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Resources and Information about the Nursing Program

Information Sessions

We strongly encourage prospective students to attend a nursing program information session, which are held throughout the year to provide students with critical information about the program. The sessions are held via Zoom, and advance registration is required.

Upcoming Info Sessions: 

  • February 13, 2023, 4:00 p.m. EST
    Register in advance
    After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

  • March 20, 2023, 4:00 p.m. EST
    Register in advancenew window
    After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

 

These hour-long sessions cover a variety of topics, including how to become competitive for admission, the application process, and the nursing curriculum. You may also download the nursing information session packet (PDF, Get Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader - Link opens in new window) . The nursing program chair conducts these sessions and is available for general questions. The information sessions are not substitutes for individual counseling. We strongly encourage prospective students to attend a session and, if necessary, schedule an appointment for advising with Maureen Mirowski, health sciences counselor at the Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus.

Special Admissions Information

Admission to Montgomery College is open to all; however, the nursing program is a selective application-based program limited to 132 students each semester. Visit the Health Sciences Admissions page for complete details, including special admissions requirements and the health sciences application. 

Additional Expenses and Financial Aid Information 

There are additional costs associated with starting the nursing program upon acceptance and enrollment, including immunizations, uniforms, testing fees, textbooks, CPR certifications, and more. See Approximate Costs of Starting the Nursing Program (PDF, Get Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader - Link opens in new window)   for more information. 

The program’s overall tuition is determined by Montgomery College's current tuition rates for credit courses. The nursing program is 70 total credits. Financial aid is available. 

Frequently Asked Questions

To apply to the Nursing Program, a student must:

  1. be enrolled at Montgomery College;
  2. have completed course work in the following courses:
    1. ENGL 102 (Critical Reading, Writing, and Research) or ENGL 103 (Critical Reading, Writing, and Research in the Workplace)
    2. MATH 117 (Elements of Statistics) or higher
    3. BIOL 212 (Human Anatomy and Physiology I)
    4. BIOL 213 (Human Anatomy and Physiology II)
  3. have met the minimum required scores on the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) (70% in reading and 66% as an adjusted total score)
  4. have a GPA of 2.5 or higher.

For more comprehensive information on admissions requirements, please visit the health sciences admissions page

The Nursing Program requires two academic years to complete. Students often need additional time to complete the prerequisite courses listed in question one.
Currently, the Nursing Program accepts up to 128 students each semester.

The upcoming application deadlines for the Nursing Program are:

Application Submission Deadline 

Semester of Entry into the Program 
Fall Semester of 2021: Thursday, April 1, 2021 
Spring Semester of 2022: Monday, August 2, 2021
Fall Semester of 2022: Friday, April 1, 2022
Spring Semester of 2023: Monday, August 1, 2022

We recommend that you always check the Nursing Program Admissions webpage, or call the program directly if there are any questions about the deadlines.

A minimum grade point average of 2.5 is required. No student with a GPA below 2.5 is admitted into the program.
No, nursing classes and clinical work are offered during the weekdays only.
Students should plan on a minimum of three to four days a week to be in lectures, clinical, and in labs. Additional time will be needed to read and study for the courses. Please remember that your schedule will need to be flexible.
There are additional costs associated with the Nursing Program (PDF, Get Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader - Link opens in new window)   upon acceptance and enrollment. The program’s overall tuition is determined by the current tuition rates for credit courses. The Nursing Program is 70 total credits.
No, students who are not enrolled in the program cannot take Nursing courses.
No, the nursing curriculum is dependent on proper sequencing of courses and requires two academic years to complete. A college degree may exempt students from the general education requirements in the Nursing Curriculum but it will not exempt students from the science requirements. There is no accelerated program.
The TEAS exam is required for all application submissions to the Nursing Program. Applicants cannot be exempted from the requirement regardless of factors like educational background, prior course work, grade point average, or existing degrees. See TEAS resources for more information. 
Courses from other countries may be transferred into Montgomery College, but they must first be evaluated by an approved, international credentials evaluation service. Contact the Office of Records and Registration at 240-567-1501 for an information packet on course evaluation.
Yes, it is possible to transfer into the program from a different Nursing Program. For more detailed information, please see Transferring In to the Nursing Program. Please note that the Director of the Nursing Program must evaluate all requests for transfer.
No, the Nursing Program is based on Takoma Park/Silver Spring campus. There are no classes available at the other campuses.
Currently, distance learning options are very limited.

No, the Transition to Nursing course for LPNs, military medics/corpsmen, and paramedics differs from the regular Nursing Program. It is a bridge program, designed to give credit for prior certification and work experience. For additional information, see the Transition to Nursing Course page. 

Most major colleges and universities accept all or most of the general education credits taken at the Associate Degree level. Placement testing may be required to validate previous nursing courses. Students are Registered Nurses upon successful completion of the licensing examination following their Associate Degree education. A student who continues on for a Baccalaureate Degree does not take an additional licensing examination. Montgomery College participates in the Maryland Articulation Model. In addition, agreements with most of the private colleges and universities in the area allow direct transferability of courses in the Nursing Program.

A student can call the Office of Records and Registration at 240-567-1501 or the College Recruiter at 240-567-1583. Applications are also available for download from the Health Sciences Admissions webpage. The application should be mailed or hand-delivered to the Office of Enrollment Services on the Takoma Park/Silver Spring campus. The address is listed on the application.

The Nursing Program office does not accept or process applications.

