Nursing Admission Process Update

Please note that the nursing program doesn't do advising. You will need to contact a healthcare advisor for prior course review and academic planning.

Tacoma Community College’s Nursing program is committed to reducing barriers for students to earn a nursing degree and has developed a more equitable and holistic admission process. 

We are very pleased to announce that beginning with the next application cycle, starting on June 1, 2024:

• The Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) exam will NO LONGER be required for admission to the traditional RN and the LPN to RN programs.
• The CNA (NAC) certified nursing assistant credential will NO LONGER be required for admission to the traditional RN program. LPNs will still be required to have an unencumbered LPN license for the LPN to RN program application.
• Please note that applicants with specific healthcare experience and/or credentials (such as CNA/NAC, MA, EMT, RT, etc.) may receive additional points in the new scoring system, however the CNA/NAC credential is no longer mandatory.
• Retakes or repeats for ANY pre-requisite course will NO LONGER carry a penalty such as deduction of points in the new scoring system. There continues to be no time limit on the age of prerequisite courses.

NOTE: The only changes to prerequisites are the additional options for Communication courses.

Completion of the courses listed below with a 'B' or higher. There are no attempt or expiration date rules. 

• ENGL& 101* (English Composition I)
• CHEM& 121 (Introduction to Inorganic Chemistry or CHEM& 161 (General Chemistry w/lab I)
• BIOL& 241 (Human Anatomy and Physiology I)
• BIOL& 242 (Human Anatomy and Physiology II)
• BIOL& 260 (General Microbiology)
• PSYC& 200 (Lifespan Psychology)

*A B grade in ENGL& 102 or ENGL& 103 or ENGL 235 may be accepted in lieu of the ENGL& 101 B grade requirement.

(Example: you can take ENGL& 101 and get a B-, C+ or C. You can then take ENGL& 102, ENGL& 103 or ENGL& 235 achieving a B or better to meet the requirement and use the ENGL& 101 grade to meet completion of the English course listed with a 'C' or higher in the section below.)

Completion of the courses listed below with a 'C' or higher. There are no attempt or expiration date rules. 

• ENGL& 102 (English Composition II: Argument and Persuasion) or ENGL& 103 (English Composition III: Writing about Literature) or ENGL& 235 (Technical Writing)
• CMST& 210 (Interpersonal Communications) or CMST 320 (Professional and Organizational Communication) or CMST& 220 (Public Speaking) or CMST& 101 (Introduction to Communications) or CMST 110 (Multicultural Communications)
• Nutrition 250 (Nutrition in Health Care) or NUTR& 101
• PSYCH&100 (General Psychology)
• BIOL&160 (General Cell Biology). BIOL& 211 (Majors Cellular) or BIOL& 222 (Introduction to Cellular & Molecular Biology) may also be used to meet this requirement.  
  NOTE: If you are a Tacoma Community College student and have taken a higher-level Biology class, you can contact Ken Cushman to arrange taking a challenge exam for BIOL&160 credit.
• MATH&146 (Statistics)
• Humanities - 5 credits (Choose from the Approved Humanities Distribution List)

APPLICATION CYCLE DATE UPDATE

All prerequisite coursework must be complete, and all official transcripts must be to our college before application deadlines. There will be no exceptions to this. We ask that you please don't apply to the nursing program until you have completed all prerequisite courses. 

We will now have three 2-year program application cycles and one LPN to RN application cycle per year as follows: 

2-Year Students: 

• Fall (Starts in September): The application is open from June 1 - July 1.
• Winter (Starts in January): The application is open from August 1 - September 1.
• Spring (Starts in April): The application is open from Dec 1 - Jan 1 

LPN to RN Students: 

• Winter (Starts in January): The application is open from July 1 - Oct. 1 

nursing admission scoring rubric

Students will be evaluated and scored by the following criteria:

Criteria for Admissions	Points Possible
Completion of pre-requisites that require a 3.0 (B) grade or higher	0-required
Completion of pre-requisites that require a 2.0 (C) grade or higher	0-required
Combined GPA (Grade Point Average) of 3.5 for BIOL& 241, BIOL& 242, and BIOL& 260	2
Documented veteran/Current military (must have honorable discharge)	2
Documented low income or low socioeconomic household	2
Documented healthcare experience	2
Students who have earned TCC college level credits (courses 100 or above): 15-29 credits would receive 1 point. 30 or more credits would receive 2 points	1-2
Documented community service, or paid work, with underrepresented populations	1
Caregiver for a family member	1
Bilingual/Multilingual	1
First generation college student	1
A maximum of one point will be added to an applicant's score if they have submitted a complete application to the new holistic admission process in the last year.	1 point available starting Winter 2025

DOCUMENT AND SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Base Requirements:

• Upload unofficial transcripts from all colleges/universities attended, including Tacoma Community College.

