Credit by Portfolio for the Licensed Practical Nurse

Baccalaureate Program—Education/Experience Verification

Penn State’s Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing will award four credits for Nursing 230, a fundamentals course, and two credits for Nursing 250, a basic nursing course, to the Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) applicant who is deemed eligible for admission to the Baccalaureate Program in Nursing, provided they can meet one of the following additional requirements:

  • The applicant graduated from an approved program of practical nursing within the past three calendar years or
  • The applicant graduated from an approved program of practical nursing more than three years prior to application and can document 1,000 hours of practice as an LPN within the last three years, as verified in writing by the employer(s).

Once a student has been admitted to the BSN program, they may apply for the Credit by Portfolio review.

LPNs interested in earning a BSN at Penn State Altoona will follow one of three paths based on their prior education:

Path 1—No prior college coursework or less than eighteen hours of college coursework attempted

General BSN option. Students will attend in the fall and spring semesters.

  • The first two semesters of enrollment will consist of general education coursework, including Anatomy & Physiology I and II.
  • Nursing courses and clinicals will begin in the second year of enrollment.
  • It will take a minimum of four years to complete the BSN.

Note: Anatomy & Physiology I and II lecture and lab sequence (BIOL 161 & 162 and BIOL 163 & 164 or approved equivalents) must be successfully completed with a letter grade of C or higher by the end of the first spring semester of enrollment at Penn State.

Path 2—Attempted eighteen or more hours of college coursework or earned an associate degree

General BSN option. Students will attend in the fall and spring semesters.

  • Students who have successfully completed Anatomy & Physiology I and II and at least eighteen additional non-remedial credits will be considered for admission to the second year of the program.
  • Students must have a competitive GPA for prior undergraduate college coursework.
  • Once admitted to the nursing program, it will take a minimum of three years to complete the BSN.

Note: Anatomy & Physiology I and II lecture and lab sequence (BIOL 161 & 162 and BIOL 163 & 164 or approved equivalents) must be successfully completed with a letter grade of C or higher by the end of the spring semester following application to Penn State.

Path 3—Earned a baccalaureate, master’s, or doctorate degree

Second Degree, Accelerated BSN option. Students will attend in the fall, spring, and summer semesters.

  • Nursing courses and clinicals will begin in the first semester of enrollment.
  • Students must have a competitive GPA for prior college coursework.
  • Completing the BSN will take a minimum of sixteen consecutive months (or four consecutive semesters—fall, spring, summer, fall).

Note: All of the following courses (or approved equivalents) must be successfully completed with a letter grade of C or higher before students can begin the Second Degree Nursing coursework and clinical:

  • Anatomy & Physiology I lecture & lab – BIOL 161 & 162
  • Anatomy & Physiology II lecture & lab – BIOL 163 & 164
  • Chemistry – CHEM 130 or CHEM 110 & 111
  • Microbiology – MICRB 106 & 107
  • Lifespan Development – HDFS 129 or PSYCH 212
  • Nutrition – NUTR 251
  • Statistics – STAT 200 or STAT 250