CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
The University
CHAPTER 2
School of Architecture
CHAPTER 3
Red McCombs
School of Business
CHAPTER 4
College of Communication
CHAPTER 5
College of Education
CHAPTER 6
College of Engineering
CHAPTER 7
College of Fine Arts
CHAPTER 8
School of Information
CHAPTER 9
College of Liberal Arts
CHAPTER 10
College of
Natural Sciences
CHAPTER 11
School of Nursing
CHAPTER 12
College of Pharmacy
CHAPTER 13
School of Social Work
CHAPTER 14
The Faculty
Texas Common Course Numbering System
(Appendix A)
APPENDIX B
Degree and Course Abbreviations
11. School of Nursing
--continued
Admission and Registration
Admission to the University
Admission and readmission of all students to the University is the responsibility of the director of admissions. Information about admission to the University is given in General Information.
Preprofessional Sequence
Students who wish to major in nursing begin their studies by taking prerequisite course requirements as prenursing majors. Prenursing majors must also be advised by the School of Nursing every semester. During their final semester of preprofessional sequence coursework, they may apply for admission to the professional sequence in nursing.
Admission to the Professional Sequence in Nursing
Admission to the School of Nursing upper-division professional sequence is competitive. Students may apply for admission when they are enrolled in the last semester of required prerequisite coursework. The student must have a grade of at least C in each prerequisite course and a grade point average of at least 2.50.
The application includes the application form and personal statement, three letters of reference, a transcript from any other college or university the student has attended, and a high school transcript. Admission decisions are based on (1) the strength of the student's academic background, with special consideration given to his or her grade point average in the required natural science courses and in courses taken at the University; (2) the number of hours the student has taken at the University; (3) the number of repeated courses; and (4) the student's achievements and accomplishments, including volunteer work and activities in health care.
Students from Other Institutions
All students who wish to transfer to the University from another institution must apply to the University Office of Admissions as described in General Information.
Preprofessional Sequence
A student who plans to enter the preprofessional sequence in nursing should consult an academic adviser in the School of Nursing as early as possible for advising and transcript review. Students are encouraged to consult an adviser before applying for admission to the University.
Professional Sequence
A student who wishes to transfer into the professional sequence from another nursing school must make an appointment with the School of Nursing Office of Student Affairs for academic advising and transcript review. Students are encouraged to consult an adviser before applying for admission to the University. In addition to meeting the regular University admission requirements, the student must apply for admission to the School of Nursing. He or she must submit an official transcript from each institution attended, recommendations from faculty members at the previous nursing school, and course information for all completed nursing courses.
Transfer students must meet the same requirements as University students seeking admission to the professional sequence; however, they are considered for admission to the School of Nursing only if they are admitted to the University.
Registration
General Information gives information about registration, adding and dropping courses, transfer from one division of the University to another, and auditing a course. The Course Schedule, published before registration each semester and summer session, includes registration instructions, advising locations, and the times, places, and instructors of classes. The Course Schedule and General Information are sold at campus-area bookstores. They are also published on the World Wide Web and are accessible through the registrar's Web site, http://www.utexas.edu/student/registrar/.
Academic Advising
All prenursing and nursing students must come to the School of Nursing before registration each semester for academic advising. Prenursing students are assigned to academic advisers on staff in the Office of Student Affairs. Appointments are recommended. Nursing students in the professional sequence are advised by faculty members during their regular office hours or by appointment.
Academic Policies and Procedures
Student Responsibility
- It is the student's responsibility to be informed of general and special notices posted in the School of Nursing building and on the listserve.
- The student must make arrangements for the completion of all work, including makeup examinations and requirements for removal of conditional and incomplete grades.
- Because the curriculum is demanding, students are urged to limit work hours while in the program. A student's combined employment and semester-hour load (including clinical laboratory hours) should not exceed forty hours a week in either a long-session semester or a summer term. During the final month of the last semester of the program, students are enrolled in a full time preceptorship and are unable to have outside employment.
