact on the healthcare field and improving peoples’ lives
• ability to effectively communicate 

Students applying directly from high school who have met the program's prerequisites before enrolling at Ohio State may apply directly to the program. 

Students that meet the following requirements are eligible to apply through our BSN Early Admission pathway:

• Apply by the early action deadline to Ohio State's Columbus campus as a pre-nursing student
• Be in the top 3% of your high school class ranking; if you have questions about how class rank is calculated as part of the admissions process at Ohio State (especially if your high school does not track class rank), please contact Undergraduate Admissions.
• Be admitted to Ohio State’s Columbus campus as a pre-nursing student
• Must be 18 years of age by the first clinical course (NURSING 2270), which occurs in the spring semester following admission into the BSN program (per clinical rules)

Prerequisites:

• human anatomy
• human physiology
• biology
• chemistry
• English
• psychology
• sociology

Course grades in the four science prerequisite courses (biology, chemistry, anatomy and physiology) will be evaluated in consideration for admissions.

Prerequisite courses taken at other institutions must be direct equivalents to the courses at Ohio State. Please visit the College of Nursing website to view a list of courses that meet these requirements. 

The study of professional nursing includes classroom and laboratory instruction on the art and science of nursing and supervised clinical instruction in a variety of hospital and community settings.

The undergraduate professional degree in nursing requires a minimum of 120 semester credit hours and can be completed in four academic years. The first year of study includes pre-professional course work that is prerequisite to applying for the major. 

Additional information about the BSN curriculum may be found here at https://nursing.osu.edu/academics/undergraduate/bachelor-science-nursing/bsn-curriculum

The college's Office of Global Innovations prepares students by teaching cultural competency and wellness. Students are transformed through an innovative education combined with practical, evidence and research-based clinical experience.

The College of Nursing Honors Program is designed to challenge select students by offering opportunities to study an area of interest in greater depth and to enhance leadership skills. Features of the honors program include seminars, a mentored relationship with a nursing faculty member and the completion of a senior honors thesis. Students must be accepted into the College of Nursing Honors Program upon admission into the major and complete a thesis to graduate with distinction.

Nursing students may participate in several College of Nursing organizations such as Buckeye Student Nurses and Sigma Theta Tau International, as well as all other extracurricular organizations and groups at Ohio State.

Pre-nursing students who live in Park-Stradley Hall as part of the Nursing and Wellness Innovations Learning Community will also benefit from increased interaction with faculty and academic advisors. 

Learn more about College of Nursing student organizations.

Registered nurses (RNs) provide many types of health care services in a variety of settings. Some of the settings, in addition to hospitals, include public and private health promotion centers; hospices; outpatient clinics; homes; community health centers; sub-acute and rehabilitation centers; long-term care centers; and clinics for special populations, such as the elderly, poor and underserved.

In addition, some RNs manage their own clinics or other types of health-related businesses. Nurses with advanced degrees can become nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, administrators, researchers, political consultants, members of federal and state regulatory bodies, educators, and health care advisors to government and private businesses. 

According to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, BSN nurses earn an average annual salary of $96,320. Individual salaries vary based on location, experience, position and other factors.