Sequoia Hospital/SFSU Baccalaureate Nursing Program at Cañada College
Program Description
This program was founded in 2004 as a four-way partnership among the Sequoia Health Care District, Sequoia Hospital, Cañada College, and San Francisco State University. Our goal is to increase nursing enrollment to help combat the well-known nursing shortage, specifically the shortage affecting the San Francisco Bay Area and the southern portion of San Mateo County. The program provides an additional forty places each year for students interested in and qualified for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree.
The Sequoia Health Care District provides funding for this program on behalf of taxpayers in Atherton, Belmont, Menlo Park, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Carlos, and Woodside. Visit their website at www.sequoiahealthcaredistrict.com.
Sequoia Hospital provides most of the clinical placements for students in the program, as well as clinical instruction. In addition, the hospital supports students with various scholarship opportunities. Their website address is www.sequoiahospital.org.
Cañada College supplies classroom space and facilities, as well as staff support and infrastructure, through its University Center. In addition, Cañada College is committed to expanding its preparatory course offerings, focusing specifically on the courses required as prerequisites for admission to the nursing program. To obtain maps of the campus and general information on bookstore hours, library, parking, special events, programs and classes, visit their website at www.canadacollege.edu.
San Francisco State University provides the curriculum and faculty for the program. Students who successfully complete the program earn their Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from SFSU and are eligible to take the state licensing examination to become a Registered Nurse.
The Sequoia Hospital/SFSU BSN program prepares students for entry level positions in professional nursing practice. The program provides the basic for leadership and graduate education in nursing. Graduates are prepared for staff nurse positions in maternity, pediatrics, medical-surgical nursing, gerontology, psychiatric/ mental health, community health and home care nursing. Graduates are eligible for RN licensure upon completion of the program and Public Health Nursing Certification in California upon licensure. BSN graduates practice in a variety of settings including hospitals, community clinics, long term care, home care, and community health agencies. The program is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing and
accredited by the American Association of Colleges in Nursing (AACN).
Admission Requirements
Eligible applicants for the Sequoia Hospital/SFSU BSN program may be students currently enrolled within the San Francisco State University, undergraduate transfer students, or graduates of a college/university. It is possible for applicants with a bachelor's degree, to obtain a second bachelor's degree in nursing through completion of the satellite BSN program. All applicants must meet SFSU undergraduate admissions requirements; and must meet specific prerequisite courses in order to be eligible for School of Nursing admissions review.
Since Fall 1992, the Nursing Major has been on impaction status (more qualified applicants apply than can be accommodated). This Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program at San Francisco State University admission application period starts on October 1 and ends on November 30 each year. Applicants must submit a BSN admission application to the nursing department. The BSN application may be obtained during the application period from
the nursing website at www.nursing.sfsu.edu. Please read and follow the instructions for the application process carefully, as incomplete applications will not be reviewed by the admissions committee. After the Committee reviews the applications during the Spring semester, the student will receive notification of their application status to the nursing major.
*Current SFSU Students*
Please note that current SFSU Students must complete a SFSU School of Nursing Application that can be located at www.nursing.sfsu.edu/prospective_students_info.aspx (BSN Program Application Instructions and BSN Program Application).
*Transfer Students and Students with existing bachelor's degree*
Prerequisite Courses
Applicants must be admissible to the University in accordance with existing criteria as stated in the section of the University Bulletin “Undergraduate Admissions Requirements.” In addition, students seeking to major in Nursing must meet the following criteria and prerequisites to be accepted in the BSN program:
Applicants must meet the following requirements to apply:
1) Be a California Resident (at least one year).
2) Have an ALL COLLEGE TOTAL GPA of 2.8 or higher at the time of this application.
*In recent years, students admitted to the major have earned an average prerequisite courses GPA of 3.7 or higher and 2 or more supplemental criteria are supported.
3) Have each nursing prerequisite completed with a minimum of a C grade. You may repeat prerequisites until you receive a grade of C or better.
4) Have ONLY ONE of the EIGHT nursing prerequisites in process during Spring following your application submission.
