POLICY AND PRECEDENT #96-04 (as amended 18 September 2001)
MEMORANDUM FOR FACULTY AND STAFF
SUBJECT: Composition and Functions of the Admissions Committee
A. Purpose. This Instruction issues and sets forth the authority, composition, functions and responsibilities of the Admissions Committee of the Graduate School of Nursing (GSN).
B. References. None
C. Applicability. This Instruction applies to applicants, faculty, and staff of the GSN.
D. Definitions.
National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) and the Commission On Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE): The NLNAC and CCNE are accrediting organizations for Nursing Schools in baccalaureate and higher degree programs.
Department Chair: The Department Chair is the person appointed by the Dean to direct a particular focus of study in advanced practice nursing, e.g., Department Chair for Nurse Practitioner and Department Chair for Nurse Anesthesia.
E. Policy. It is the policy of the GSN that:
1. The Admissions Committee reviews all pertinent information to select the best qualified applicants based on evidence of intellectual ability and preparation to successfully pursue studies in advanced nursing.
2. The GSN gives careful consideration to all available information about each uniformed service sponsored applicant and selects students on a competitive basis without regard to race, color, sex, creed, or national origin.
3. The Admissions Committee is advisory to the Dean, GSN, who has final authority for selection of candidates for admission.
4. The Dean, GSN, selects candidates only from among those recommended by the Admissions Committee.
F. Responsibilities.
1. The Admissions Committee shall:
a. Recommend selected applicants to the Dean for admission to the GSN;
b. Authorize notification of applicants and appropriate organizations/agencies of the decisions made regarding the applicants;
c. Monitor and evaluate the screening and selection process in terms of its efficiency, effectiveness and quality;
d. Take action on applicants in accordance with this Policy statement;
e. Make recommendations to the Dean for changes in policies or procedures at the end of each admission cycle.
2. The Dean shall:
a. Have final authority for approving or disapproving the recommendations of the Admissions Committee. For those candidates who are recommended by the Admissions Committee as acceptable at the conditional or alternate level, the Dean may grant final approval of candidates at either level;
b. Not grant any form of acceptance to any candidate without the recommendation of the Admissions Committee; the Dean shall have the authority to reconvene the committee to reconsider recommendations.
c. Certify all Admissions Committee actions that pertain to applicants;
3. The Chair, Admissions Committee shall:
a. Serve as presiding officer of the Admissions Committee with authority to call and preside over meetings, establish priorities for Admissions Committee work, assign tasks, appoint subcommittees, and determine the order and scope of business addressed during meetings;
b. Ensure that a quorum (one more than 50% of the entire Admissions Committee) is present to carry out the work of the committee;
c. Arrange for the replacement of members on the Admissions Committee through the Dean of the GSN;
d. Ensure that Committee actions are completed in accordance with established deadlines;
e. Ensure that all members are familiar with the applicant screening and selection procedures, as well as with this Instruction;
f. Provide administrative support to the Admissions Committee and delegate committee responsibilities to the members as needed, e.g., minutes of meetings, etc;
g. Provide information and assistance to the Admissions Committee;
h. Provide technical direction and guidance to the Admissions Committee on matters pertaining to:
(1) Legislation, governmental directives, regulations and policies that relate to admission to the GSN;
(2) Characteristics of the applicant pool;
(3) Admissions standards, practices, policies and trends at other Nursing schools;
i. Ensure the confidentiality of applicant data;
j. Provide records and data for applicants under consideration by the Admissions Committee;
k. Coordinate and communicate directly with other government agencies, representatives of other professional institutions and members of the public to carry out assigned functions and to make known approved Admissions Committee actions;
l. Receive, through the Dean, the service assignments based upon quotas established by the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs), and Federal Nursing Chiefs;
m. Disseminate information on the admissions policies and procedures of the GSN to potential applicants, the public, other uniformed agencies, and University personnel;
n. Conduct studies on relevant admissions problems and reports findings to the Admissions Committee for the purpose of validating or improving selection procedures;
o. Review applicable regulations of the uniformed services which have an impact on the admission process and makes recommendations to the Dean regarding their suitability.
G. Admissions Committee Membership.
1. The committee shall be composed of:
a. The Chair, a GSN nurse faculty member, other than a department chair, selected by the membership;
b. Members of the Admissions Committee are appointed by the Dean with consideration given to recommendations from the Faculty Council. Membership should be representative of the specialty areas in the GSN and individuals from the University, the School of Medicine, and the uniformed services. Members should be familiar with the nursing curriculum, the needs of nursing in the uniformed services and the GSN, and the admission process. Ex officio members are the Assistant Dean, Admissions and Academic Records (SOM), one representative from each of the four uniformed services (or their designated representatives), GSN program directors, the GSN Commandant, and the Graduate Nurse Program Specialist. Other members, appointed by the Dean, shall be:
(1) One representative from each GSN Department, and one representative from the DoD/VA Distance Learning Program;
(2) One student, alternating among programs (non-voting);
2. Terms of Office:
a. The terms of office of each Admissions Committee member will normally be three years in length. Exceptions may occur with the approval of the Dean, GSN.
b. A member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of a term will serve for the remainder of the term.
c. Under circumstances where resignations, reassignments and other unanticipated turnover in Admissions Committee membership would result in a lack of experience on the committee, one or more members who have served a previous full three year term may be appointed by the Dean to serve an additional period of designated time.
