Admission Requirements for Nursing Programs

Application deadline:  March 5, 2025

Admissions to our Nursing programs is competitive. Meeting the minimum average does not guarantee admission. 

Requirements: 

1. Grade 12 courses (at the University or Academic level) completed or currently in progress, with a minimum mark of 65%: 
   1. English 12 
   2. Math 12 
   3. Biology 12 
   4. Chemistry 12 
   5. Plus one additional Grade 12 university preparatory course. 
2. Submit all transcripts for admission consideration by March 5, 2025 (first semester final grades for high school students and final marks for first term for university students). 

Students are assessed on five program requirements for admission using completed Grade 12 pre-requisites with remaining pre-requisites from Grade 11 if final Grade 12 grades are not available. Transfer students, please submit both post-secondary transcripts as well as secondary. Please note that CASPer is no longer required for admission to this program.

StFX will release offers of admission to Nursing beginning early in the Fall of 2024 for September 2025 entry. Students will be notified by email of acceptance. Please note applicants will be reviewed for admission each round of offers that are released. The final round of offers will be released in March. All applicants will receive notification of the decision on their application at that time.

Students applying to the Nursing program should select a second-choice program with their first-choice application to Nursing. Students who receive an offer to their second-choice program can accept an offer to residence before Nursing offers have been released and will receive equal consideration to their first choice of Nursing.  

For questions regarding specific program details, please email @email

Application deadline: January 1, 2025. Decisions are not released until the application closes and all complete applications are assessed. 

This program is mainly done by distance, but there are mandatory on site requirements. Admissions to our Nursing programs is competitive with only 15-20% of all applicants to the LPN to BScN program being admitted each year. Meeting the minimum average does not guarantee admission.

Cape Breton University and St. Francis Xavier University have partnered on a pathway for qualified LPNs to apply to BScN. Frequently asked questions about the program can be found here. 

Requirements: 

1. Currently licensed as an LPN in Nova Scotia (must supply proof by January 1, 2025). Add to Supplemental Application. Preference will be given to residents of Nova Scotia.
2. Students must have completed the LPN Diploma Program within Canada and must have achieved a minimum 75% overall average for all practical nursing courses. Please note, achieving a 75% average does not guarantee admission due to the limited number of applicants accepted. The lowest average of those accepted in February 2024 and 2023 was 87% and 86.5% respectively. See additional notes:
   1. Vocational studies are not equivalent to an LPN diploma.
   2. Numeric grades must be achieved to calculate an average.
   3. Transcripts with pass/fail grading systems will not be assessed for admission.
3. Total of 1800 hours of work experience within the last two years (requires a letter of verification from employer submitted by the employer directly to @email by January 1, 2025). Add employer information to the Supplemental Application to allow the employer to complete this online. Some employers may ask you to provide approval for release of information in advance.  Applicants cannot submit this information on their own behalf; the hours verification must come from the employer.
4. Students who have completed post-secondary studies in addition to the LPN Diploma, please submit all post-secondary academic history (official transcripts) by January 1, 2025. 
5. CASPer is no longer required for this program.

For questions regarding specific program details, please email Distance Nursing.

For January 2025 start - Application deadline: September 30, 2024, for international and December 11, 2024, for domestic students. All transcripts must be received by January 1, 2025.

For January 2026 start - Application deadline: September 30, 2025, for international and December 10, 2025, for domestic students. All transcripts must be received by January 1, 2026.

Admissions to our Nursing programs is competitive. Meeting the minimum average does not guarantee admission.

Requirements: 

1. Submit all transcripts for all completed and in-progress courses as soon as possible as you cannot receive admission without your transcript(s) being received and assessed. Note: If you have taken courses and obtained credits at more than one post-secondary institution, we need transcripts from each institution. 
2. Applicants must have all required courses completed at the university level by January 1 of the starting year and within 10 years of the program start date. 
3. The required core and open courses must have a minimum grade of 65% each, with an overall average of 70% or higher. 
4. Complete the supplemental application form. 
   • January 2025 start
   • January 2026 start
5. Core course requirements completed at the university level by January 1 of the starting year. 
   1. Six credits in Human Anatomy and *Human Physiology, minimum three credits in each.
      Lab component in both is required (virtual labs are accepted). 
      1. *Equivalency for BIOL 252 (Human Anatomy and Physiology II) is both PHYL 1001 AND 1002 (both are required) from Dalhousie University. 
   2. Three credits in Microbiology 
   3. Three credits in English or approved writing course
   4. Three credits in Statistics 
   5. Note 1: Courses taken outside of StFX University may need to be assessed for equivalency.  
   6. Note 2: StFX does not conduct formal reviews of academic qualifications, transfer credits, and/or pre-requisites until after an official application, with application payment, has been submitted. 
6. Fifteen credits in open electives completed at the university level by January 1 of the starting year. 
7. Completion of CASPer exam on one of the specified dates for the January 2025 admission cycle: see valid CASPer dates here.

Please submit course descriptions for your core requirement courses upon application to support the admissibility of each course. 

For questions regarding specific program details, please email @email