LSU Pre-Nursing FAQs
No, the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing (LSUHNO-SON) is part of the LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans Louisiana. The LSU Pre-Nursing major is a gateway for students to take the prerequisite courses they need to get into the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
If a student does not want to attend the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing, then they need to contact the Nursing School that they want to earn a degree from to see which courses (if any) they can take at LSU-Baton Rouge that will transfer there and to determine when they can transfer. The Pre-Nursing document students receive includes courses, GPA and requirements that are only for the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing and no other school.
Pre-Nursing students will be applying to the Traditional Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing (Traditional BSN) Undergraduate Degree Program at the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
No, Pre-Nursing majors are only here at LSU in Baton Rouge to meet the requirements they need to take to transfer to the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing (admission is competitive and not guaranteed).
There is no degree in Nursing at LSU in Baton Rouge. Once a student graduates from the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing, they will get their Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing.
Yes, students will be earning a degree from LSU, but not LSU in Baton Rouge. Student will be earning their BSN Degree from the LSU Health New Sciences Center: LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
No, in order for a student to earn a minor, they must also be completing a 4-year degree program at LSU in Baton Rouge, as a minor must accompany a degree.
- ENGL 1001 (3 hours) – English Composition I
- MATH 1021 (3 hours) – College Algebra
- CHEM 1201 (3 hours) – General Chemistry Lecture for Science Majors
- BIOL 1201 (3 hours) – General Biology Lecture for Science Majors
- BIOL 1208 (1 hour) – General Biology Lab for Science Majors
- PSYC 2000 (3 hours) – General Psychology
Total = 16 credit hours
Note: Students must complete these 16 hours of prerequisite courses with a 3.0 minimum GPA, B- or higher in the science courses and C- or higher in non-science courses.
- ENGL 2001 (3 hours) – English Composition II for Pre-Nursing students
- SOCL 2001 (3 hours) – Introductory Sociology
- Gen. Ed. Arts (3 hours)
- Gen. Ed. Humanities (6 hours)
- PSYC 2070 (3 hours) – Developmental Psychology
- BIOL 1011 (3 hours) – Microorganisms and Man
Total = 21 credit hours
Note: Students must complete these 21 credit hours of courses with a 3.0 minimum GPA, B- or higher in the science courses and C- or higher in non-science courses.
Pre-Nursing students need 3 hours (1 course) of a Gen. Ed. Art requirement for their Pre-Nursing major. See link to Gen. Ed. Art List in LSU General Catalog here - https://catalog.lsu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=23&poid=11121
Or you can go to the LSU General Catalog (catalog.lsu.edu) > The General Education Component of Undergraduate Education > III. Arts (3 Sem. Hrs.)
Pre-Nursing students need 6 hours (2 courses) of Gen. Ed. Humanities requirements for their Pre-Nursing major before they can start the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing (LSUHNO-SON), but they will need up to 9 hours before they can graduate from the LSUHNO-SON.
See link to Gen. Ed. Art Humanities in LSU General Catalog here- https://catalog.lsu.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=23&poid=11122
Or you can go to the LSU General Catalog (catalog.lsu.edu) > The General Education Component of Undergraduate Education > IV. Humanities (9 Sem. Hrs.)
In order to take CHEM 1201, Pre-Nursing students must have credit earned in MATH 1021 with a “P” or a “C-“ or higher. Then they will need to email the Pre-Nursing advisors at pnurs@lsu.edu to override them into whichever open section of CHEM 1201 is available that they want to take.
If a student drops MATH 1021 and doesn’t have “P” credit in it, or doesn’t make at least a “C-“ or higher in it, the student will have to earn the credit in MATH 1021 BEFORE they can take CHEM 1201.
In order to take BIOL 1201 and BIOL 1208, Pre-Nursing students must meet one of the following requirements:
- Have a 23 or higher on the ACT or 1130 or higher on the SAT - If they meet these requirements, they can schedule BIOL 1201 & 1208 on their own.
or
- Pre-Nursing students must have credit earned in MATH 1021 with a “P” or a “C-“ or higher. Then they will need to email the Pre-Nursing advisors at pnurs@lsu.edu to override them into whatever open section of BIOL 1201 & 1208 that are available that they want to take.
Note: With this option, If a student drops MATH 1021 and doesn’t have “P” credit in it, or doesn’t make at least a “C-“ or higher in it, the student will have to earn the credit in MATH 1021 BEFORE they can take CHEM 1201.
If a Pre-Nursing student makes a “D” or “F” in a Pre-Nursing course, they may repeat that course 1 time only. If they fail to make the required grade the second time, they are no longer eligible for admission into the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
If a Pre-Nursing student makes a “C” in a Pre-Nursing course, they may repeat the course but must contact the Pre-Nursing advisors at pnurs@lsu.edu to get re-added to the course for the following semester.
It is the student’s responsibility to contact the pre-nursing advisors to get re-added to the course as they will not automatically be re-added to it.
Yes, Pre-Nursing students may do Grade Exclusion for courses they make a “D” or “F” in; however, the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing doesn’t look at Grade Exclusions and only take the highest grade into consideration when applying.
