Kent State University's College of Nursing offers a well-established Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), alongside multiple entry pathways for students at different stages (direct first-year entry, standard transfer, RN-to-BSN, and Accelerated BSN tracks for students who already hold a bachelor's degree in another field). For international students, nursing is one of the more consistently in-demand undergraduate degrees, given strong long-term US healthcare hiring demand, but it also comes with practical considerations around clinical placements and licensure that don't apply to most other majors.
This guide covers what it takes to get into Kent State's BSN program, acceptance rate context, cost, admission requirements, English-test rules, and what graduates go on to do, including honest caveats on the questions Kent State's own public pages don't fully answer for international applicants.
Acceptance Rate
Kent State does not publish a Nursing-specific acceptance rate for its BSN program. What's known:
- University-level admission: Kent State's overall undergraduate acceptance rate is commonly cited around 85-87% by third-party sources.
- Program-level competitiveness: Nursing programs at most US universities, including many BSN tracks, apply their own internal academic standards (prerequisite coursework grades, sometimes a secondary application or seat-limited cohort) on top of general university admission, because clinical program capacity (faculty, clinical placement sites) is inherently more limited than lecture-based majors. Kent State's own international-admissions pages for Nursing point applicants to a separate "BSN Admission Requirements" resource for these program-specific criteria, but the specific GPA cutoff or secondary review process for direct-entry international first-year applicants was not confirmed in the sources available at the time of research.
Bottom line: treat Nursing as a program where clearing Kent State's general admission bar is necessary but not sufficient. Confirm current BSN-specific academic standards and any secondary review process directly with the College of Nursing before assuming general university admission guarantees you a seat in the nursing major itself.
Fees and Cost of Attendance
Kent State applies its standard international undergraduate cost of attendance to Nursing students at the general education stage; clinical years may carry additional program fees (lab, clinical, and simulation fees are common in US nursing programs) that were not broken out in the general cost-of-attendance figures available at the time of research. For 2026-27:
| Cost Item | Amount (USD/year, approximate) |
|---|---|
| Tuition and fees | ~$24,298 |
| Living expenses (housing, food) | ~$14,360 |
| Medical insurance and books/supplies | ~$3,935 |
| Total estimated cost of attendance | ~$42,593 |
Over a standard four-year BSN, this puts total program cost in the rough vicinity of $170,000 before any scholarships, family contribution, or additional nursing-specific program fees (clinical, lab, or simulation costs, which are common in US nursing programs but were not itemized in the sources reviewed here; confirm current program-specific fees directly with the College of Nursing). International students are not eligible for US federal or state financial aid, though the College of Nursing may offer merit-based scholarships to admitted students; specific amounts are not centrally published.
Admission Requirements
BSN applicants go through Kent State's standard international undergraduate admission process, with first-year applicants required to have completed their secondary schooling in their home country; any applicant with prior post-secondary coursework must apply through one of Kent State's transfer pathways (BSN transfer, RN-to-BSN, or Accelerated BSN) instead of first-year admission.
- Completed online application, plus the $70 non-refundable international application fee
- Minimum GPA equivalent to 2.5 on a US 4.0 scale for general Kent State admission; Nursing may set its own higher internal prerequisite-course or cohort-admission standard, which was not fully detailed in the College of Nursing's public pages reviewed for this guide
- Kent State is test-optional: SAT/ACT are not required for general admission
- Secondary school diploma/certificate and transcripts, with certified English translations if not originally in English
- Copy of passport biographical page
- Evidence of English proficiency (see below), unless exempt
- Financial documentation, required after acceptance
- Application deadlines: June 1 for Fall entry, October 1 for Spring entry (confirm whether Nursing sets an earlier internal deadline directly with the College of Nursing, since seat-limited clinical programs sometimes do)
Important caveat: Kent State's public international-admissions pages for Nursing did not clearly address clinical-placement eligibility, US nursing licensure (NCLEX-RN) pathways for international students, or any state-specific restrictions that could affect an international student's ability to complete clinical rotations or later practice as a registered nurse in the US. These are genuinely important questions for anyone considering nursing as an international student, and they should be confirmed directly with Kent State's College of Nursing (nursing@kent.edu) before enrolling, rather than assumed from this guide.
How to Get Into Kent State's BSN Program
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Confirm you're eligible for first-year (not transfer) admission. Kent State requires first-year Nursing applicants to have completed secondary school, not prior post-secondary coursework, in their home country; if you've already started a degree elsewhere, you'll go through a different pathway (BSN transfer, RN-to-BSN, or Accelerated BSN) with its own requirements.
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Build strong grades specifically in science and math prerequisites, since nursing programs nationally weight biology, chemistry, and math coursework heavily even where the general university GPA floor is modest; a strong record here helps with the program's own internal review, which is typically more selective than general university admission for clinical majors.