Job opportunities for RNs are expected to be very good well into the future. Employment of Registered Nurses is expected to grow faster than average for all occupations, and because the occupation is very large, many new jobs will be available. Thousands of job openings will also result from the need to replace retiring, experienced nurses.
No, if you would like a one-on-one counseling session to discuss applying to the program, creating a plan for your education, learning more about prerequisite course work, determining which general education courses will transfer directly to pursue a Baccalaureate Degree, etc., then it is best to make an appointment with the Health Sciences Counselor, Maureen Mirowski. 

Clinical Rotations

Clinical rotation is a significant component of the Montgomery College Nursing Program. Hospitals, nursing homes, and other health agencies within the major metropolitan area provide the setting for a variety of clinical experiences which are planned as a vital part of each Nursing Course. 

Some of our program's clinical sites include Adventist Behavioral Health, Children's National Medical Center, Doctor's Hospital, Georgetown University Hospital, Holy Cross Hospital, MedStar Montgomery Medical Center, National Naval Medical Center, Shady Grove Medical Center, Sibley Hospital, Suburban Hospital, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Washington Adventist Hospital, and community clinics and agencies in the local area. 

Completion and Success Rates (Program Outcomes)

Total Student Enrollment 

Spring 2016: 343 students
Fall 2016: 328 students
Spring 2017: 334 students
Fall 2017: 374 students
Spring 2018: 384 students
Fall 2018: 421
Spring 2019: 427
Fall 2019: 477
Spring 2020: 453
Fall 2020: 402
Spring 2021: 409

Program Completion Rates

The Nursing Program’s expected level of achievement (ELA) is that 60 percent of students will complete the Associate Degree Nursing Program within 6 semesters of Full Time Study (150 percent of program length). 

Traditional Nursing Program Completion

Traditional Nursing Program Completion
Cohort Completion Rate
Spring 2013 to Fall 2015 78.6%
Fall 2013 to Spring 2016  67.6% 
Spring 2014 to Fall 2016  73.7% 
Fall 2014 to Spring 2017  65.3% 
Spring 2015 to Fall 2017 62.6%
Fall 2015 to Spring 2018 45.2%
Spring 2016 to Fall 2018 62.7%
Fall 2016 to Spring 2019 55.8%
Spring 2017 to Fall 2019 51%
Fall 2017 to Spring 2020 60%
Spring 2018 to Fall 2020 71.07%

 

Transitional Nursing Program Completion (Summer course NURS 130 designed for LPNs and Military Medics who want to transition into the nursing program)

Transitional Nursing Program Completion (Summer course NURS 130 designed for LPNs and Military Medics who want to transition into the nursing program)

Cohort Completion Rate
Summer 2013 to Summer 2014 84.2%
Summer 2014 to Fall 2015  76.5% 
Summer 2015 to Fall 2016  73.7%
Summer 2016 to Fall 2017 75%
Summer 2017 to Fall 2018 40%
Summer 2018 to Fall 2019 33%
Summer 2019 to Fall 2020 46.15%

 

NCLEX per Maryland Board of Nursing Pass Rates

Expected level of achievement (ELA): 80% of the graduates will successfully complete the NCLEX licensure examination on the first attempt within the fiscal year (July 1 – June 30).  

Actual Level of Achievement:
Year MC Pass Rate MD Pass Rate
Fiscal Year 2014 84.38% 74.30%
Fiscal Year 2015 74.85%  74.28% 
Fiscal Year 2016 76.22% 75.55% 
Fiscal Year 2017  87.02%  77.60% 
Fiscal Year 2018 90% 87.70%
Fiscal Year 2019 87.2% 79.52%
Fiscal Year 2020 92.37% 87.78%

 

Program Demographics

Program Demographics

Ethnic/Racial Minority Full-Time Nursing Faculty (33 total)  Nursing Clinical or Part-Time Faculty (29 total) Nursing Students (354 total)
Asian 19% 4% 15%
Black/African American  25% 50%  37% 
Latino/Hispanic 9%  13%  13% 
White  47%  33%  32% 
Mixed Race 0 0 2%
Other 0 0 0

 

Transferring In to MC's Nursing Program 

Montgomery College's Nursing Program only accepts students in good academic standing from accredited nursing programs.  Good academic standing is defined as a student who earned letter grades of "A", "B", or "C" in Nursing courses.  

Students with unsuccessful nursing course attempts or failures in any nursing course(s) - in any program - are not eligible candidates for transfer into MC Nursing. These students may apply to the program following the admissions criteria for all applicants and attempt to enter the program from the beginning and the first semester of courses. An unsuccessful attempt may include a course withdrawal, letter grade of "D" or "F". 

 Transfer students in good standing will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis based upon documented training and experience. 

  1. Transfer students will be required to submit: a letter requesting transfer, a copy of the Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS) results, a copy of their official transcript, Nursing course descriptions, and Nursing course syllabi to the Nursing Program Director. Upon review, the Nursing Program Director will arrange an appointment with the transfer candidate.
  2. Transfer students must meet the Test of Essential Academic Skills eligibility with scores of: Reading 70% and Adjusted Individual Total Score of 66% or higher.  TEAS scores are valid for 24 months.
  3. Transfer students will be required to demonstrate clinical skills competencies for all nursing pre-requisite courses and may be required to complete NURS 114: Professionalism and Communications, NURS 121: Health Assessment, NURS 129: Pathophysiology and Pharmacology in Nursing courses with a grade of “C” or better.