Associate in Applied Science in Nursing
Associate in Applied Science in Nursing
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Make a Lasting Impact in Your Career with an AAS in Nursing
Nursing is a calling, and today, the call for nurses has never been stronger. Invest in your future and be ready to meet the demand with Excelsior’s Associate in Applied Science in Nursing program, designed for LPNs, LVNs, paramedics, and certain military personnel to build on the experience they already have and grow their nursing ability, knowledge, and careers.
In this competency-driven program, you’ll have the flexibility to progress at your own pace in eight-week fully online courses designed to ensure that your proficiency in nursing theory and performance is comparable to that of graduates of campus-based associate degree programs. With access to learning resources throughout the program—as well as a community of nursing faculty, academic advisors, and peers—you’ll be supported every step of the way.
With an associate degree in nursing from Excelsior, you can easily transition to the BS in Nursing program and can apply credit you’ve already earned toward the bachelor’s degree.
Review application requirements for the AAS in Nursing program.
Student Story
We get to use our real-life work experience that we're doing every single day as our clinical.
Mary McGhee, Paramedic
Associate Degree Nursing Student
I've always been in and out of nursing school, kind of wanting to do this career, and there's just been a little, you know, speed bumps in the way.
I was, I've been a medic now for 10 years, and I said, you know what, Excelsior has that paramedic to RN program and why not execute it, so… and I said, you know what, there's more opportunity in nursing, unfortunately, than there is in EMS. Like with EMS we can only really either become a field supervisor or some other sort of admin where with nursing, there's so many options. I could go into the OR, I could go to the ER, I could go into hospice, I could go into home care. Like there's so many options as a nurse that I don't have right now as a paramedic.
One of the nice things about Excelsior's nursing program is that we, like the LPNs and the paramedics, we get to use our real-life work experience that we're doing every single day as our clinical.
Obviously once we get to the end of our program, we have actual days where we go up to a different hospital and do our, you know, certain amount of hours of time. But being able to do this in the field now is nice.
I, I'm working. Like this is my clinical. I don't need to have that extra clinical until like the last, you know, two classes, so I'm doing the IVs. I'm passing meds. I'm putting these people on the cardiac monitor.
I'm doing the more advanced things that I feel nurses in the ER or ICU or etc. would be doing where I wouldn't be getting that same experience if I was still at that other, like another school. And doing still just the very basic mundane tasks of nursing. I know they're important, but it's nice being able to work and use my work experience as my clinical.
I don't, I feel very motivated just by the fact that I know that there's an end goal coming, I guess, and I know that the future is going to be brighter and there's gonna be more options.
And, you know, my kids definitely play a role in that. They love seeing me on the ambulance and as a paramedic, but I know that as a nurse too, they're gonna really love that and be like, oh, Mommy's, you know, at the hospital today, or she's, you know, here today.
I like to treat almost every patient like they're family, you know, so you go in, big smile, be like, oh, "What's going on today?" You know, like, "How you feeling?"
I, I want to be that presence to them that's, you know, welcoming. I want to, you know, tell them who I am, tell them what I'm doing, and give them the best care that I can, you know, even if that is just holding their hand, cause some people that's all they need is a hand to hold because they're having the worst day ever, you know, literally.
I feel prepared, but at the same time I'm still learning a lot with every class that I've been taking.
Obviously, I know the beginning parts or like the very emergent parts of everything, but I need to know more the long term, so that's what I've been learning while in school.
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PROGRAM DETAILS
Online AAS in Nursing
- General Education21 Credits
- Major Core34 Credits
- University4 Credits
- Prerequisites to Major Core6 Credits
Associate in Applied Science in Nursing
Explore Common Careers
Charlie-Renee Boggs
Associate in Applied Science in Nursing, 2024
Institutional Accreditation
Excelsior University is an accredited institution and a member of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE or the Commission) www.msche.org. Excelsior University’s accreditation status is accreditation reaffirmed. The Commission’s most recent action on the institution’s accreditation status on June 23, 2022 was to reaffirm accreditation. MSCHE is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education to conduct accreditation and pre-accreditation (candidate status) activities for institutions of higher education including distance, correspondence education, and direct assessment programs offered at those institutions. The Commission’s geographic area of accrediting activities is throughout the United States.
All of Excelsior University’s academic programs are registered (i.e., approved) by the New York State Education Department.
New York State Board of Regents – Recognized Programmatic Accreditation
Excelsior University’s associate-level nursing programs are programmatically accredited by the New York State (NYS) Board of Regents, State Education Department Office of the Professions (the Regents). The U.S. Department of Education has recognized the Regents as a state agency for the approval of nursing education programs since 1969. More information about the NYS Board of Regents’ Recognized Programmatic Accreditation may be helpful for students or graduates to present to a school they are attending or to an employer seeking more information about their Excelsior University nursing degree.