Nursing

Nursing Mission Statement

The mission of the Jeanette C. Rudy BSN Program is to prepare caring, highly competent graduates who will provide excellent, evidence-based nursing care for individuals, families, and communities across the lifespan, with emphasis placed on knowledge, skills, attitudes, and experiences that promote clinical reasoning, integrity, and life-long learning.

Vision Statement

The Jeanette C. Rudy Nursing Program will be a leading nursing program in Middle Tennessee that graduates individuals who are characterized by their professional excellence and positive impact on healthcare.

Program Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of the Nursing program the graduate will be prepared to:

Integrate clinical reasoning and critical thinking methods to make effective nursing judgements and help patients make relevant decisions to improve their health and quality of life.
Administer excellent, evidence-based care, utilizing various biopsychosocial frameworks, to individuals, families, groups, and the community with diverse demographic, spiritual, and cultural characteristics in a variety of settings.
Integrate teaching strategies that are appropriate to assist the patient, family, and community to achieve their highest level of health and wellness possible.
Collaborate in partnership with other healthcare team members to promote, protect, and improve health of patients at any point on the illness/wellness continuum.
Communicate effectively with the patient, family, and all members of the healthcare team using oral, written, and electronic methods, to transmit the analysis and integration of data required to provide excellent, evidence-based nursing care.
Implement interventions that integrate ethical and legal behaviors in all professional nursing activities leading to quality outcomes in order to advocate for the health, well-being, and best interest of nurses, patients, families, and communities.
Engage in leadership and management activities in a multidisciplinary healthcare environment to plan, implement, delegate, evaluate, and promote safe nursing care.

Nursing Entry Options

The Rudy School of Nursing and Health Professions offers three entry options leading to a baccalaureate degree in nursing:

Entry Option I is a generic, eight or nine semester academic and clinical nursing program. Two tracks are available:

Track I - The traditional day track meets during the day, but may have clinicals in the day, evening, or weekends depending on healthcare facility availability.
Track II - The nights and weekends track which holds classes at night and clinical experiences are scheduled, either day or night on the weekend. This track is offered to accommodate working adults. All prerequisites and classes are the same as the traditional day program.

Part-time or Full-time Option

Students may choose to attend either track on a full-time or part-time basis. Full-time is the recommended scheduling approach for the day student, but a part-time option is available to enhance access to nursing education. Part-time schedules are planned with the student's advisor based on prerequisites for each nursing course, alignment of coordinated courses and individual student needs.

Nights and weekends students are encouraged to explore the part-time approach to scheduling if they must work a 40-hour work week in addition to attending school. The nursing program is very rigorous and requires many hours of study. Success is difficult for an individual who must work full-time as well as attend school full-time. This is due to the lack of time to devote to the study that is necessary to be successful. Students have been successful in this endeavor but have identified it as a very stressful experience.

Entry Option II is a completely online program that enables registered nurses (RNs) who have an associate degree or diploma in nursing to earn a BSN.

Entry Option III is the LPN to BSN track. This is a hybrid nursing track designed for the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) seeking a baccalaureate in nursing (BSN). This track is unique in that the LPN is admitted to the School of Nursing on acceptance to Cumberland and begins nursing classes along with general education credits (GEC). From semester one, the student is considered a nursing student rather than a pre-nursing student. The LPN to BSN track is 7 semesters for the full-time student, in contrast to 9 semesters for the traditional student. Courses are taught with a combination of asynchronous online course work and synchronous on-ground classes, labs, and clinicals. On ground courses occur one day a week. Clinical rotations are on weekends. LPNs are awarded up to 16 validation hours for previous learning in their LPN program. To receive validation hours, the LPN to BSN student must be successful in courses and mastery tests of similar nursing courses in their LPN program. The validation hours are earned in a specific course that is similar to a course in the student’s LPN program and are totaled and awarded at the end of the program.

VSCC/Cumberland Partnership

Through this partnership, Volunteer State Community College (VSCC) students earning the Associate of Science in Pre-Nursing will transfer to Cumberland University to complete the requirements for the BSN degree through the Jeanette C. Rudy Nursing Program. All VSCC credits apply toward the BSN at Cumberland University if the student has followed the prescribed course requirements in the Associate of Science in Pre-Nursing.

VSCC students apply during the first semester of their sophomore year. Students meeting the admissions requirements and following the admissions procedures will receive conditional admission into the nursing program pending the receipt and review of the final official transcript confirming the award of the associate degree.

Transfer Policy

Students must first meet the requirements for admission to Cumberland University.
The Nursing Admissions and Progression Committee evaluates each student who transfers from another accredited nursing program on an individual basis.
Requests to transfer nursing courses from another college or university will also be considered by the Nursing Admissions and Progressions Committee on an individual basis based on comparability of the course with the same or similar course in the Cumberland Nursing Program along with the rigor of the course and the university from which the student is transferring. Other factors will be considered such as student GPA, reason for transfer request, and other student factors indicating potential for success or failure in the Cumberland Nursing Program.
Students who desire to transfer from another accredited BSN nursing program must meet the following requirements:
- Submission of official transcript from the accredited BSN nursing program.
- A letter from the applicant explaining why he or she is requesting the transfer.
- Minimum GPA of 2.75.
- If required, completion of ATI TEAS.
- If required, completion of competency check-offs, exams, and/or ATI testing.
- If required, a letter of good standing from the accredited BSN nursing program.
- The student must meet the Cumberland University requirements for undergraduate transfer credit.