FAQ's
- SUNY Poly is regionally accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools and all of our academic programs are registered by the NYS Education Department.
- Our nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.
We currently offer the following program options for Nursing Education:
- Master of Science (MS) in Nursing Education
- Post-master’s Advanced Certificate in Nursing Education.
- Accelerated BS/MS in Nursing Education
Both the MS and the Advanced Certificate are available in a full online format. Online courses are delivered via BrightSpace, the college’s learning management system with Collaborate, a virtual presentation tool.
Each August, new graduate students are strongly encouraged to attend an in-person orientation program which supplements SUNY Poly Essentials, our required online orientation program. The in-person program allows students the opportunity to meet the faculty and other new students, and information sessions include an overview on library research, an introduction to using BrightSpace (our Learning Management System), discussions on work-life balance and more.
- Application deadlines: July 1 for fall admission | December 1 for spring admission
- To start the application process, file the online Application for Graduate Admission and pay the $60 application fee. The Graduate Admissions Office will follow-up with you regarding required supplemental materials once the application has been received.
- For detailed information contact Alicia Foster, Director of Graduate Admissions at alicia.foster@sunypoly.edu or 315-792-7347.
Admissions decisions are made on a rolling basis beginning in February for fall admission and October for spring admission.
- All applicants to the program must possess a baccalaureate degree with a major in nursing from an NLNAC or CCNE accredited program with a minimum 3.0 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale).
- All NYS applicants must possess a current unrestricted, unencumbered license as a Registered Professional Nurse (RN) in New York State.
- Out-of-state applicants must possess a current unrestricted license as Registered Professional Nurse (RN) in their respective state.
- All applicants must demonstrate evidence of the equivalent of at least one year of work experience as a RN by the start of the first semester of study.
- All applicants must demonstrate successful completion of an undergraduate course in basic statistics with a grade of C or better.
- Students may apply to take graduate courses without formal admission to the degree program, on a space-available basis by filing the Non-Degree Application The maximum of six credit hours is allowed for non-degree study before matriculation into a degree program is required.
- Graduate coursework taken while in non-degree status may be applicable to the degree program upon formal admission; however, there is no guarantee of credit applicability or admission by completing coursework in non-degree status.
- Matriculated students have first preference on course seats; you will be notified if there is room in the classes no later than the day that the online courses open. Please check the academic calendar for this semester’s date.
- The following courses are recommended for non-degree study:
NUR 500 Theoretical Foundations for Nursing Practice
NUR 503 Advanced Nursing, Health Policy, and the Health Care Systems
NUR 560 Nursing Research Methods
Key advantages to immediately matriculating are:
- You are bound to the degree requirements in place at the time of your admission, even if those requirements change in the future.
- Specialized program courses are reserved for degree seeking students.
- Degree students register prior to non-degree students, resulting in a better selection of course offerings.
- Taking a non-matriculated course does not mean you will be admitted to the program.
Our program is rigorous. The faculty does not recommend that graduate students work full-time while concurrently enrolled in the program full-time as this does not promote success nor work-life balance. We encourage you to consider either full-time study/part-time work or part-time study/full-time work.
- The internship course (NUR 645 Culminating Internship in Nursing Education) is to be taken during the last semester after the majority of required courses have been completed.
- The intent of the practicum is for students to actually teach, and fully engage in exploring the roles of faculty members.
- Planning documents are emailed to students the semester prior to the one when the internship will be completed. The documents guide students in selecting and contacting a potential preceptor.
- The practicum may be arranged in the student’s locale, but all sites and mentors must be approved by the nursing department prior to the start date.
- The internship requires 150 practicum hours in addition to the hours spent on coursework.
- The practicum requires the student to be physically present in the selected facility, working with the mentor. Although the Nursing Education program is completely online, the practicum must be completed in-person.
Students are required to pass a program requirement activity not specific to any one course. In some programs it may be a comprehensive exam; in the MS Nursing Education program, there is a required Comprehensive Project with two options to select from. Consult with your academic advisor to review these options.
- A computer with a headset and camera is required to complete courses on the BrightSpace Learning Management System (LMS)
- APA format is required for organizing and formatting your papers. You will see the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association as a required text in most courses. Some students may also purchase Reference Point Software to assist with APA format.
Graduate students have seven years to complete degree requirements.
Visit our online Course Schedule. Click on “Master Course Schedule”. Select your term of interest from the pull-down menu. Select “Nursing” from the pull-down menu.
Current rates for tuition and fees are available here: Tuition and Fees.
- Visit our Financial Aid Office website to learn about financial aid for graduate study.
- Graduate Assistantship and Graduate Diversity Fellowship opportunities are available to full-time graduate students. For consideration, submit the online application for admission by July 1 for fall and December 1 for spring.
- Readmission is required if you were previously matriculated but have been out for three or more consecutive semesters.
- To apply for readmission, complete and submit the Readmission Application with the Registrar’s office. Upon receipt, the Registrar’s Office will consult with the Nursing Department and a decision will be made. Readmission is not guaranteed.
- Degree requirements are determined by the academic catalog under which the student is readmitted.
- Courses taken more than 5 years prior to readmission will be evaluated by the Nursing Academic Standards Committee for applicability to the student’s new program of study.
- All students must have a GPA of 3.0 or higher to graduate.
- Graduate students may, through their advisor, submit a petition to the department to repeat a maximum of two (2) courses in which a C grade or less was received. No more than two (2) C grades will count towards a graduate degree.
- If a student does not receive a passing grade in a course which is a prerequisite for another course in the program, the student may not proceed to take other course(s) until the prerequisite has been met.
- Students may transfer up to nine credit hours, if applicable, from another graduate program.
- Students must maintain continuous registration, equal to or greater than one credit while completing degree requirements. MS Nursing students can do this by registering for CMT 600 – Continuous Registration. This only applies to students who have an incomplete in their last semester and it can only be applied once.