H. Admission Requirements
1. Admission is open to qualified commissioned registered nurses in the uniformed services who receive authorization to participate in graduate education programs under the sponsorship of their parent organization (Army, Navy, Air Force, or the Public Health Service).
2. Approval and sponsorship of the parent organization is required; it is to be understood that acceptance and participation in this program will incur an obligation for additional service on the part of the applicant in accordance with the sponsoring organization's regulations which govern graduate education.
3. Students must be enrolled full time for the traditional MSN programs.
4. Completion and submission of the application form by the designated due date is required.
5. Applicant must have an earned Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing degree from a National League for Nursing (NLN) accredited school and/or an agency recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education.
6. Applicant must assure submission of complete college or post-secondary transcripts; a Grade Point Average (GPA) of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale is desired in undergraduate work.
7. Applicant must assure submission of Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores or Miller Analogies Test (MAT) taken within 5 years of desired matriculation. This requirement may be waived for applicants who hold advanced degrees in related fields of study.
8. A written personal statement from the applicant expressing his or her career objectives must be submitted to the committee.
9. Three letters of support and reference from individuals familiar with the candidate must be submitted. These letters should address the academic and professional activities related to the goals and objectives of this graduate program.
10. A minimum of two years clinical practice for nurse practitioner applicants is required; one year in ambulatory or out-patient service is desired. One year of acute care experience is required for the nurse anesthetist applicants.
12. Current Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) certification is a requirement for both programs. Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) is desired for the nurse anesthesia applicants.
13. The applicant must hold a current state registered nurse license.
14. All requests for waivers of published admissions requirements must be approved by the Dean.
15. The applicant must be an American citizen.
I. Admissions Committee procedures.
1. A quorum of the full committee must be present at meetings for valid action to occur. Any member unable to attend a scheduled meeting is requested to notify the Chair of the committee prior to the meeting. Actions of the committee will be decided by a simple majority vote of all members present including the Chair and will represent the collective judgement of the membership. Voting will be by an open process unless otherwise designated by the Chair.
2. Admissions Process. All applicants who have met the GSN's admission criteria are considered as eligible for consideration for a selected program of study. The final selection is subject to the following actions:
a. Initial Review
Admission applications will be reviewed and applicant interviews conducted by respective program faculty.
Once the application review and interview process is complete, the department will determine whether or not to recommend the applicant for admission; one reviewer from outside the department should take part in this final step.
A standardized summary sheet will be utilized to record the results of the application review, a brief summary of the interview and the department recommendation regarding admission; this will be maintained as part of the application file.
The summary sheet of those applicants recommended for admission to the GSN by the individual programs will be presented to the full admissions committee for approval. The full application file will be available to the committee for review as needed.
A faculty reviewer can request that the full record of an applicant who is not recommended for admission after final program review be reviewed by the full admissions committee if they perceive that candidate to have special qualifications.
If there is a greater number of qualified applicants than seats in the program applied for, and order of merit list can be developed and alternates named. This list will be presented to the admissions committee and maintained as part of the minutes.
b. Final Review. The full Admissions Committee reviews the applicants' summary sheet and program recommendation. One of the following decisions will be made and recommended to the Dean:
(1) Acceptance in full standing.
(2) Conditional acceptance.
(a) Past academic performance not fully acceptable. The applicant will be given one academic semester to demonstrate ability to attain an acceptable GPA. If not successful, the student's record will be forwarded to Student Promotions Committee for evaluation and decision regarding continuation in the program.
(b) Deficit identified in undergraduate program, e.g., statistics. The student must demonstrate successful completion of the deficit prior to entry into GSN, or with permission, in the first year of enrollment. If success is not demonstrated the student's record will be forwarded to the Student Promotions Committee for evaluation and action.
(3) Non-acceptance.
c. Enclosure 1, Recommendation By GSN Admissions Committee, will be completed on each student and forwarded to the Dean by the Committee Chair.
3. Confidentiality of Proceedings and Data.
a. Except for conditional and unconditional offers, all selections and nonselection proceedings of the Admissions Committee, recorded or otherwise, will be confidential. Access to application and supportive credentials will be limited to the committee and the Dean of the GSN. Applicants who are not accepted are informed of criteria not met.
b. Applicants or other individuals who inquire about the composition of the Admissions Committee will be referred to the Dean. Committee members who are contacted by, or on behalf of, applicants for any reason will refer the matter to the Dean for appropriate response. Committee members will not discuss an individual case, counsel anyone who is an active candidate regarding the prospects for admission to the GSN, or relate Admissions Committee decisions or proceedings to any individual outside USUHS without specific authorization to do so from the Dean.
c. Application records are maintained in the GSN for three years.
4. Conflict of Interest. It is imperative to avoid actual or perceived conflicts of interest. If an applicant is known personally to a committee member, the member will make it known to the Chair and will not be present during the review process or vote on the applicant.
J. Effective Date. This instruction is effective immediately and will be reviewed annually.
Recommendation By GSN Admissions Committee for Acceptance into the GSN Class of 200_
___________ Current Date
Name of Recommended
Candidate _________________________________
Uniformed Service _________________________________
Age/Gender _________________________________
Ethnic _________________________________
GPA _________________________________
General overview by the GSN Admissions Committee
DEAN GSN
Approval for Acceptance to GSN Signature and Date
_________________________________
- Prepare Acceptance Letter
Approval Pending Further Information Signature and Date_________________________________
Non Concur/Approval Denied Signature and Date_________________________________
Dean's Comments
Contacts
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
4301 Jones Bridge Road
Bethesda, MD 20814