A Week in the Life of a Master of Science in Nursing - Entry Student

First Four Semesters (55 hrs/wk)

As a student in the MSN-Entry program, you will spend the first four semesters working toward taking the RN board (NCLEX) exam (see chart above). When you get your certification and land your first nursing job, you will begin the second, mostly web-based portion of the curriculum, which you can complete in 5-8 additional semesters (see distance student's typical week). 

First Four Semesters
Class Time: In the pre-licensure portion of the MSN-Entry program, you will spend time in the classroom for lectures, tests, and meetings. The faculty work hard to schedule classes one or two days a week to consolidate your time on campus enabling you to focus your clinical hours on "off days".

Simulation Lab: You will acquire critical thinking abilities while working on case studies, mastering clinical skills, and observing computer-programmed "breathing," "heart-beating" mannequins in preparation for working with real patients.

Studying: Apart from class, you will complete reading assignments, work on group projects, write papers, and study for exams.

Clinic: You will spend more than 800 hours with real patients in a variety of settings including acute-care hospitals, sub-acute nursing care facilities, community-health and public-health organizations. Clinical shifts typically run in 8 or 12-hour blocks and are scheduled for one or two days a week.

Professional Development: During the final semester of the pre-licensure portion of the program, you will spend a significant amount of time preparing for your RN boards (NCLEX) and first nursing job. You will attend seminars, workshops, and open houses, and participate in community health fairs and high school outreach programs.

Non-Academic Time
For long weekends or during spring and winter breaks, you can go home to see your family, ski, or maybe take a trip to Las Vegas. There are many cultural and recreational things to do when you live in Southern California, so our students try to take advantage of them when they can.