How to Apply to Penn State’s Nursing (BSN) Degree: The Nese College of Nursing Admits First-Year Students Directly at Several Campuses, You Cannot Change Campus, Nursing Applications Are Due December 1, for U.S., International (Including China) and Transfer Applicants

Penn State is headquartered at University Park, Pennsylvania. The bachelor’s in nursing (BSN) is offered by the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing, a stand-alone college. Below we organize the fall 2027 details for U.S. applicants, international applicants, applicants from China and transfer students. The college says the General BSN is for people who have never completed a nursing program and do not already hold a four-year degree, including high school students, transfer students and adults. The RN-to-BSN and Second Degree options get this one sentence only.

1. Degree and program

• General Nursing option (GNURS): a four-year BSN; graduates are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN. The FAQ says it combines foundational science and liberal arts courses with nursing courses that include hands-on clinical experience.
• How you are admitted: first-year applicants are admitted directly into the nursing major (not pre-nursing first); entry term: the General BSN page and the Bulletin say summer or fall entry for first-year applicants, while the Entrance to Major Review page says first-year students are admitted in the fall only and the FAQ says the program begins every fall with no spring admission (students may begin University coursework in the summer). The program is described as very sequential and takes four years regardless of AP/IB or transfer credits.
• Campuses: the General BSN page lists University Park plus Altoona, Behrend (Erie), Fayette, Mont Alto, Schuylkill and Scranton, seven in all; the FAQ lists only University Park, Altoona, Behrend (Erie), Schuylkill and Scranton. The 2026–2027 Undergraduate Bulletin says seven campuses, including Fayette and Mont Alto, are scheduled for closure after Spring 2027 and are not admitting new students. Confirm with the college that your campus is still taking fall 2027 first-year students before you apply.
• The Hershey arrangement at University Park: University Park students spend one full academic year at the Penn State Hershey Medical Center campus (a Level I trauma center), living there; the year is assigned by a modified lottery in the second year, or you can choose a “2+2” on the application (years one and two at University Park, years three and four at Hershey and nearby); a few groups such as ROTC and student-athletes are exceptions.
• Clinicals: the FAQ says students complete nearly 900 hours of clinical experience; sites are within a 50-mile radius of campus (except Hershey); examples include Geisinger-Lewistown Hospital, Mount Nittany Medical Center, Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Philhaven Behavioral Healthcare, The Meadows Psychiatric Center and UPMC Altoona. Clinicals begin with sophomore-level spring coursework.
• Accreditation and NCLEX-RN: the FAQ says the BSN is CCNE-accredited and that the national first-time NCLEX pass rate in 2025 is 88% while the Penn State rate is 93% (the college’s wording; the scope of the Penn State figure and the campuses covered are not stated).
• Honors/research, STEM: the nursing pages we read describe no dedicated honors or research program; the FAQ mentions the Schreyer Honors College among student activities; STEM status is not published. A BSN-to-PhD pathway is mentioned in the FAQ, in this line only.
• Pre-med advising: the FAQ says that with careful planning it may be possible to complete the pre-medicine curriculum alongside nursing; talk to your adviser early.

2. How you get into nursing, and the bar

• First-year applicants (high school students, or adults with fewer than 18 credits at another university): admitted directly to nursing at a specific campus; admission is competitive and requires a strong high school GPA. The FAQ says a typical year brings upwards of 4,000 applications, with the intent to yield 160 students at University Park and an additional 300 across the other campuses. A GPA cutoff or SAT/ACT range for nursing is not given; the FAQ links to the university-wide middle-50% ranges and says nursing students typically place at the upper end. We did not read that data.
• No changing campus: students must begin and remain at the campus of admission.
• Change of major and transfer (Entrance to Major Review): University Park is typically first-year admission only (the FAQ table says “not eligible”). The other campuses take change-of-major and transfer students through a competitive process; see section 6.
• Requirements after admission: state and federal criminal background checks before sophomore year; a criminal record may restrict clinical sites, delay progress or delay the licensing exam, and students may not sit for the NCLEX with a felony conviction within the past ten years. Students must be up to date on vaccinations to take part in clinicals: the General BSN page lists COVID-19 (including boosters) and flu as required regardless of any university exemption, while the FAQ says COVID-19 vaccination is strongly recommended and most clinical sites do not currently require it but ask for documentation of prior doses, with requirements set by each site. Each May after year one students complete an annual physical (antibody titers, vaccination history), Pennsylvania child abuse background check, proof of medical coverage, professional liability insurance, American Heart Association Healthcare Provider CPR and a 10-point drug test, and everything must be submitted on time each year to progress. Students must be 18 by September of the second year or step out for a year.
• Entrance exams (TEAS/HESI), interview, volunteer or clinical experience: not on the pages we read.
• Dismissal rules (Bulletin): students who exceed the designated number of attempts are dismissed from the major; the listed limits are two attempts of any prerequisite course, one attempt of any two different required NURS courses, and two attempts of the same required NURS course (the Bulletin’s wording; see the student handbook for how attempts are counted).

