In 1965, the Master of Nursing degree program was established and the Regents approved the Doctor of Nursing Science degree program in 1986. The baccalaureate program has been continuously approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing since 1949. The School of Nursing became an agency member of the Department of Baccalaureate and Higher Degree Programs of the National League for Nursing in 1952. The accrediting service of the National League for Nursing has granted full accreditation to the programs since 1954. The programs provide for understanding of the social and cultural systems in which living and caregiving take place and for understanding of psychology and physiology under normal and pathological conditions.
Nursing research is stressed throughout the programs as the means for developing new knowledge.
Faculty members are selected for their expertise, both in a clinical area of specialization and in research, and for their ability to transmit knowledge. All tenure-track faculty members are doctorally prepared, and all lecturers hold at least a master's degree. The baccalaureate curriculum is a professional program of instruction with general education courses and profession- specific courses. The prenursing program comprises specific courses in anatomy anthropology, biology, chemistry, English, humanities, microbiology, nutrition, physics, psychology, and sociology. Completion of 84 quarter units of college work with a cumulative GPA of 2.8 or higher is a minimum requirement for acceptance.