College of Nursing > Office of Student Affairs
This packet includes detailed information about the on-boarding process for the Accelerated Second Degree program at the University of South Florida's College of Nursing for the Spring 2024 semester. It is essential that you read the packet in its entirety.
The Accelerated Second Degree program is a full-time program on the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus. Transportation for clinical experiences is the responsibility of the student, and some locations may be as much as two hours from the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus. Students will be assigned a clinical region. Generally, you will have courses, clinicals, and labs Monday – Saturday, that may include evenings and weekends; , the College of Nursing reserves the right to require clinical/lab participation on weekends as well as overnight. You will have common test times throughout the program that may take place during evenings or weekends.
The Accelerated Second Degree program is structured sequentially over four consecutive semesters: Spring 2024; Summer 2024 (12 weeks); Fall 2024; and Spring 2025. The anticipated graduation date is Spring (May) 2025.
In addition to University tuition and fees, there are other costs associated with the nursing program. Please ensure to review the estimated costs for incoming students.
All students must adhere to their program plans and academic continuity:
- Each student must adhere to the program plan received upon admission.
- Should a student break progression due to earning a non-passing grade or withdrawal, per the College of Nursing Progression Policy found in the College of Nursing Student Handbook, the student must petition and receive permission from the Baccalaureate Admissions Progression Committee to remain in or be readmitted to the program. The student’s program plan will be reviewed by the Program Director and/or Assistant Dean for any courses, clinicals, or labs that need to be repeated and to determine when there will be room in the next available cohort. Students must remain at their home campus in the pathway for which originally admitted.
- Should a student break progression due to a withdrawal with cause (WC), failure to register, or cancelation of enrollment by the University for financial reasons will be considered grounds for progression violation or dismissal. Students may not progress in their pathway if they voluntarily withdraw or withdraw with cause from any pre-licensure course, lab, or clinical in their designated pathway. The withdrawal will be considered a failed course and grounds for progression violation or dismissal.
- The student acknowledges that breaks in progression for any reason may result in pause for up to two years.
- If the break in progression causes the student to be outside of the graduation timeline outlined in the USF System Policy 10-505: Degree Progression and Completion Deadline for Undergraduate Students, permission must be received by Undergraduate Studies for the student to be readmitted to the major.
Action Items - Required of you to Complete
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The College of Nursing would like to know if you will accept or decline the offer for admission, no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, October 20, 2023. Please click here to complete the Intent to Enroll. If you accept the offer, you will then proceed with your Onboarding Packet. In order for the Intent to Enroll to be received and valid, the submission date/time must show no later than 5:00 p.m. EDT on Friday, October 20, 2023. Submissions after the posted deadline will not be valid and will cause the admission offer to be rescinded. Please be sure to submit the Intent to Enroll using the link provided in this message. |
title | Complete College of Nursing Compliance Requirements |
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All College of Nursing students are required to complete a Background Check, Immunization and Health Insurance Verification, and Drug Screening for the College of Nursing via CastleBranch.com. This is not the same as the Medical History Form from USF Student Health Services. The Castle Branch requirements are required for all undergraduate students in the College of Nursing.
IMPORTANT: The College of Nursing has created a Guide to Castle Branch (click to access guide) to assist you in the compliance process. Please ensure to review this guide in its entirety, as it contains crucial information and will answer questions on completing College of Nursing compliance requirements. The College of Nursing must have proof of health insurance and clearance on both your drug test and background checks by November 21, 2023 or your seat in the program will be forfeited.
The COVID-19 vaccination documentation has been added to the Castle Branch immunization tracker.
At this time we do not require COVID vaccinations for students to enroll in any of our nursing pathways/programs. While we do not require a vaccination many of our clinical partners require vaccinations of students based upon the federal mandate. We expect that most if not all of our clinical sites will require COVID vaccinations by the end of February to comply with the federal mandate. Medical and religious exemptions may be granted but this is at the discretion of our clinical partners. We cannot guarantee an exception will be made.
Purchase your CastleBranch account IMMEDIATELY using your USF email ($165):
For fingerprinting purposes, you must purchase your CastleBranch based on where you are currently residing and will be doing your fingerprints (this is not your state of residency). If you will be getting your fingerprints done outside of Florida, you must purchase the out of state fingerprinting package (Code UE01osfp).
