Nursing Admissions

Welcome to the Heritage University Nursing Program Admission Guide.  Our hope is that we’ve made the admission, application, and selection process easy to understand. Here’s what you need to know.

NURSING ADMISSION PROCESS

Students interested in the BSN Program at Heritage University are advised to carefully review information about the admission process. This is a multi-step process, depending on whether you are a high school senior, a Heritage freshman who graduated recently from high school, a current Heritage University student, or transferring to Heritage from another University.

Prospective students should apply to Heritage University and NursingCAS concurrently. Both applications must be completed prior to admission.

PRE-NURSING MAJOR: DECLARE YOUR MAJOR

Pre-nursing Major is for the Heritage University student interested in applying to the BSN program. Pre-nursing students complete General University Core Required (GUCR) courses, along with pre-requisites for the BSN program. Students must earn a [C+] or better in prerequisite GUCR courses, with the exception of CHEM 101/ CHEM 101L and BIO 340/ BIO 340L. Pre-nursing students may also be permitted to take select nursing courses required for the BSN program. However, students must earn a grade of [B-} or better in all nursing courses.

REQUEST PLACEMENT INTO PRE-NURSING MAJOR

Eligibility for Pre-nursing Major is determined by the Faculty Advisor Haley Delgado, Dr. Shelby Clark, and the Advising Center. Declaration of the pre-nursing major does not guarantee admission to the BSN program. Students must still meet all BSN admission criteria to be considered for full admission.

Recent high school graduates admitted to Heritage as freshmen may request placement into Pre-nursing Pathway if they achieved the following:

• High school 3.00 GPA on a 4-point scale.
• Successful completion of these high school courses: English (4 units); college-prep mathematics (3 units); social sciences (2 units); biology and chemistry (2 units). Each course is to be completed with a grade of 2.00 (C) or better.
• Composite ACT score of 23 or better SAT Critical Reading and Mathematics sum score of 1020 SAT or better.
• Compass score consistent with placement into college level MATH 140 and ENG 101 and/or completion of pre-college level coursework placing students into MATH 140 and ENG 101.

Current Heritage University students may request placement into Pre-nursing Major if they have achieved the following:

• Completion of CHEM 101 lecture and lab or CHEM 110 lecture and lab with grades of C or better.
• Completion of the equivalent of BIO 340/ BIO 340L with grades of [C] or better.
• Completion of at least three of the following with grades of C+ or better: BIOL 110, BIOL 111, ENG 101, PSY 101, SOC 101, PHIL 210, UNIV 101

Transfer students to Heritage University may request placement into Pre-nursing Major if they have achieved the following:

• Completion of the equivalent of CHEM 101 lecture and lab or equivalent CHEM 110 lecture and lab with grades of C or better.
• Completion of the equivalent of BIO 340/ BIO 340L with grades of [C] or better.
• Completion of at the equivalent of least three of the following: BIOL 110, BIOL 111, ENG 101, PSY 101, SOC 101, PHIL 210, UNIV 101. C+ or better is required in each of the completed courses.
• Admission to Heritage University.

Students who have completed a Vocational or Practical Nurse Certificate Program are eligible for Pre-nursing Major in the BSN track provided:

• A current valid unencumbered Washington LPN license.
• Overall minimum college GPA of 3.0 on a 4-point scale.
• A grade of C+ or better in any completed course required for the BSN degree.
• Overall minimum college science GPA of 2.75 on a 4-point scale.
• Completion of the equivalent of CHEM 101 lecture and lab or equivalent CHEM 110 lecture and lab with grades of C or better.
• Completion of the equivalent of BIO 340/ BIO 340L with grades of [C] or better.
• Admission to Heritage University.

Have you placed into the Pre-Nursing Major at Heritage University?

Congratulations! You are one step closer to completing the requirements for admission to the BSN program! You have been given special permission to take selected BSN courses. You will be invited to join the Heritage University Nursing Student Association (HUNS), and be affiliated with the Nursing Students of Washington State (NSWS). Your pre-nursing academic advisor will meet with you periodically to review your progress toward your goal of BSN admission. Here’s what you have to do to continue in pre-nursing:

• Register for NURS 100 – Pre-Nursing Pathway. Students placed in pre-nursing have permission to take this non-credit course, and are required to attend once a month classes.
• Keep up your GPA. An overall 3.0 cumulative college GPA is required to apply for admission to the BSN program; and you must have a cumulative science GPA of 2.75 or better.
• Keep up your grades. To apply for admission to the BSN program all courses in pre-nursing must be completed with C+ better (with the exception of a [C] or better in CHEM 101/L and BIO 340/L); and all NURS courses must be completed with B- (80%) or better.
• Stay focused and balanced. Many new college students need to learn how to balance their lives to be successful in a rigorous pre-nursing pathway.
• Stay in touch with your advisor. Keep your appointments with your advisor. We believe in you. We want you to be part of our community. We care about your successes and struggles, and we’re here to partner with you for your success.

BSN Admission Cycle

All BSN applications should be submitted via the NursingCAS application portal.  Please consult the CAS Instructions page. 

BSN Admission Requirements

The BSN program accepts qualified students from Heritage University science majors, pre-nursing major as well as transfer students who qualify for direct admission to the BSN program.

For Heritage Pre-Nursing Pathway Students

Success in pre-nursing is required for application to the BSN program, however, completion of Pre-nursing coursework does not guarantee acceptance into the BSN program. Selection of applicants is competitive, and is based on review of requirements for admission to the BSN program.

