Pikeville College - Academic Affairs - Division of Nursing - Admission Criteria

Admission to the Elizabeth Akers Elliott nursing program is limited due to Kentucky Board of Nursing approval requirements on faculty/student ratio and availability of affiliating health care agencies. Admission is competitive and based on, but not limited to, ranking according to an objective scale (available from the Nursing Division) and other qualifying factors such as semester GPA, overall GPA in selected courses and pattern of repeating or withdrawing from courses.

A new nursing class is admitted twice a year — in fall semester with an application deadline of March 1, and in spring semester with an application deadline of November 3.

Readmission, LPN-to-RN and transfer applicants from other nursing programs are admitted to either fall or spring semester with an application deadline of respectively, March 1 or November 3.

It is the responsibility of the applicant to verify the College’s receipt, by the deadline date, of accurate records used in the admission selection process. The Nursing Admissions Committee determines acceptance of applicants into the nursing program. Admission or readmission to the nursing program is not guaranteed to any applicant.

All Nursing Applicants

• Meet general admission requirements to Pikeville College.
• High school graduate or the equivalent.
• ACT composite score of 19 or higher within the last five years. If more than one ACT composite is greater than 19 in the last five years, the MTH and ENG subscores on the most recent qualifying ACT are used for admission ranking.
• Completion of Pikeville College English, Math, and reading developmental courses with a “C” or better, if placed in these courses based on ACT subscores.
• If the MTH subscore used for ranking is less than 19, meet the nursing MTH requirement with (choose one):
  1. complete MTH 099 at Pikeville College with a “C” grade or higher;
  2. transfer equivalency of at least an intermediate or applied algebra course;
  3. or per College policy, the highest ACT MTH subscore that is 19 or higher.
• An overall average of “C” or better, represented by a college GPA of 2.0 or higher.
• Minimum of 50% composite score on Nurse Entrance test (NET). Only one retake per academic year (fall/spring) is allowed for those with less than 50% score. NET must be repeated for subsequent academic years (fall/spring). Exception: Readmission nursing students only retake the NET if out of program for more than one year.
• A “C” grade or better in a required support course.
• NOTE: A course at or below “C” grade may be repeated one time. The grade on the second attempt, including “W” grades, stands as the final grade. Science courses must have been taken within the last 10 years. Any exception will be determined on an individual basis by the Nursing Admissions Committee.

Nursing Transfer Applicants

• Meet the admission criteria for all nursing applicants.
• Meet Pikeville College requirements for transfer applicants and transfer credit.
• Transcript evaluation for nursing course equivalency.
• Grade of at least a “C” (76%) on required Nursing Challenge exams if out of a registered nurse program more than one year but less than three years, or if required for transfer equivalency. Otherwise, the student must apply as a new nursing student with an application deadline of March 1 or November 3.
• Validation of selected nursing skills.
• Abide by an admission contract, if applicable, which may specify one or more required activities.
• Two letters of reference, one of which must be from the applicant’s former nursing program.
• Meet with the Nursing Division Chair and/or the Admissions Committee for a personal interview and update on requirements.

LPN-to-RN Applicants

• Meet the admission criteria for all nursing applicants.
• Meet Pikeville College requirements for transfer applicants and transfer credit.
• Valid practical nursing license.
• Minimum of one year of clinical experience as an LPN within the last three years.
• Grade of “C” or better in prerequisite Semester I and Semester II support courses.
• Grade of “C” (76%) or better on required Nursing Challenge exams.
• Grade of “C” or better in NUR 130 received within the last two years.
• Meet with the Nursing Division Chair and/or the Admissions Committee for a personal interview and update on requirements.

Readmission Applicants

• Meet admission criteria for all nursing applicants.
• Submit a petition letter to the Nursing Admissions Committee to explain why the student failed to progress in the nursing program and what has been done to remedy the situation.
• A student only can be readmitted to a nursing program one time.

You can download the “RN Applicant Checklist,” the “LPN to RN Program Checklist” and the “Admissions Criteria Ranking Sheet” as Adobe Acrobat PDF documents. To view these files click on the appropriate link below.

- RN Applicant Checklist (32 KB)

- LPN-to-RN Program Checklist (37 KB)

- Admission Criteria Ranking Sheet (29 KB)