- Go to https://portal.castlebranch.com/UD99
- Select Place Order –> College of Nursing –> Undergraduate Program –> SECOND DEGREE
- Select Code UE01: I am a new student ordering for the first time
- If you are currently residing out of state*-Select Code: UE01osfp:I am new student ordering for the first time and need an out of state* fingerprint
- Once purchased you will receive instructions from CastleBranch within 48 hours
- The urine drug screen must be completed within 72 hours after receiving your instructions
- If the drug screening is not completed within 72 hours of purchase, an additional cost will be required as the drug screen package will need to be re-purchased ($38)
*Out of State Coding: Out of state is considered where you are currently physically residing and not your state of residence
Purchase, complete, and upload your HIPAA Compliance in Castle Branch ($10):
- Go to https://portal.castlebranch.com/UD98
- Select Place Order –> College of Nursing –> Undergraduate Program –> Second Degree
- UE01hipaa: HIPAA eLearning Tracker
Questions Regarding the Castle Branch Process
Please contact Castle Branch at 888-723-4263 with any questions regarding Castle Branch requirements and submission of documentation. If you have called Castle Branch and they cannot assist you, please email con-compliance@usf.edu . You must email from your USF email and include your name, program (Accelerated Second Degree), and cohort (Spring 2023 USF Sarasota Manatee).
Due to military documentation not being in line with civilian documentation, there is the possibility that your military documentation will be rejected. If this happens, please contact the College of Nursing's Student Academic Compliance (con-compliance@usf.edu). Each rejection will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Please remember to include your U-ID in your email.
Please note that this is not a one-time process. You, the student, must monitor all requirements and keep them up to date during the time of your enrollment in The College of Nursing. Failure to keep the programmatic and clinical requirements up-to-date can result in being restricted from attending clinicals and dismissal from the program.
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If you are a brand new University of South Florida degree-seeking student, welcome! You MUST attend the University's General Orientation (offered through USF Tampa) in addition to the College of Nursing Student Orientation. You can register for Orientation online at http://usf.edu/orientation/. Once you register and pay for Orientation, you will be assigned a registration time ticket within 15 business days. Please note that your registration time ticket is created after you register for orientation, not after you attend orientation. The College of Nursing has no preference on when you attend your Orientation; therefore, please select a date that is most convenient for you. You should sign-up for an orientation through the USF Tampa campus (note: all Orientations will be conducted online; you will not have to attend in-person). USF Orientation will advise you need to make an appointment with your advisor in order to register for classes, but you do not have to do so: your mandatory Nursing Student Orientation is considered your advising appointment. University policy mandates that brand new University of South Florida degree-seeking students MUST attend a University orientation before the start of classes for the semester; those students that fail to do so will have their enrollment canceled by the University, which will result in cancellation/forfeiture of their seat in the nursing program. |
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Per USF Policy 33-002, it is mandatory for USF students to submit all required immunization documentation and sign the official Medical History Form prior to course registration. A hold preventing registration will remain on your account until you have fulfilled the following requirements.
If you are missing any vaccine and/ or labs, please contact your current healthcare provider or schedule an Immunization Compliance Appointment by clicking here. For an exemption request, please contact our office directly. Please refer to the tabs on the left side for additional information particular to your student status/population. For questions on USF Compliance, please contact USF Student Health Services directly at 813-974-4056 |
title | Attend the Mandatory College of Nursing Orientation |
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The College of Nursing's Online Student Orientation is mandatory. You will have the option to attend in person at USF Sarasota Manatee Campus- Room: SMC A320A from 9:00am-3:00pm or virtually via Microsoft Teams. Those who do not attend will forfeit their seat in the program.
You must RSVP to Nursing Student Orientation by Sunday, November 12th at midnight. Click here to RSVP.
Attire: Business Casual
If you RSVP to attend in-person, check-in will begin at 8:30am as orientation will begin at 9:00am sharp. The deadline to RSVP in person is November 12th. Campus Map.
If you RSVP to attend virtually, you must sign-in with your legal first and last name, and be signed-in for the entirety of the orientation, to "attend". It is recommended you download and participate through the Microsoft Teams app. If you need assistance installing the app, please contact USF Information Technology. It is also recommended that you are signed in no later than 15 minutes before the start of orientation, as it begins at 9:00am sharp.
You have successfully RSVPed when you get the message ‘We thank you for your time spent taking this survey. Your response has been recorded.’ after submitting the survey.
The orientation starts at 9:00am. and you may sign-in 30 minutes prior to the event. It is recommended that you are signed in no later than 15 minutes before the start of orientation. There is no password required to log-in.
title | Register for Classes |
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Please ensure to check and remove all holds prior to registration. You can view registration holds in your myusf: OASIS; Student; Student Records; View Holds. Only the office that placed the hold on your account is authorized to remove the hold. Therefore, if you have questions regarding how to remove a hold, please directly contact the office that placed a hold.