- Students may be employed in area hospitals and clinics as nursing assistants, performing functions for which they have been trained by the employing institution and for which the institution has a clearly discernible policy, either in writing or by precedent, defining the scope of these functions. It is illegal for unlicensed students to practice as professional nurses.
Students should be aware that (1) the School of Nursing assumes no responsibility for their activities as employees of an agency; (2) they are personally responsible and liable for any activity they participate in while employed; (3) professional liability insurance purchased by students is valid only in their student role, not in their employment role; (4) individuals who practice illegally may jeopardize their future careers, since those who are convicted of violating the Nurse Practice Act may not be eligible to write state board examinations and subsequently to be licensed.
Students employed in an agency are personally and professionally responsible for engaging only in those activities that fall within their job descriptions as nonlicensed workers (such as aides). They have a responsibility to refuse to participate in activities that they have not been legally licensed to perform, such as giving medications and assuming total responsibility for a nursing unit. - Students should be familiar with the Student Standards of Conduct given in subchapter 11-800, Appendix C, "Institutional Rules on Student Services and Activities," General Information.
Standards of Nursing Performance and Progress
A student must earn a grade of at least C in each nursing course for the course to be counted toward degree requirements. Concurrent or sequential enrollment is required as stated in each course description.
If the student is not on scholastic probation at the University, permission may be granted to repeat a required nursing course in which he or she failed to earn a grade of C or better. To receive credit, the student must repeat the course at the University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing. The semester in which a course is repeated is at the discretion of the dean and is dependent on the space available.
A student may repeat a nursing course only once. If the student does not earn a grade of at least C upon repeating the course, he or she cannot continue in the School of Nursing. If, while repeating the course, the student drops the course or withdraws from the University at a time when the student's performance in the course is considered to be inferior to that required for a grade of C, he or she may not reenroll in the course or continue in the School of Nursing.
No more than two nursing courses may be repeated.
A student may not repeat for credit a course in which a grade of C or better was awarded.
As a prerequisite to medication administration in clinical nursing courses, students are required to pass a medications and calculations test with a grade of at least 90. Calculators may not be used in any medication examination.
Medical Clearance Requirements
Clinical experiences for nursing students are provided in hospitals and other health care facilities with which the School of Nursing is affiliated. A number of these facilities require that nursing students assigned to them have evidence of immunity to certain diseases. Students must provide the School of Nursing with evidence of compliance with immunization requirements before they begin upper-division work.
CPR Requirement
Current certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation is required for participation in clinical nursing courses. The CPR course must include training in infant, child, adult, one-person, two-person, and obstructed airway resuscitation. Students must provide the School of Nursing with evidence of current certification before they begin upper-division coursework.
Health and Hospitalization Insurance
Students are strongly encouraged to purchase health insurance.The cost of personal health care, including care required as the result of clinical practicum experiences, is not covered by either the University, the School of Nursing, or clinical agencies. Information about low-cost group health insurance is available through University Health Services.
Professional Liability Insurance
Professional liability insurance is required of all students enrolled in the professional sequence in the School of Nursing. Each student must pay the insurance premium at the Office of Student Affairs before he or she begins upper-division coursework. All student policies expire on the date of graduation.
Uniforms and Other Expenses
Students must purchase uniforms, shoes, name pin, identification patch, and other supplies before taking the first clinical nursing course. Specific requirements and information about suggested equipment are distributed before the beginning of the first semester of the professional sequence.
Honors
University Honors
The designation University Honors, awarded at the end of each long-session semester, gives official recognition and commendation to students whose grades for the semester indicate distinguished academic accomplishment. Both the quality and the quantity of work done are considered. Criteria for University Honors are given in chapter 1.
Graduation with University Honors
Students who, upon graduation, have demonstrated outstanding academic achievement are eligible to graduate with University Honors. Criteria for graduation with University Honors are given in chapter 1.
Dean's Honor List
Each semester the Dean's Honor List recognizes superior scholastic achievement by students enrolled in nursing prerequisite courses or in the professional sequence of nursing courses. Prenursing students must complete fifteen semester hours in residence on the letter-grade basis and earn at least fifty-two grade points with no grade below a C for the semester. Students enrolled in the professional sequence of nursing courses are required to earn forty-eight grade points when enrolled in twelve semester hours and sixty grade points when enrolled in fifteen semester hours.
