Associate of Applied Science
The Associate of Applied Science in Nursing degree (AD Nursing) program from Tennessee State University has been extended to the Volunteer State Community College campus in Gallatin. Most courses are taught on the Vol State campus and clinicals are offered at medical facilities in the Vol State service area. TSU faculty teach the nursing courses and supervise the clinicals while Vol State faculty teach all of the other required courses. Vol State courses include biology, English, mathematics, and psychology. Upon completing the program, a student will receive the Associate of Applied Science degree from TSU and be prepared to take the R.N. licensure examination. All aspects of this cooperative program are described in a contract between the two institutions.
Students who are interested in the Nursing program generally fill out a Vol State application indicating that they are “Degree Applicants” with “Nursing (2 year TSU)” as their Major. A VSCC nursing advisor will be assigned automatically and the student will be notified by mail. Before declaring interest in the nursing program, students must have an acceptable placement score or take the college placement exam to determine if Learning Support Mathematics is required. Completion through MATH 1005 is mandatory before application to the TSU nursing program is made. As an absolute minimum for consideration in the TSU nursing program, a student must have completed all Learning Support competencies, MATH 1005, and a course in chemistry with laboratory.
Students who are eligible to apply to TSU for the TSU Nursing program at Vol State will have completed (1) all required Learning Support Competencies in reading, writing and mathematics through MATH 1005, (2) a laboratory Chemistry course, (3) as many of the non-nursing general education courses as possible, all BIOL courses being completed within 5 years of entering the program, (4) all required courses with grades of ‘A’, ‘B’ or ‘C’, (5) a minimum overall grade point average of 2.50/4 from all colleges attended, (6) the required nursing entrance exam, (7) an application to TSU and received letter of acceptance for admission to TSU, and (8) all of the above along with a separate and completed application to the TSU School of Nursing.
Admission to the Associate of Applied Science in Nursing Program at TSU is considered on a competitive basis, and is in addition to and separate from admission to Tennessee State University. While a minimum cumulative GPA (CGPA) of 2.50/4 is required to be eligible for consideration, recent trends reflect a significantly higher CGPA is usually needed in order to be competitive within the pool of students applying for the limited number of admission openings. For example, within the past few application cycles, the CGPA of students admitted to the program generally ranged from 3.1 to 4.0.
Information concerning the TSU AAS Nursing Program may be obtained by calling the TSU Nursing Office located on the Vol State campus at (615) 230-3293. Contact the Math and Science Division at (615) 230-3262 to schedule an appointment with a Vol State nursing advisor.