 Documented Veteran/Military:

• You must be active-duty military or a veteran with an honorable discharge.
• If you are active duty, you will need to upload your current orders in the nursing application. If you are a veteran, upload a DD214 form. Personal information can be redacted.

Documented Low Income:

• Upload an official agency award letter or other documentation showing that you or one of your dependents are receiving any of the following benefits: Current financial aid award (Pell Grant or Washington Opportunity Grant,  etc.) reduced or free school lunch, Unemployment benefits, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Basic Food & Employment Training (BFET), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), State Food Assistance Program (FAP), Social Security Income (SSI), Childcare Subsidy Program, or Medicaid.

 TCC College Level Credits:

• This will be calculated during transcript review. No documentation is required.

Combined GPA for BIOL& 241, BIOL& 242, and BIOL& 260:

• This will be calculated during transcript review. No documentation is required.

Documented Healthcare Experience:

• Upload documentation from the Department of Health (Provider Credential Search) for any of the listed careers. If your healthcare experience is from another state, you will need to get documentation from your state agency. Licensing/Certification must be current or, if expired, cannot be expired for more than seven years. Note: this list DOES NOT include all healthcare careers that may be accepted. Please submit documentation for review if your healthcare career is not listed:
  • Certified Nursing Assistant
  • Emergency Medical Technician
  • Paramedic
  • Medical Assistant
  • Home Care Aide
  • Dental Assistant/Hygienist
  • Occupational Therapist
  • Mental Health Counselor
  • Physical Therapist
  • Pharmacy Technician
  • Substance Use Disorder Professional
  • Radiologic Technologist
  • Radiologic Assistant
  • Respiratory Care Practitioner
  • Phlebotomist
• Certain non-licensed health careers may be considered with appropriate documentation (an official HR letter on your organization's letterhead detailing job description and current/active dates of employment MUST be uploaded). Applicants must be currently employed or employed within the last 6 months of submitting the nursing program application.

Documented community service or paid work with underrepresented populations:

• Upload an official agency letter (on letterhead) confirming 100 volunteer hours within the last year.
• The program follows the federal governments’ designation of underrepresented. The term “underrepresented population” means a population or subgroup that is typically underrepresented in the US population. This may include allocation of goods, social services, healthcare, etc. The subgroup may be identified by race, ethnicity, age, sex, gender, socioeconomic status, persons with limited English proficiency, or persons from rural areas, people with disabilities, people from disadvantaged backgrounds, and underrepresented racial and ethnic groups such as blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, American Indians or Alaskan Natives, and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.

Caregiver for a family member:

• Upload an official state agency letter (on letterhead) confirming that you are currently a paid caregiver or were a paid caregiver for a family member within the last 5 years. If you are the legal guardian of a child who requires in-home medical care and you are not paid for this, please upload documentation regarding medical care needed and a letter explaining the healthcare you provide. 

Bilingual/Multilingual:

• Bilingualism refers to the ability to speak and understand two languages, while multilingualism encompasses the use of more than two languages by an individual or a community of speakers. To meet this requirement, the applicant must be able to communicate with a patient in at least two languages.
• This will be a question that you will answer in the nursing application. No documentation is required.

First-generation college student:

• A first-generation college student refers to students whose parents did not complete a 4-year college or university degree.
• This will be a question that you will answer in the nursing application. No documentation is required.

Prior Applicant: 

• This point is given to applicants that have previously applied to the nursing program in the new holistic admission process. This will be implemented in the Winter ‘25 application cycle.
• This will be a question that you will answer in the nursing application. No documentation is required.

 

Jillian T. Edwards, DNP, MN, BSN, ARNP, FNP-BC, RN 
Associate Dean of Nursing
Tacoma Community College