However, the LSUHNO-SON does look at how many attempts it takes a student to pass the course with the appropriate grade.
No. The LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing does not utilize plus/minus grading as does LSU in Baton Rouge.
So for example if a student makes a “B+” in a course, it’s still considered 3 Quality points as would a “B” or “B-“.
To calculate your Pre-Nursing GPA, please use the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing Traditional BSN web-site GPA calculator which can be found here: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/apps/calculator/bsn/
- Must complete all of the Pre-Nursing courses with a 3.0 minimum GPA, B- or higher in the science courses and C- or higher in non-science courses.
- Complete the on-line application form at www.nursingcas.org
- Submit all college transcripts of any college ever attended to NursingCAS, even if they are already on the LSU transcript.
- Send in any AP credit awarded directly to the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
- Pay application fee.
- Complete the HESI Exam with an 80% or higher
Note: All this information, along with specific instructions can be found on the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing Application Information link - https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/bsn/application.aspx
The HESI A2 Exam with Critical Thinking section is an entrance exam that is required for students to take and complete with an 80% or higher in order to be eligible for admission into the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing.
Students applying to the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing must take the HESI A2 Exam with Critical Thinking section by the application deadline.
If a student does not make an 80% cumulative score or is not happy with their score, they may re-take it, but only may take it twice during an application period and must wait 6 weeks between each exam. The LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing takes the most recent score, not the highest score.
Note: All this information, along with specific instructions on HOW to take the HESI Exam can be found on the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing Admission Information link under item number 3 “3.” – HESI Admission Assessment Exam A2: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/bsn/admission.aspx
Reading comprehension, meaning word use, conclusions, implications, understanding, grammar, vocabulary and general knowledge, biology, chemistry, and math.
There are two application periods:
- August 1st – January 15th (deadline is January 15th at 10:00 pm)
- January 16th – August 1st (deadline is August 1st at 10:00 pm)
Students will apply to the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing by the application deadline for the semester that they anticipate they will complete the following 16 hours of prerequisite courses with a minimum of a 3.0 GPA, a “B-“ or higher in the science courses and a “C-“ or higher in the non-science courses:
- ENGL 1001 (3 hours) – English Composition I
- MATH 1021 (3 hours) – College Algebra
- CHEM 1201 (3 hours) – General Chemistry Lecture for Science Majors
- BIOL 1201 (3 hours) – General Biology Lecture for Science Majors
- BIOL 1208 (1 hour) – General Biology Lab for Science Majors
- PSYC 2000 (3 hours) – General Psychology
Total = 16 credit hours
If a student has applied to the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing and has met all the admission requirements (prerequisite grades and GPA, HESI with 80% or higher, completed on-line application, submitted transcripts and paid fees), they will be invited to do the written statement and interview process which is usually about a month after the application deadline.
The Written Statement is a proctored essay which will be administered at the School of Nursing. The applicant will be given 30 minutes to write about a topic. Only qualified applicants meeting all admission criteria will be invited to complete a written statement. Instructions will be forthcoming to all eligible applicants.
The interview will be completed and submitted on-line by the applicant. Only qualified applicants meeting all admission criteria will be invited to submit an on-line interview. Instructions will be forthcoming to all eligible applicants.
If you are accepted into the LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing, you will start the semester after you apply.
So, for example, if you apply for the August 1st (Fall) application deadline, you will start the following January (Spring).
If you apply for the January 15th application deadline (Spring), you will start the following Fall (August).
The LSU Health New Orleans - School of Nursing will recognize up to a combined nine (9) hours Accelerated Program (AP) and CLEP coursework. Official AP and/or CLEP transcript must be sent to the School of Nursing. Nine (9) hours of advanced standing credit will be recognized if earned from the college/university.
CATS stands for the Comprehensive Academic Tracking System. Every student at LSU, regardless of major, is tracked according to critical requirements each semester that they are required to meet in order to ensure timely progress towards degree completion.
If a student doesn’t meet those critical requirements for one semester, they get a “CATS” hold on their schedule and must meet with the Pre-Nursing advisor.
If they don’t meet those critical requirements for two semesters in a row, they must change their major or appeal to keep their current major.
Semester 1: “C-” or better in ENGL 1001 and MATH 1021
Semester 2: “B-” or better in CHEM 1201
Semester 3: “B-” or better in BIOL 1201
Semester 4: “B-” or better in BIOL 1011 or 2051
- LSU Health New Orleans main web-site: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/
- Application Information Link: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/bsn/application.aspx
- Admission Criteria Link: https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/bsn/admission.aspx
- Informational Video to Watch for Traditional Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing (Must sign up first under “Webinar” to watch on Demand): https://nursing.lsuhsc.edu/Apps/InfoSessions/
The LSU Pre-Nursing advisors are located in University College Center for Freshman Year (UCFY) in 150 Allen Hall on the LSU-Baton Rouge campus.
If you need to get in touch with the Pre-Nursing advisors, you can reach them by email at pnurs@lsu.edu
The LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing is located in New Orleans, LA in 1900 Gravier Street, Room 321.
If you need to get in touch with them, you may reach them by email at nsstuaffairs@lsuhsc.edu