3. Prerequisites, courses, credit

• High school (FAQ): four years of English; three years of science; three years of math (algebra, geometry, or trigonometry); three years of social studies/art/humanities combined; two years of a single world language other than English (students who graduated after 2001 and lack two years of the same language must take one world language course within their first two years).
• Required courses (Bulletin), C or better: Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II with labs (BIOL 161–164); HDFS 129; Elementary Microbiology with lab (MICRB 106, 107); Nutrition (NUTR 251); Introductory Psychology (PSYCH 100); chemistry (CHEM 130, or CHEM 110 and 111); sociology (SOC 1 or SOC 5); statistics (STAT 200 or STAT 250). The General Nursing option adds CAS 100, ENGL 15, a writing course and the nursing core: pathophysiology, fundamentals, health assessment, pharmacology, adult medical-surgical, children and adolescents, older adult, childbearing family, community and family health, mental health, leadership and management, a clinical capstone and NCLEX prep.
• Credits: at least 120 credits (General Education 45, electives 4–9, requirements for the major 90–98, with 21–31 of the General Education credits included in the major). These overlap, so do not add them up. Every course in the major needs a C or better.
• AP/IB and transfer credit: the FAQ says these credits may sometimes apply to general education or electives; Admissions decides whether they are accepted and the Nese College decides how they apply; they do not affect your Penn State GPA; and they can bring you to the 59.1-credit point where upper-division tuition starts earlier. AP score cutoffs are not on the nursing pages; see Penn State’s credit pages.
• Other: a personal laptop is required; the college says textbooks, uniforms, curriculum support materials (such as ATI software and simulation lab supplies) and clinical compliance costs total about $5,000 or more over the program, beyond tuition; students need their own transportation from spring of the second year, must attend all clinicals to pass, and lack of transportation is not an excused absence. Traditional study abroad can be done only in summer or breaks, otherwise students fall a year behind.

4. Rounds, deadlines and costs (fall 2027 entry)

• Deadline: the nursing application deadline is December 1, with late applications typically considered on a space-available basis; the FAQ recommends meeting the November 1 early deadline (the FAQ calls it Early Decision, the admissions pages Early Action). The university-wide page adds that after November 1 applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and that many campuses (University Park excepted) accept applications through spring and summer, with the fall application closing July 28; limited-enrollment programs have their own dates. The pages print no year; confirm it is for fall 2027 entry.
• Platform and fee: MyPennState application or the Common App, with no preference; the fee is $65 for domestic and $75 for international applicants, with waivers. Admission decisions are made by the central Undergraduate Admissions Office; the nursing college does not evaluate applications.
• Testing: first-year applicants choose whether to submit SAT or ACT scores (test-optional); the highest combined score from a single test date is used, with no superscore; the optional ACT Science section is not accepted. Any nursing-specific testing requirement is not published.
• Essays and recommendations: not on the nursing and admissions pages we read; check the application system.
• Nursing-specific platform (such as NursingCAS): not mentioned; first-year nursing applicants apply through the university application.

5. The three kinds of applicants

U.S. applicants

• In-state/out-of-state tuition: Penn State says it is state-affiliated, so tuition differs for in-state and out-of-state students and varies by campus, program and level; you generally must live in Pennsylvania for non-academic reasons for a year before enrollment to be a resident, and initial classification is normally set from your high school and parents’ domicile, with a residency review possible. The figures are not on the nursing pages; use the tuition site (tuition.psu.edu) and calculator by campus and program. Students reaching 59.1 credits pay upper-division tuition.
• Nursing surcharge: no nursing surcharge is listed; the only added costs the college lists are the roughly $5,000 above.
• Aid and scholarships: having a FAFSA on file automatically enters you for Nese College scholarships, which mostly go to students beginning the second year and may not renew; a few go to first-year students. The university also lists the Provost Academic Award (out-of-state students at University Park), the Commonwealth Award (Pennsylvania residents at other campuses) and the Discover Award (out-of-state students at other campuses).
• In-state preference: the pages do not describe one for nursing.

