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The following Guidelines for Selective Admission outline important information for applicants to the Nursing program, including program options, admission requirements, deadlines and HESI A-2 exam information.

Program Options

Â鶹ӰÊÓ’s Nursing program offers several options:

1.  The One-Year Advanced Option (NUA) is an accelerated one-year nursing option that allows students with substantial college coursework to complete the Associate in Applied Science degree in one year. Students begin the program in the summer (May) and complete their studies the following May.
   The following college-level courses must be completed prior to enrollment to be considered for this option: English Composition I, Anatomy & Physiology I and II, Microbiology and General Psychology. Preference for the One-Year Advanced Option will be given to students who already possess or will possess a bachelor’s degree by the May start.
2. The Day Option (NUR) is structured as a two-year, full-time model, with core/clinical nursing courses beginning in the first semester. Instruction follows a fall/spring format. Corequisites can be taken at the same time as clinical-related courses.
3. The Weekend Option (NUW) is structured as a two-year, full-time or part-time model, depending on coursework completed prior to the start of the program. Core/clinical nursing courses begin in the first fall semester.
   Instruction follows a fall/spring format. Corequisites can be taken at the same time as clinical courses during the weekdays or completed prior to beginning clinical courses if a student would like to complete the program in two years.
4. The Evening Option (NIR) is structured as a four-year, part-time model, with core/clinical nursing courses beginning two years after acceptance into the program. The Evening Option may be completed in less than four years, depending on transfer credit and space availability. Corequisites can be taken at the same time as clinical-related courses during the weekdays or completed prior to beginning clinical courses.

Additional Consideration

Additional consideration may be given to veterans and applicants currently employed at health care facilities in Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady or Saratoga counties. If you are currently employed at one of the local health care facilities, please have your employer submit a letter to the Admissions Office at  (admissions@hvcc.edu) indicating support for the nursing program.

About the Program

This Nursing program is one of the most popular programs at Â鶹ӰÊÓ, and for this reason, there are more applicants than there are spaces available. Admission to the Nursing program is considered competitive.

• The Day, Weekend and Evening options begin in the fall only.
• The One-Year Advanced Option is a summer (May) start only (but the application has to be submitted to the fall term). If you are applying to the One-Year Advanced Option, please submit a letter of intent stating why you are interested in Nursing, why Â鶹ӰÊÓ and why in a one-year format to admissions@hvcc.edu separately from your application.
• There is no spring (January) start for any Nursing program option.
• All application requirements, including the admissions application and high school and college transcripts, must be submitted to the Admissions Office by Feb. 1 to be considered for the program. HESI-A2 exam scores must be submitted by Jan. 15.

Prerequisites

All applicants, regardless of program option, must have completed biology, chemistry and either algebra or one unit of equivalent mathematics in high school. There is no time limit on these courses. Applicants must also meet the following grade requirements:

• 75 or above in each prerequisite course with a passing Regents exam
• 85 or above in each prerequisite course without passing Regents exam
• 75 or above in each prerequisite course from out of state and out of country high schools
• A cumulative high school average of 75 or higher
• Adult education courses are considered non-Regents courses and require a grade of 85 or higher.

If the above prerequisites have not been satisfied during high school, they may be taken at Â鶹ӰÊÓ or another college, with no time limit restriction. The acceptable grades for Hudson Valley courses of these prerequisites are a minimum of:

• BIOL 105 or 109: Grade of C or higher
• CHEM 095, 100 or 105: Grade of B or higher for Chemistry 095 and C or higher for 100 and 105
• MATH 099: Grade of B or higher

In addition to the above high school prerequisites for students applying to the Evening and Weekend options, the following coursework must be completed with a C or higher; or completed with a C or higher prior to entering NUR 201:

• BIOL 270 and 271: Anatomy & Physiology I and II *
• BIOL 205: Microbiology *
• ENGL 101: English Composition I
• PSYC 100: General Psychology
• PSYC 205: Developmental Psychology *

* courses must be completed within five years of the start of the program

Prerequisites can be taken at other colleges. You should consult with the Admissions Office at Â鶹ӰÊÓ to find out if those classes meet the minimum criteria. Generally, credit bearing prerequisite courses will require a C or higher and non-credit will require a B or higher.

