Programs - General Description

National Avg. Salary: (Annually)
- Starting:
  $44000
- Experienced:
  $58360
Local Avg. Salary: (Annually)
- Starting:
  $36000
- Experienced:
  $40000
Completion Time
(in months)
- 36
Waiting List:
- No

Sharon McManus

Dean of Nursing

Current Program/Catalog Information

To view current program information, select a program (or "ALL" for all programs) from the drop-down menu.

Nursing Degree

Health and Sciences Division

General Description | Semester Layout | Course Requirements | Printable Checklist

Mission

To prepare nursing students to be competent, professional caregivers through a dynamic curriculum and clinical experience which provides the requisite skills and knowledge for state licensure so that the community nursing needs are met.

Description

Nursing is an interactive, holistic, and therapeutic process of caring for and about patients, families, and communities across the life span. The nurse is a competent, knowledgeable, accountable and collaborative member of the multidisciplinary health care team. Utilizing caring behaviors, communication skills, critical thinking, and professional behaviors, the nurse, as a patient advocate, manages patient care and teaches self-care to promote wellness, optimal health and/or a peaceful death.

Nurses are employed in health care facilities, physician's offices, home care agencies, industries, and long term care facilities. There are numerous additional opportunities for nurse employment. According to the US Department of Labor (Bureau of Labor Statistics) website, the mean annual salary for a Registered Nurse in South Carolina is estimated to be $59,000 (May 2006).

Accreditations, Approvals, and Certifications

This program has been accredited by the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, Inc. (National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission 3343 Peachtree Road NE Suite 850 Atlanta, GA 30326 404.975.5000 ) .

This program has also been approved by the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensure, & Registration State Board of Nursing (South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation Board of Nursing Synergy Business Park; Kingstree Building 110 Centerview Drive; Suite 202 Columbia, SC 29210 803.896.4550 ) .

NOTE: The LLR Board of Nursing may deny licensure to graduates of nursing programs based on evidence of unlawful acts, incompetence, unprofessional conduct, or other misconduct. Background checks and drug screening will be requested prior to nursing clinical courses. Successful completion of this program does not ensure nursing licensure. Prior charges may preclude a student from eligibility for entering the clinical and from applying to take the NCLEX exam.

Program Entrance Requirements

Course Level	Required Courses
High School	None
College	At minimum, have completed in ENG 101 (or higher), MAT 110 (or higher), PSY 201, BIO 210, if not previously completed. NOTE: A grade of "C" or better is required for each prerequisite course. Statistic courses are not accepted for this requirement.
NOTE: A grade of "C" or better is required for each prerequisite course.

Other	Required
Diploma or GED	Yes
Approval/Permission Needed -- Application Process Departmental Approval	Yes
Prior Experience/Observation Mandatory attendance at a Nursing Information Session is required.	Yes
Minimum Cumulative GPA of 2.0	Yes
Current CPR Certification by American Heart Association or American Red Cross	Yes
First Aid Certification	No
Hepatitis B Immunization or Signed Informed Refusal or Titer	Yes
MMR Immunization or Titer	Yes
Chicken Pox Vaccination or Titer	Yes
Two-step PPD / Chest X-Ray	Yes
Medical Examination Forms are provided by the college and should be current (within one year) and complete.	Yes
Dental Examination Forms are provided by the college and should be current (within one year) and complete. Dental health must meet departmental standards.	No
Technical Standards Forms are provided by the college and should be current (within one year) and complete.	No
Negative Drug Screen	Yes
Satisfactory Background Check	Yes
Other Diplomas, Licensures, etc.	No
Recent Photograph Photograph will not be returned.	Yes

Academic Standards

Standard Criteria	Required
Courses requiring a grade of "C" or better Any course with one of the following prefixes: ALL	Yes
Courses that may not be attempted more than twice Any course with one of the following prefixes: NUR, PHM	Yes
Complete or Maintain CPR Certification by American Heart Association or American Red Cross	Yes
Curriculum Completion Requirement 36 months	Yes
Drug Calculation Competency Students must demonstrate drug calculation competency each semester in order to progress in curriculum courses.	Yes
Dismissal Policy A student who receives a grade below "C" for any three or more NUR/PHM courses will be dismissed from the program and will not be eligible to re-enter the program.	Yes
Re-entry Policy A FDTC or non-FDTC nursing student must petition the Nursing Admission and Advisement Committee regarding potential reentry.	Yes