Sigma Theta Tau
Epsilon Theta Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau, International Honor Society of Nursing, was chartered at the University on May 16, 1980; before that time, membership in Sigma Theta Tau on the Austin campus was conferred through Alpha Delta Chapter, chartered at The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in 1963. Epsilon Theta Chapter presents scholarly programs each semester; program meetings are open to anyone interested in the program topic. An annual meeting, at which new members are inducted, is held in May.
Membership in Sigma Theta Tau is an honor conferred by active chapters on students who demonstrate academic excellence and on nursing leaders who advance the scientific base of the profession. The society recognizes superior achievement in many areas, facilitates the development of leadership qualities, fosters high professional standards, encourages creative work, and strengthens commitment to the ideals of nursing.
Each year qualified students in the undergraduate and graduate programs may apply for consideration for membership. Invitations to membership are extended to students who are in the top 35 percent of their graduating class. Undergraduates must have a grade point average of at least 3.00; graduate students must have a significantly higher grade point average. Qualified community nursing leaders may also be invited to membership. Applications for membership in Epsilon Theta Chapter are available from the Office of Student Affairs in the School of Nursing.
At the annual meeting each spring, Epsilon Theta Chapter announces its awards, grants, and scholarship recipients. A scholarship is awarded to an upper-division nursing student who has demonstrated leadership potential and has a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 or above. Recognition awards are given to those who have made significant contributions to the promotion of excellence in nursing through outstanding participation in professional organizations, enhancement of the standards of nursing practice or education, noteworthy involvement in community or public areas that affect health, creative delivery of nursing care, or other substantial professional activities. Small research grants are awarded annually to Epsilon Theta Chapter members and/or students enrolled in the graduate program in nursing.
Sigma Theta Tau International has active chapters on more than four hundred campuses with nationally accredited nursing programs granting baccalaureate and higher degrees in nursing. Sigma Theta Tau International offers opportunities for involvement at the chapter, regional, national, and international levels. Programs are offered each year in different parts of the United States under joint sponsorship of chapters and Sigma Theta Tau International. International research congresses are held in cooperation with scholarly nursing organizations in other countries; these programs focus on scholarly topics of relevance to the advancement of nursing knowledge and to the improvement of public health. Research grants are awarded annually by Sigma Theta Tau International as well as by Epsilon Theta and other chapters.
Credit by Examination
The faculty believes that each educational experience should build on previous achievements to encourage fulfillment of each student's potential. Therefore, all students and registered nurses are urged to seek advice on arranging a logical sequence of work. The faculty subscribes to the principle that a candidate's competence should be validated and that credit should be awarded on the basis of satisfactory achievement on examinations as well as in the classroom. Twenty-four of the last thirty semester hours of credit presented for the degree must be earned in residence, rather than by examination, correspondence, or transfer.
An examination for credit may not be taken in a course in which the student is enrolled, which the student has completed, or which the student has dropped with either a passing or a failing grade.
University policies regarding credit by examination are given in General Information.
Undergraduate Catalog
Contents
Chapter 1 - The University
Chapter 2 - School of Architecture
Chapter 3 - Red McCombs School of Business
Chapter 4 - College of Communication
Chapter 5 - College of Education
Chapter 6 - College of Engineering
Chapter 7 - College of Fine Arts
Chapter 8 - School of Information
Chapter 9 - College of Liberal Arts
Chapter 10 - College of Natural Sciences
Chapter 11 - School of Nursing
Chapter 12 - College of Pharmacy
Chapter 13 - School of Social Work
Chapter 14 - The Faculty
Texas Common Course Numbering System (Appendix A)
Appendix B - Degree and Course Abbreviations
Related Information
Catalogs
Course Schedules
Academic Calendars
Office of Admissions
Office of the Registrar
University of Texas at Austin
17 August 2004. Registrar's Web Team
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