In a move to boost the number of nurses with bachelor’s degrees in Washington State, the community and technical college system and four-year universities have reached a landmark agreement to create a shorter, smoother process for students to achieve the degree. A new statewide Associate in Nursing transfer agreement standardizes the way credits are awarded and accepted between and among Washington’s community and technical colleges and four-year universities.
Students who earn an associate degree in nursing from a participating community or technical college and pass the registered nurse license exam may enter Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs as seniors rather than as juniors, trimming up to a year off the path to a bachelor’s degree in nursing.
Associate transfer degrees typically place students at the junior level, but the agreement recognizes that community and technical college students already have a head start on their general education requirements because of the tough prerequisites needed for competitive admission into their own community or technical college nursing programs.
Community and technical colleges that plan to make use of the agreement are now working to ensure their programs align to the new transfer pathway.
Click here to read the whole announcement and here to read the overview of the agreement.
