Grades and progression in USI graduate nursing: clinical Pass, B or better, withdrawals and incompletes

The two-part grade in clinical courses

USI's Progression and Withdrawal Policies judge clinical-based courses twice: once on clinical performance, which is Pass or not, and once on the didactic grade, which must reach a B. Fall short on the clinical side and the entire course becomes an F, whatever your exam average. Outside clinical courses the B floor still holds for every graduate nursing course, and the bulletin restates it for both the MSN and the DNP.

That makes the clinical half binary. Logged hours, preceptor feedback and faculty evaluations cannot lift a weak didactic grade, and a strong didactic grade cannot rescue a clinical failure. Treat each half as its own pass mark.

DNP project courses work differently. The bulletin grades NRSG 801, NRSG 803 and NRSG 805 as Pass or No Pass, so doctoral students meet a pass/no-pass standard for the project and letter grades elsewhere.

Withdrawals and the progression cap

You can withdraw with a W within the withdrawal period on USI's academic calendar. In Fall and Spring, drops in weeks 2 through 9 are without evaluation; from week 10, the grade depends on where you stand: a W if passing, possibly an F if failing. The semester calendar gives the 2026-27 dates.

Graduate nursing adds its own cap. A second withdrawal stops progression for MSN, Post-MSN APRN Certificate and Post-MSN DNP students, and a third does the same for BSN-to-DNP students. Several withdrawals inside one semester are tallied together as one event, and a student coming back after a withdrawal petitions to continue using Appendix A of the Graduate Nursing Handbook.

Because each NP specialty course runs once a year, withdrawing from a clinical course usually means waiting twelve months to take it again, which moves your graduation with it. Delayed graduation covers how students plan around that.

Rules outside your grades that can stop progression

Some of the fastest ways to lose a semester have nothing to do with exams or evaluations:

• Compliance: if DISA items miss their approval due dates, USI issues a Performance Improvement Plan and may drop you from the course administratively. Nothing may expire before the semester ends.
• BLS and ACLS: a lapsed BLS card stops clinicals until the renewal is verified, and AGACNP students must also keep ACLS current.
• Background check and drug screen: failing to submit them, even with negative results, may jeopardize enrollment or progression. New charges must be reported to the Program Chair immediately, and a positive drug screen makes a student ineligible to apply to any Kinney College program for one year.
• RN license: staying enrolled requires an RN license without encumbrance, held in each state where your clinical hours happen.
• Where you live: a move to a state outside the graduate program's recognized list means you cannot continue coursework, unless you are on active military status.
• Time: Post-MSN APRN Certificate students must finish within three years.

Due dates and the Performance Improvement Plan are explained on the DISA compliance page.

How we protect your progression

Many clinical-course problems start before the first shift: a preceptor who backs out, a packet that arrives incomplete, a start that slips past Week 3. USI students choose us to deal with those risks early. Your placement advisor secures preceptors who meet USI's rules for each course, gathers every Form G and agreement detail so the packet goes in complete and early, and plans all three clinical semesters ahead so each course begins with an approved site.

When a preceptor leaves mid-semester, the replacement search begins right away, which keeps weekly hours flowing and gives your midterm evaluation real work to judge. Grades and approvals belong to USI; readiness on the placement side is ours. Get started or use the form below.