Nursing at Rockhurst

Congratulations on your acceptance to Rockhurst! Students academically eligible for the Pre-Nursing Scholars program are notified separately from their general admission to RU. Typically, students earning a Breen or McCabe academic scholarship meet the GPA and ACT requirements.

Pre-Nursing Scholars is a unique direct admission partnership between Rockhurst University and the Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences. However, Rockhurst offers a general pre-nursing program that can also support non Pre-Nursing Scholar Program students in pursuing a bachelor of science in nursing degree from one of several potential accredited nursing programs. Our academic advisors and faculty work with students to tailor their time and coursework at RU to become competitive applicants to their target nursing schools.

Additionally, Rockhurst University is known for producing exceptional graduates in the health sciences. We also offer bachelor’s degrees in Health Science, Exercise Science, Communication Sciences & Disorders, Biomedical Physics, programs in Pre-Med, Pre-Physical Therapy, Pre-Occupational Therapy, and graduate degrees in Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Communication Sciences and Disorders. Therefore, there are several opportunities to pursue a career in healthcare with Rockhurst University. Visit our list of majors for more information.

Congratulations! If you choose to accept your offer for one of our 70 direct admissions seats, your next step is to submit your $200 enrollment deposit to Rockhurst University. These limited seats are secured in order of when the enrollment deposit was received. Eligible students who deposit after the first 70 seats have been secured will be added to a wait-list and notified once one of the program spaces becomes available. A wait-listed student can still attend RU as a general pre-nursing student, and could secure a cohort seat if/when it becomes available based on original enrollment deposit date and current RU academic performance.

Correct! If you secure one of the 70 direct admission seats within the Pre-Nursing Scholars program, complete the 63 credit hours pre-requisite coursework at Rockhurst, earn a cumulative GPA of 3.50 with no grade below a B, then you will automatically be direct admitted into the fall 2022 starting term with Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences – no competitive application process required.

Pre-Nursing is not a full degree program at Rockhurst University, and program participant’s final bachelor’s degree will be from the Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences. During the 2 years of a student’s pre-requisite courses at Rockhurst, they can major in any of RU’s over 50 academic programs as long as they complete the required 63 credit hours in specific pre-nursing pre-requisite courses.

The Pre-Nursing Scholars program is not intended to hinder or prevent talented students from competitively applying to any other accredited bachelor of science in nursing program. It is designed to provide a clear successful pathway from a world-class Jesuit education at Rockhurst, to a nationally renowned BSN program at Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences. At any time, Pre-Nursing Scholars can work with their Rockhurst advisors to competitively apply to any BSN program of their choosing, and our pre-nursing academic preparation can make them strong candidates for competitive consideration at Saint Luke’s and other strong nursing programs.

Pre-Nursing Scholars’ Rockhurst scholarships and financial aid are applied during their first 2 years while enrolled at RU. Once a Pre-Nursing Scholar transfers into Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences, they then pay tuition and fees, and file for financial aid, with that institution. Rockhurst University scholarships and grants do not transfer or apply to students once they enroll in the full BSN program with Saint Luke’s.

Because NCAA eligibility is associated with a student athlete’s primary institution, once a student transfers into the BSN program at Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences they will no longer be eligible to participate in Rockhurst University Athletics.

For the first two years, Pre-Nursing Scholars take their pre-nursing pre-requisite courses as a full-time students on the Rockhurst University campus. The program includes multiple opportunities to engage with current Saint Luke’s students, faculty and staff as they prepare to transfer into the full BSN program. Following the completion of pre-requisites, nursing courses will be held at the Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences location at 624 Westport Road, located near Saint Luke’s Hospital on the Plaza. Rockhurst has partnered with Helix Architecture + Design, Co Architects and JE Dunn Construction to renovate Sedgwick Hall on the Rockhurst campus, with completion anticipated in Fall 2022. If HLC and other regulatory bodies approve the formal agreement between Rockhurst and Saint Luke’s to become one institution, all classes will move into Sedgwick Hall once the renovation is complete. If regulatory bodies do not approve the transaction, then classes will continue to be held at the Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences location.

Pre-Nursing Scholars who do not meet the direct admission transfer requirements of a 3.50 cumulative GPA from 63 credit hours of pre-requisite coursework and no grade below a B will forfeit their direct admission seat. However, they can continue in Rockhurst’s general pre-nursing program and pursue competitive application to any bachelor of science program of their choosing (including still competitively applying to Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences).

Rockhurst and Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences expect to continue to hold their current accreditation statuses while the transaction is pending. When the transaction is finalized, they anticipate that the new Rockhurst University – including the Saint Luke’s College of Health Sciences – will hold all appropriate accreditations, including specialized accreditation for health science programs. For more information about current accreditation status, see the Rockhurst and Saint Luke’s accreditation web pages, respectively.