Agency Requirements

Students in health majors must meet the published clinical agency requirements when participating in assigned labs. Requirements include immunizations, background checks, and drug testing. To be in compliance with Article, 23, Section 44-7-2920 of the S.C. Code of Law, all students enrolled in AHS 141, DAT 154, DHG 154, HIM 102, MED 102, MLT 110, NUR 160, NUR 201, PNR 110, RAD 101, RES 101, and SUR 101 must complete the requirements listed above prior to being assigned to any direct care entity. Results of the background check/drug screening could affect the student's ability to complete required clinical rotations and/or become credentialed. For example, a felony conviction could make a student ineligible to take the licensing exam(s) required by the profession or prevent the student from participating in the clinical training component.

Graduation Requirements

Complete all required courses specified in the curriculum.
Fulfill all financial obligations to the College.
Achieve a cumulative final GPA of 2.0.
Earn at least 25 percent of the total credit hours of his/her curriculum at FDTC. Exceptions can be made only by the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Program Specific Notes

Students who complete Nursing curriculum receive an Associate Degree in Applied Science and become eligible to apply to take NCLEX-RN to become Registered Nurses.

Testing: A testing fee will be charged to students each semester to cover the cost of tests.

Withdrawals: A withdrawal (W) from a NUR or PHM course constitutes an attempt and will count as one failure to complete the course.

Satisfactory Background check and drug screen after formal acceptance to the program.

Prerequisites for entrance into the program:

The applicant must:

Have a completed admission application to Florence-Darlington Technical College
Have a GPA of at least a 2.0 in all program -- required courses.
Submit (in person) a completed Nursing Program Application to the Department of Nursing's Administrative Assistant in the Health Sciences Campus (HSC) Room 326 by the designated deadline for the selected nursing class. The Application for Admissions to the Associate Degree Nursing Program is available on-line during the Admission Periods for the August Class and the January Class. These times are: (1) March 1 - March 30 for the August Class; and (2) September 1 - September 30 for the January Class.Limit the Admission Application to one nursing program during a given application period.
Have completed official transcripts from all previous colleges attended on file with the Registrar's Office at the time of application to the Nursing Program. Applicants should allow sufficient time to completed the FDTC college admissions process and for the evaluation of transfer credits. This evaluation results in courses being posted to the student's FDTC records, as determined by the Registrar, and is important in the Selection Process. If a transcript of a course of course(s) has not been received by FDTC; and/or (b) has not been evaluated for transfer acceptance to FDTC, then this information is not present on the student's record; therefore, the Nursing Department will not have this information upon which to evaluate the student's academic history. STUDENTS ARE TO BE ADVISED THAT SELECTION OF APPLICANTS FOR A GIVEN CLASS IS BASED UPON THE INFORMATION PROCESSED AND ON HAND AT THE TIME THE SELECTION PROCESS IS INITIATED.
Be residents of Florence, Darlington, or Marion County, or have completed the majority of the required Program credit hours (prerequisites and co-requisites) at FDTC to be given priority in the selection process. All positions will be offered first to qualified applicants who live in one of these counties or have completed the coursework as stated previously. If all available positions cannot be filled using this process, the remaining positions will be offered to qualified out-of-county residents.
Be informed that, should there be a greater number of applicants than positions available, the prerequisite courses and the co-requisite courses, along with the GPA eared in them, will be used in selecting applicants for admission. Selection for admission will be based on (1) the completion of the courses listed and posted on the student's transcript and accepted for transfer to FDTC; (2) the GPA earned in this completed course work; and (3) current course(s) enrollment. The order of coursework priority used in the selection process is as it is sequenced in the Catalog (Semester Curriculum Section).
Students may have to take college admission testing to guide placement in Reading, Math and English courses.