5) Prerequisite Courses
Prerequisite Course Title |
SFSU Course Number |
| Written Communication | (Please refer to SFSU Bulletin) |
| Oral Communication | (Please refer to SFSU Bulletin) |
| Critical Thinking | (Please refer to SFSU Bulletin) |
| Quantitative Reasoning – Statistics | Math 124 (3 semester units) |
| Human Anatomy with Lab | BIO 328 (4 semester units) |
| Human Physiology with Lab | BIO 610/611 (4 semester units) |
| General Chemistry with Lab | CHEM 101/102 (4 semester units) |
| General Microbiology with Lab | BIO 210/211 (4 semester units) |
6) In addition to selection by GPA in the prerequisites, supplemental criteria will be considered for admission to the program. The supplemental criteria are not mandatory; however, it is to your advantage to document the one(s) that you do qualify for:
A) Health related work/ volunteer experience. Must be done by providing documents on formal organization stationery.
B) Live and/or work in Sequoia Health Care District (including Atherton, Belmont, Menlo Park, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Carlos, and Woodside) for at least two years. Must be documented with utility bill, mortgage or rent payment, etc.
C) Multicultural work/ volunteer (Must be done by providing documents on formal organization’s stationery) and/or fluency in a language other than English.
D) Complete at least half of the required prerequisite classes/ units within the San Mateo Community College District (College of San Mateo, Skyline, or Cañada).
7) Letter of Intent: Because both Sequoia Hospital and the Sequoia Healthcare District are partners in this program, applicants are required to submit a Letter of Intent, promising to accept a full-time position at Sequoia Hospital upon graduating from the program. The Letter of Intent is included with the application form for this program. Applicants who are not willing to accept a
position at Sequoia Hospital should not apply to this program.
8) Background Check: Applicants who are selected for this program will be required to provide a background check before entering the program. More information will be provided at the orientation session before classes begin in the fall.
Freshmen applicants are not admitted to the University as Nursing majors. They can be admitted as undeclared, pre-nursing* or to an alternate major. Students interested in the Nursing major must seek advisement from the School of Nursing regarding prerequisite requirements and potential change of major to Nursing. **Please note that the pre-nursing category does not guarantee admission to the major.
Accelerated Nursing Curriculum Plan
Fall (Semester One)
N311 Health Assessment 3
N312 Foundations in Nursing Theory 3
N313 Foundation in Nursing Practicum 2
N314 Nursing Skills Lab 2
N315 Pharmacology 3
N316 Health Assessment Skills Lab 1
Total Semester One Nursing Units: 14*
Spring (Semester Two) - Prerequisite to entering Semester Two: DFM 253 Nutrition in Health and Disease
N321 Pathophysiology 3
N322 Medical Surgical Nursing Theory 3
N323 Medical Surgical Nursing Practicum 3
N324 Geriatric Nursing Theory 3
Total Semester Two Nursing Units: 12*
Summer (Semester Three)
N334 Maternity Nursing Theory 3
N335 Maternity Nursing Practicum 3
N336 Pediatric Nursing Theory 3
N337 Pediatric Nursing Practicum 3
N338 Nursing Research 3
Total Semester Three Nursing Units: 15*
Fall (Semester Four) - Prerequisite to entering Semester Four: PSY 200 General Psychology
N444 Psychiatric/ Mental Health Nursing Theory 3
N445 Psychiatric/ Mental Health Nursing Practicum 3
N446 Community/ Public Health Nursing Theory 3
N447 Community/ Public Health Nursing Practicum 3
Total Semester Four Nursing Units: 12*
Spring (Semester Five)
N556 Nursing Leadership Theory 3
N557 Capstone Practicum 3
Total Semester Five Nursing Units: 6*
Courses in (1) Nutrition and (2) Sociology or Anthropology are required for licensure.
Electives and General Education courses may also be taken concurrently with nursing courses.
Most students must take additional courses, in addition to the required nursing curriculum, each semester. The courses required will vary for each individual student, and can be determined by conferring with your faculty advisor. Students should meet at least once each semester with their advisor to determine satisfactory progress and plan ahead to meet all graduation requirements on time. For more details refer to SFSU's General Education Program requirements for the
baccalaureate degree.
Further information is available on our website at www.nursing.sfsu.edu. You may also e-mail us at nursing@sfsu.edu
San Francisco State University Satellite School of Nursing at Cañada College
4200 Farm Hill Blvd 18-205
Redwood City, CA 94061
650-306-3193
650-306-3183 (Fax)