International applicants

• Whether nursing admits international students, clinicals, licensure exam, Social Security number: neither the international pages nor the nursing pages say anything specific for nursing; ask the college (nursing@psu.edu) and the international admissions team. The admissions page defines an international student as anyone who needs a visa to attend.
• Documents: the MyPennState application or Common App; a STARS record (students in the South Korean system submit official transcripts instead); proof of English proficiency; SAT/ACT optional unless used for English. After accepting, you send official secondary school records listing the subjects studied each year and the grade earned, with a key to the marking system and minimum passing mark, leaving-exam results where applicable, and certified diplomas if you have graduated.
• English proficiency (scores under two years old): Duolingo 120 minimum; TOEFL iBT 4.5 for exams taken after January 21, 2026 (new scoring) or 80 for earlier exams; IELTS Academic 6.5; SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 570; ACT English 24; GCSE/GCE English A, B or C; IB English A 5 or higher; four years of US high school; and others. Whether nursing sets higher scores is not published.
• Proof of funds and scholarships: after accepting an offer you must certify sufficient resources for the first calendar year (excluding travel) and indicate your ability to meet expenses for later years. International scholarships for nursing are not on the pages we read.
• Deadlines: generally the same as domestic; November 1 is the Early Action date; because of visa processing there are final deadlines for international applicants, but the date table was not in the text we read; see the international deadlines page.

Applicants from China

• Whether the Gaokao is considered: not on the pages we read.
• Transcripts and materials: Penn State’s China page says first-year applicants complete the STARS Record (every class and grade for the last three years plus courses in progress). After you accept an offer, send for grade verification: an official copy of the “cheng ji dan” (transcript book) for “junior year 3 and senior years 1, 2, and 3” (the page’s wording; a dual-language transcript is accepted, but the page strongly recommends also sending a Chinese-only copy), and the official high school diploma with an English translation; if you took the GCSE/GCE exams, final results certificates from all attempts, showing seven strong passes in academic subjects including math, language, science, social science and humanities. Huikao materials are not mentioned.
• China-specific notes for nursing: none on the pages we read; contact the international admissions team.

6. Transfer students

• Who can transfer in: University Park does not take change-of-major or transfer students; Altoona, Behrend (Erie), Schuylkill and Scranton consider current and former Penn State students and students from other universities through a competitive Entrance to Major Review. Once enrolled, it takes at least three years to finish, even if all non-nursing courses are done; you stay at your campus. The review page also says “six Penn State campuses” but names only these four; confirm with the college.
• Prerequisites: the Entrance to Major Review page asks for Anatomy and Physiology I (BIOL 161 and 162, or BIOL 129) by the end of the fall semester of application, and Anatomy and Physiology II (BIOL 163 and 164, or BIOL 141 and 142) plus at least 9 additional non-remedial credits by the end of the spring semester after application. The FAQ table says students with 18 or more credits need a C or higher in Anatomy and Physiology (or A&P I and II) and at least 9 other non-remedial credits. The two pages are worded differently.
• GPA: current Penn State students with a GPA of 3.5 or higher, including those courses, are guaranteed admission; otherwise the review is competitive. A GPA line for external transfer students is not published.
• Deadline and how to apply: December 1, with later applications on a space-available basis. Students who have never taken courses at Penn State apply through Undergraduate Admissions (MyPennState); current students use the Nursing Major Application. Transfer applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, and limited-enrollment programs have their own dates.
• International transfer applicants: the application is through MyPennState with official post-secondary transcripts and proof of English (no STARS record); transcripts from outside the U.S. must list subjects and grades each year with a key to the marking system; international transfer students from China also submit official high school transcripts. Whether nursing takes international transfer students is not published.
• Credit transfer: how transfer and AP credits apply to the nursing degree is decided by the nursing college; see section 3.

Checklist

U.S. applicants:

• Apply through MyPennState or the Common App, choose a campus and nursing; nursing deadline December 1, with the November 1 Early Action date recommended
• High school: four years English, three science, three math, three social studies/art/humanities, two of one world language; testing optional
• After admission: background checks, vaccinations, physical, CPR, drug screen, own transportation; no NCLEX with a felony conviction in the past ten years

International applicants (including China):

• $75 fee; STARS record plus proof of English (Duolingo 120, TOEFL 4.5, IELTS 6.5, etc.); applicants from China send the transcript book and diploma after accepting
• Any extra nursing requirements, whether nursing admits international students and how the Gaokao is used are not published; ask the college and international admissions
• Confirm your campus is still taking fall 2027 first-year students (the Bulletin says seven campuses including Fayette and Mont Alto are not admitting new students)

Transfer students:

• Not University Park; Altoona, Erie, Schuylkill and Scranton through the Entrance to Major Review; December 1; current Penn State students with a 3.5 GPA are guaranteed admission

Sources: Penn State, Nursing college: General BSN; Nursing college: Entrance to Major Review; Nursing college: BSN FAQs; Nursing college: Financial aid; Undergraduate Bulletin: Nursing, B.S.N.; How to Apply; First-year dates and deadlines; International students: apply; International admission requirements; International deadlines; China credentials; Transfer students: apply; Tuition and costs. Information is for fall 2027 entry; check Penn State’s website for the latest.