What Are the Pre-Nursing Courses?

If you are planning to become a nurse, you may encounter information about pre-nursing courses and pre-nursing programs. What do these two concepts mean exactly?

Pre-Nursing Courses

Pre-nursing courses are foundational courses that prepare you for the rigors of nursing school. They are usually in math and the sciences but also cover the liberal arts as well.

Liberal arts course requirements may include communication, English composition, ethics, political science, sociology, algebra, statistics, and history.

Most pre-nursing courses are taken in the first two years of college if a student plans to enroll in a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program for the final two years.

Below, we've listed some of the pre-nursing courses that you may need to take.

Human Anatomy

In a human anatomy course, you would study the structure of the body: its cells, organs, and its various systems.

Physiology

In physiology, you would learn about the functioning of the body's systems, such as the muscular, nervous, reproductive, circulatory, integumentary, urinary, skeletal, respiratory, digestive, lymphatic, and endocrine.

Microbiology

In a microbiology course, you would be spending time in a lab and with a microscope as you learn about microorganisms such as pathogens that cause human disease.

You'd also learn about human immunology, microbial infections, and the symptoms of, preventative measures against, and treatment of microbial infections.

Psychology

In psychology, you study the human mind and people's behavior.

Learning about the brain itself is a key topic, including how it functions under stress, how it processes facts and learns language, how mental illness affects it, and its decision-making processes.

Psychopathology

In a psychopathology course, you would study mental distress, mental disorders, and the development of mental illness. You'd learn about their causes, classifications, development, and treatments.

Pre-Nursing Programs

A pre-nursing program, such as an associate degree in pre-nursing, is a structured academic curriculum that provides you with the necessary courses to pave the way for you to succeed in nursing school.

Pre-nursing programs are generally two-year programs that provide core or general education courses, which will serve as a foundation for upper-level undergraduate classes and major programs.

Most pre-nursing programs lead to an associate degree and are equivalent to the first two years of a four-year BSN program.

Also, the credits you earn in a pre-nursing program will prepare you for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) and may also qualify you for the following roles:

• licensed practical nurse (LPN)
• nurse's aide
• certified nursing assistant (CNA)

Associate Degrees in Nursing

Rather than earning an associate degree in pre-nursing, some students choose to earn an associate degree in nursing (ADN or ASN), which enables them to become licensed as a registered nurse (RN).

Associate degrees can provide some or all of the pre-nursing courses necessary for acceptance into a BSN-level nursing school.

There are many RN-to-BSN accelerated programs to quicken the transition from an associate to a bachelor's in nursing.

RNs should want to earn their BSN because their pay will increase and they will have a higher chance of being hired.

What Are the General Requirements To Get Accepted into Nursing School?

Specific requirements will vary among nursing school programs, so be sure to speak with a nursing school admissions counselor at each school you're applying to.

Nursing school prerequisites generally include high school biology and chemistry (with a grade of C or higher) and two years of college-prep math.

Applicants should have a high school GPA of at least 2.75 for an ADN or ASN program or a minimum of 3.0 to 3.2 for a BSN program.

Nursing programs at most colleges require an SAT or TEAS (Test of Essential Academic Skills) test score. Many nursing schools also require a HESI (Health Education Systems, Inc.) entrance exam.

Pre-Nursing Courses and Taking the NCLEX

The National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) is a standard test used by state licensure boards across the United States to assess whether a candidate qualifies to be a nurse.

Most applicants sit for the exam soon after graduating from nursing school.

The categories of the NCLEX are:

• safe and effective care environment
• health promotion and maintenance
• psychosocial integrity
• physiological integrity

Your preparation for this exam comes from both your pre-nursing courses and your nursing school courses, as well as your clinical experience.

Depending upon your career goals, you may take either the NCLEX for practical nurses (PNs) or the NCLEX for registered nurses (RNs).

Statistics from NurseJournal.org show that, in 2022, about 67.46% of the candidates passed the PN exam and 63.39% passed the RN exam that year.

Enroll in Pre-Nursing Courses Today

To start your nursing career, you'll need to complete these pre-nursing courses in an associate degree program or as part of a BSN program.