Health Education Systems, Inc. Admission Assessment (HESI-A2)

As part of the application requirements, once you have applied with all of the prerequisites fulfilled by the deadline, you will also have to submit HESI-A2 Exam scores by Jan. 15. Your score on this test will determine your ranking for admission. Applicants are allowed to take and submit up to two sets of HESI-A2 test scores. Approximately 75% or more of applicants who meet the minimum prerequisites and take the HESI-A2 exam are accepted into the program. A minimum cumulative total score of 70% is required for the Day, Weekend, Evening and One-Year Advanced options. The test is customized to the college/university. Our HESI-A2 test includes questions in the following areas:

• English: Reading comprehension, Vocabulary, English (grammar, sentence structure and vocabulary)
• Mathematics: Focusing on math skills needed for health care fields, including basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, fractions, decimals, ratio and proportion, household measures, and general math facts that are useful, for example, when calculating drug dosages and solutions.
• Science: Anatomy & Physiology (coverage of general terminology and anatomical structures and systems), Biology and Chemistry
• Learner Profile: Learning style and personality profile

Registering and Taking the HESI-A2

Create an Evolve Account

Use the following steps to create an Evolve account and register for the HESI-A2 exam:

1. Visit
2. Create Account or Sign into an existing account

Scheduling an Exam

Make sure you are signed in to your Evolve account before registering for the HESI A-2 exam. Select the appropriate link below based on whether this is your first or second attempt and whether you will take the exam in person or remotely. For example, if this is your first attempt and you plan to take the exam in person, select “First HESI A-2 Attempt – In Person."

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email with instructions for setting up your exam.

Technical Standards

All applicants accepted into the Nursing Program must be able to meet the department's technical standards as outlined below. Â鶹ӰÊÓ's Center for Access and Assistive Technology will provide accommodations for students with documented disabilities.

Technical Standards for Admission, Promotion and Graduation

Technical Standards are non-academic criteria used in the admission, promotion and graduation of students. Technical Standards are published discipline specific essentials critical for the safe and reasonable practice of Nursing.

Technical Standards are a concrete statement of the minimum physical, sensory/motor, communication, behavioral/social, mental/emotional and environmental requirements for normal and safe professional function. They are intended to inform the prospective student/professional of the attributes, characteristics and abilities essential to nursing practice. Professional competency is the summation of many cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills. The College has a moral and ethical responsibility to select, educate and certify competent and safe students and practitioners. Patient health and safety is the sole benchmark against which we measure all performance requirements, including the Technical Standards addressed in this document.

An Applicant Technical Standards form (PDF) must be signed and returned to the Nursing program.

• Must be able to demonstrate appropriate observation and assessment nursing care skills. Reading charts, flow sheets, monitors, and thermometers. Assessment of patient skin color, pupils, wound healing. Drawing up and administering medications.
• Must be able to demonstrate the ability to monitor and assess health needs. Auscultation of blood pressure, breath sounds, heart sounds, bowel sounds. Hearing alarms, call bells, cries for help by clients and staff. Auditory ability to converse with clients, families and co-workers. Understanding mechanically reproduced voices such as audiotape.
• Communication abilities sufficient for interaction with others in verbal and written form. Follow verbal and written instructions.
• Clearly communicate with other health care providers by appropriately documenting the nursing interventions provided and the clients' responses. Provide effective client teaching, consult with other health care providers in a professional manner.
• Ability to meet the physical demands of providing nursing care - lifting, moving, carrying, pushing and supporting clients, equipment and other objects independently. Standing, bending, walking and sitting while working directly with clients and co-workers and documenting care. In addition to the physical capabilities required during the classroom and laboratory sessions, clinical education includes moving briskly between patient care areas, and meeting the mental and physical demands of 12-hour shifts on both day and night rotations.
• Tactile dexterity sufficient for physical assessment. Perform palpation, functions of physical examination and/or those related to therapeutic intervention, e.g. insertions of a catheter, giving injections.
• Gross and fine motor abilities sufficient to provide safe and effective nursing care. Perform vital signs, CPR, physical assessment, use equipment, hanging IVs and tube feedings, drawing up and giving injections. Demonstrate the ability to document nursing interventions and patient care.

If you have a documented disability and require reasonable accommodations to meet the technical standards, please contact the Center for Access and Assistive Technology.

For information on services for students with disabilities or if you have a question regarding these technical standards please call or write to:

Â鶹ӰÊÓ
Center for Access and Assistive Technology (CTR 130)
80 Vandenburgh Ave., Troy, NY 12180
Phone: (518) 629-7154
T.D.D.: (518) 629-7596
Fax: (518) 629-4831

Please feel free to write a separate letter and to forward any reports, articles, or other information that would be helpful in providing support. NOTE: Appropriate documentation must be supplied in order to secure the requested accommodations. The completed form and related correspondence should be returned to the Center for Access and Assistive Technology, Siek Campus Center Room 130, Â鶹ӰÊÓ, 80 Vandenburgh Ave., Troy, NY 12180.