The earliest any student can register is after the Nursing Student Orientation on Friday, November 17th, even if your registration day/time assigned by the University is earlier. Please note that no matter when you register, you will be guaranteed a seat in all nursing courses, clinicals, and labs. Students must be registered in classes by December 8, 2023 or they will forfeit their seat in the program.
Dr. Allyson Duffy, Director of the Accelerated Major at USF Sarasota-Manatee and St. Petersburg, will go over you first-semester schedule in detail at Nursing Student Orientation, as OASIS does not display complete or up-to-date information. Therefore, we request that you save scheduling questions for Nursing Student Orientation.
Important: After Nursing Student Orientation on November 17th, please click here for registration instructions.
The program is lock-step and full-time. The program plan can be found here
title | Apply for Your VA Education Benefit and Complete Clockworks (Military Connected Students Only) |
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The College of Nursing has created a Base Guide to help familiarize our military-connected students with University, College, and Tampa Bay resources.
If you are using VA Benefits, after you register for classes, you will then apply for your VA Education Benefit and Submit a Clockwork Application. For questions on applying for VA Education Benefits and submitting Clockworks, please contact the USF Office of Veteran Success directly at 813-974-2291.
Apply for Your VA Education Benefit
FIRST SEMESTER STUDENTS ONLY* Visit https://www.va.gov/education/how-to-apply/ to either APPLY FOR or UPDATE your VA education benefits. Click the green "Find your education benefits form" button, complete the application, and save a screenshot of the "Claim received" page at the end to upload onto your Clockwork application. In 4-6 weeks, you will receive your first Certificate of Eligibility (COE) in the mail.
Submit a Clockwork Application
To request to use your VA education benefits each semester (Chapter 33, 35, 30, or 1606), you MUST complete steps 1-5 on your Clockwork application EVERY SEMESTER. If you make ANY changes to your class schedule AFTER OVS has certified you, complete a Change in Benefit Request by clicking the button at the top left of your original Clockwork application.
Out of State Student Waiver
*FOR STUDENTS BEING CHARGED OUT-OF-STATE FEES ONLY* You MUST complete an online Out of State Fee Waiver with the Office of Veteran Success EVERY SEMESTER that you qualify. Keep in mind that this waiver DOES NOT change your residency status at USF, but instead waives 100% of your out-of-state charges each semester.
title | Purchase your Nursing Uniforms |
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All undergraduate students participating in clinicals and lab must follow the College of Nursing's uniform and dress code, which can be found in the College of Nursing Student Handbook. You will need a minimum of one nursing scrub top, and nursing scrub pant.The lab coat is optional- More information regarding a lab coat be discussed at orientation. You will be required to wear your nursing scrub top and pants for all nursing clinicals and labs. Nursing labs will begin the first week and will be held 2-3 times per week.
You may purchase your uniforms in-person at any USF campus bookstore. You can purchase your order in-person through the USF Bookstore or by submitting your order to them via email. Pick-up at the bookstore is free; delivery is an additional fee. If you want your order delivered, you should order a minimum of two weeks prior to the beginning of the semester (six weeks prior if you are having your name embroidered on your lab coat). If you order a Nursing Lab coat, please be sure to order "short/undergraduate (33/34 inches)". The Undergraduate coat should fall just below the hips. Depending on your height, you may need to order a graduate (37/38 inches) or doctoral (40 inches) coat. Getting your name embroidered on your coat is optional and takes an additional 3-4 weeks.
For questions regarding uniform stock, sizing, pricing, or ordering, please contact the USF Bookstore directly at 813-974-2631.
Order Forms
Completed order forms to be emailed to t.gainous@follett.com
Pricing (as of 3/14/2022)
Nursing Scrub Top - $42
Nursing Scrub Pants - $30
Size Chart
title | Purchase/Rent your Textbooks and Review Required Technology |
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You will need your textbooks and other required technologies by the first day of classes. Textbooks are available for purchase or rent through the USF Bookstore. Your Program Director will go over first semester textbooks and required technologies at Nursing Student Orientation.
In addition to Textbooks, there are other materials that you must purchase for the program that are not available through the USF Bookstore. Please review the required technology that you will purchase closer to the start of the program. Please note, these are current prices as of 4/9/2021. You will be notified of any price changes, should they occur.
All USF College of Nursing students are required to have a laptop/notebook computer with wireless internet connection and a web browser. Students are also required to have a compatible webcam and microphone; the webcam and microphone should either be built into your laptop/notebook or be a portable model. Students in all nursing courses are expected to meet these requirements to successfully participate in their courses. Failure to meet these technology standards may result in inability to complete program requirements. It is the student's responsibility to ensure all requirements are met prior to the start of the semester. The College of Nursing's Student Computer Requirement has specific information on hardware requirements. The USF Computer Store offers laptop "bundles" for registered students.