Admission Requirements

Admission to Biola University as a pre-nursing major does not guarantee admission into the clinical nursing program. Admission into the clinical nursing program is competitive and there is a separate application process. Student selection into the clinical nursing program is exclusively determined by the full-time nursing faculty members. An application fee is applied. Admitted students are required to pass a criminal background check and physical examination and submit written proof of receiving all required immunizations, a current American Heart Association CPR/AED for Healthcare Professionals card, valid driver’s license, current passport and current automobile insurance.

1. Students receiving the highest priority for acceptance into the clinical nursing program meet the following criteria in addition to meeting the minimum admission criteria stated in numbers 3 and 4 below:

  • Have a GPA of 3.3 or higher combining GPA from all colleges attended.
  • Have a total science GPA of 3.0 or higher on all college level required pre-requisite sciences taken at Biola or transferred in from other colleges.
  • Have taken at least 3 sciences at Biola
  • Have not had to repeat science(s) for C- or below at Biola or at other college(s)
  • Will have completed 4 semesters at Biola before entering the clinical nursing program.

2. Students meeting the minimum criteria will be accepted on a space available basis after the higher priority students have been accepted. The minimum criteria for acceptance into the clinical nursing program include all the following:

  • Have a GPA of 3.0 or higher combining GPA’s from all colleges attended.
  • Have a total science GPA of 2.0 or higher on all college level required pre-requisite sciences taken at Biola or transferred in from other colleges.
  • Have earned a minimum grade of “C” (2.0) in all pre-requisite courses which include anatomy, physiology, inorganic and organic bio chemistry, microbiology, communications (110, 170, 181, or 280), English 110A and 110B, first aide, and psychology
  • Have not had to repeat science(s) for C- or below at Biola or at other college(s)
  • Will have completed 4 semesters at Biola before entering the clinical nursing program

3. Additional criteria required of all applicants for acceptance into the clinical nursing program include the following:

  • Be a student in good standing at Biola University with no history of disciplinary problems.
  • Submit satisfactory personal references as described on the application form.
  • Submit a well-written biographical sketch meeting the criteria described on the application form
  • Demonstrate adequate English language and grammar writing skills on a paper written at the time of the group interview
  • Demonstrate critical thinking and effective communicate ability in a group interview.
  • Performance above 67 on the comprehensive TEAS nursing pre-admission test.
  • Earn SAT scores above 1410 for the 3 tests.

4. Additional qualifications which are considered in the selection process which may enhance applicant’s potential for admission include but, are not limited to the following:

  • Work experience of any kind. Additional consideration is given for those with work experience in health care settings.
  • Volunteer experiences. Additional consideration is given for those with volunteer experience in health care settings.
  • Leadership activities in church, high school, or college.
  • Cross cultural experiences
  • Special abilities such as: fluent in language(s) (including sign) other than English, unique computer skills, etc.
  • Extra curricular activities.
  • Family responsibilities

5. If space is available after selection of students meeting all of the above criteria, students who do not fall into the above categories will be considered.

  • Qualified applicants who will have less than 4 semesters completed before starting clinical nursing program will be considered using all the above criteria. The number of semesters at Biola will determine acceptance priority for qualified students when limited space is available
  • Students who fail one science and repeat that course at a B level or better may be admitted if there is space after all other qualified students have been admitted. When a science is repeated both the original grade and the repeated grade are included in computing the science GPA.
  • Students who fail one science and repeat that course at a B level or better and who remain at Biola for an additional year may be given an increased priority rating if they do well in all their continued course work and meet all other admission requirements.