To be considered for selection, all Heritage University pre-nursing student applicants are required to complete the following:

• Required Prerequisites – Students must earn a grade of C+ or better in all required prerequisite courses prior to admission, with the exception of the courses listed below.
  • CHEM 101/L & BIO 340/L Prerequisite Exception – Each of the following courses must be completed with [C] or better:
  • CHEM 101/101L* or CHEM 110/110L
    *Competency at the level of MATH 96 is required prior to CHEM 101
  • BIOL 340/340L – Anatomy
    Note:  BIOL 341/341L – Physiology, is also a required course for the BSN Degree.  BIOL 341/341L may be completed in the prenursing year(s) or in the fall of the sophomore year of the BSN Program. Completion of a full Anatomy & Physiology pre-health sciences series (e.g., BIOL& 241 and BIOL& 242 at Washington State community colleges) meets the requirements for both BIOL 340/340L and BIOL 341/341L for the BSN Degree. If transferring in an A&P series from another college, the admissions committee may still require BIOL 341/341L in the fall of the sophomore year to ensure adequate preparation for pathophysiology in spring of the sophomore year.
• Students must earn a grade of [C+] or better in all required prerequisite courses prior to admission, with the exception of the courses listed below.
• Nursing Courses – Completion of these BSN courses are not required for admission, but Heritage students in pre-nursing major have permission to take them. Any NURS courses must be completed with B- or better:
  • NURS 114W
  • NURS 206W
• GPA – Overall College GPA must be 3.0 or higher, with overall science GPA of 2.75 or better.
• HESI Admission Assessment Exam (HESI-A2) – Subjects tested on the exam include: Mathematics, reading, vocabulary, grammar, chemistry, biology, anatomy and physiology. Information about the HESI A2 testing will be shared with pre-nursing students during the school year by the Nursing Program Director.
• Sign and submit a waiver for a background check, available from the Application Portal.
• Submit NurseCAS Essay – submit essay answers on NurseCAS addressing all four (4) prompts. Each prompt has a maximum of 250 words. This rubric outlines the criteria used to evaluate responses.
• Submit your application to the BSN Program through NursingCAS.
• Admission Interview may be required.

For Transfer Students

Students fulfilling prerequisites at any accredited university or community college are eligible for application to the BSN program. Completion of prerequisites does not guarantee acceptance into the BSN program. Selection of applicants is competitive, and is based on review of requirements for admission to the BSN program.

To be considered for selection, student applicants are required to complete the following:

• Required Prerequisites – Each of the following college level courses must be completed with C+ or better (with the exception of a [C] or better in BIO 340/L and CHEM 101/L):
  • 4 semester or 5 quarter credits of Introduction to General Chemistry with lab
  • 4 semester or 5 quarter credits of Organic and Biochemistry with lab
  • 4 semester or 5 quarter credits of Introduction to Biology with lab
  • 3 semester or 5 quarter credits of college English
  • 3 semester or 5 quarter credits of college Psychology or Sociology
• GPA – Overall College must be 3.0 or higher, with overall science GPA of 2.75 or better.
• Success on the HESI Admission Assessment Exam (HESI-A2) – Subjects tested on the exam include: Mathematics, reading, vocabulary, grammar, chemistry, biology, anatomy and physiology. Information about the HESI A2 testing can be accessed by clicking on the link, above.
• Complete an Application Cover Sheet to the BSN program, available under “Related Forms” on the Nursing Admissions Page.
• Sign and submit a waiver for a background check, available from the Application Portal.
• Submit an essay – Complete an essay answering four (4) prompts through your Nursing CAS portal. Each response has a maximum of 250 words. Please use this essay rubric [insert link here] when developing and submitting your responses. Applicants are encouraged to review the rubric to ensure each response addresses the prompt fully with thoughtful reflection. View Scoring Rubric here.
• Submit your application to the BSN Program through NursingCAS.
• Admission Interview may be required.

For Graduates of Practical or Vocational Nursing Programs

To be considered for the BSN program, any graduate of a practical or vocational nursing program must hold a current valid unencumbered Washington LPN License, and have met the prerequisites for transfer students.

Helpful tips for transfer students on completing prerequisite courses:

Biology – An Introduction to Biology course will meet the Biology requirement; we recommend that cell biology and molecular genetics content be included in the course. The course must be completed with C+ or better.

Chemistry – To meet the General Chemistry requirement, you may complete an introductory Chemistry course, but it must contain a mathematical component. The course content should contain on-campus labs. A survey chemistry course WILL NOT meets the requirement for Heritage Nursing. To meet the organic and biochemistry requirement, the student may have taken a course in organic and a separate course in biochemistry; or an organic/biochemistry course designed for health science students. The course content should contain on-campus labs.

Nursing Pre-requisite Course Transfer Equivalency
To ensure courses previously completed will transfer to satisfy a nursing pre-requisite, use our Nursing Department Equivalency Guidelines for Local Colleges and Universities. Please note – not all courses may be listed. If you completed a course that is not listed please email a course description or syllabus to Nursing_Admissions@heritage.edu.

Are You Ready to Apply?

Consider applying if you’ve completed or all or most required prerequisite courses with at least C+ or better and will have the remainder of your required courses completed before the program starts.

Application Review

NursingCAS applications are currently being accepted for the Cohort 2030 (Fall 2027). Application portal opens October 2026.

The Department of Nursing will provide information to students about all aspects of the selection process in a timely manner. We give every application the complete consideration it deserves. We encourage you to meet with us for a personal advisement session where we can discuss your ideas and answer your questions. If you are interested in meeting with the BSN Admissions Advisor please contact Devra Lewis at lewis_d1@heritage.edu and for general admissions inquiries please e-mail: nursing_admissions@heritage.edu.