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Contact the College of Nursing directly, early, about clinical placement and licensure questions specific to your visa status. This is the single most important step for international nursing applicants that isn't answered on Kent State's general admissions pages, and it can materially affect your ability to complete the degree as intended or work as a nurse afterward.
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Clear the English proficiency threshold with real margin. Nursing coursework and clinical communication both require strong English proficiency in practice, beyond what a bare-minimum test score reflects; entering comfortably above IELTS 6.0/TOEFL 71 is a reasonable goal given the communication demands of clinical training.
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Apply early relative to the stated deadlines, since seat-limited clinical programs commonly fill or set internal review timelines ahead of the university's general deadlines; confirm Nursing's specific internal deadline directly with the College of Nursing.
English Proficiency Requirement (IELTS/TOEFL)
Kent State applies the same minimum thresholds to BSN applicants as the general undergraduate population:
- IELTS Academic: minimum 6.0
- TOEFL iBT: minimum 71 (Home Edition iBT also accepted at 71; MyBest superscores not accepted)
- PTE Academic: minimum 48
Notably, Kent State's own graduate Nursing programs (for example, the Ph.D. in Nursing) require a higher bar, TOEFL iBT 79 / IELTS 6.5, which signals that the College of Nursing treats English proficiency as more consequential at higher levels of clinical and academic responsibility; BSN applicants should treat the university-wide undergraduate minimum as a genuine floor rather than a comfortable target, given how communication-dependent clinical nursing training is. For the full breakdown of Kent State's English-proficiency policy and conditional-admission pathway, see the Kent State University guide.
Career Outcomes
Nursing is not typically a STEM-designated degree under current US Department of Homeland Security CIP-code rules, so BSN graduates on F-1 status should plan around the standard 12-month Optional Practical Training (OPT) period rather than assume the 24-month STEM OPT extension applies; always confirm your exact program's CIP code with your international student office, since designations can occasionally vary by specific degree track.
Separately, and more consequentially for nursing specifically: working as a registered nurse in the US requires passing the NCLEX-RN licensure exam and meeting the specific licensure requirements of the state where you intend to practice, which can include its own English-proficiency exams and, in some cases, visa-status-related considerations. Kent State's public pages reviewed for this guide did not detail how these licensure and visa questions interact for international BSN graduates specifically, so this is a critical question to raise directly with the College of Nursing before enrolling, not something to assume works the same way as OPT for a general non-licensure degree.
On broader outcomes:
- Kent State reports that roughly 93% of bachelor's degree respondents across the university are employed or continuing education within 12 months of graduation, though this figure is not broken out specifically for Nursing
- Notable employers of Kent State graduates generally include Cleveland Clinic, among other major Northeast Ohio healthcare systems, reflecting the region's strong hospital and healthcare employment base
- Kent State does not publish a Nursing-specific NCLEX-RN first-time pass rate or program-specific placement rate in the sources available at the time of research; prospective students should request current NCLEX pass rates directly from the College of Nursing, since this is a standard, publicly tracked metric for accredited US nursing programs
FAQ
Does Kent State publish a separate acceptance rate for the BSN program? No. Nursing applicants clear Kent State's general undergraduate admission process, and the College of Nursing applies its own internal academic standards on top, though the specific cutoff for direct-entry international applicants was not confirmed in the sources reviewed for this guide.
Can international students complete clinical rotations and later work as a nurse in the US? This depends on visa status, state-specific nursing licensure rules, and clinical site policies, none of which were clearly detailed on Kent State's general international-admissions pages at the time of research. Contact the College of Nursing directly (nursing@kent.edu) before enrolling if this is important to your decision.
What IELTS or TOEFL score do I need for Kent State's BSN? The general undergraduate minimums apply: IELTS 6.0 or TOEFL iBT 71. Note that Kent State's graduate nursing programs require a noticeably higher bar (TOEFL 79/IELTS 6.5), suggesting the College of Nursing values a real margin above the undergraduate minimum for anyone serious about a nursing career.
Does a Nursing degree qualify for the STEM OPT extension? Generally no. Standard BSN degrees are not typically STEM-designated under current CIP-code rules, so graduates should plan around the standard 12-month OPT period; confirm your specific program's CIP code with your international student office to be certain.
How much does the BSN cost for international students? Kent State's estimated international undergraduate cost of attendance for 2026-27 is roughly $42,593/year, putting a four-year BSN in the rough vicinity of $170,000 before scholarships, plus any additional clinical, lab, or simulation fees common in US nursing programs that weren't itemized in the sources reviewed here.
Can I apply to the BSN as a transfer student if I've already started college elsewhere? Yes. Kent State explicitly requires first-year Nursing applicants to have completed secondary school (not prior college coursework) in their home country; students with prior post-secondary coursework apply through the BSN transfer, RN-to-BSN, or Accelerated BSN pathways instead, each with its own requirements.