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SchoolsData as of Oct 7, 2026

CSU San Marcos nursing program: how to get in

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN): requirements, deadlines, NCLEX pass rates and data

San Marcos, CA · Public · BRN-approved · CCNE-accredited

CSU San Marcos BSN in San Marcos: the application window is open now and closes Nov 30, 2026 (Cal State Apply); transcripts by 2027-02-15; TEAS and optional documents by 2027-03-15; selection method: points (ranked); published TEAS minimum: 71%; 80 BRN-approved new students a year; listed cost $35,488 (Plus 1st Year RN Prgm Costs = $2,000) (Tuition + Books). From the school’s pages and the BRN; details and sources below.

  • Application windowOpen now · closes Nov 30, 2026 (Cal State Apply); transcripts by 2027-02-15; TEAS and optional documents by 2027-03-15
  • Selection methodPoints (ranked)
  • TEAS minimum71%
  • Approved seats per year (BRN)80
  • NCLEX pass rate, 2024–2595.2% (188 testers)
  • Listed cost, before aid$35,488 (Plus 1st Year RN Prgm Costs = $2,000)
Compare BSN programsProgram website
NCLEX pass rate
95.2%2024–25
Blue: this program · dashed: California
’20–21’21–22’22–23’23–24’24–25100%80%
First-time testers
1882024–25
Graduates sitting the NCLEX for the first time
155’20–21209’21–22235’22–23205’23–24188’24–25
On-time completion
100%2023–24
Self-reported to the BRN
’19–20’20–21’21–22’22–23’23–24100%60%
Attrition
0%2023–24
Share of students who left the program
2.7%’19–205%’20–219%’21–228%’22–230%’23–24

How to get in

Application deadline
Summer 2027 (Temecula cohort): opens Rolling ("apply at any time"), closes Priority deadline 2026-11-04Fall 2027 (San Marcos cohort): opens Rolling ("apply at any time"), closes Priority deadline 2027-02-03Fall 2027 (2026-2027 timeline): opens Oct 1, 2026 (Cal State Apply), closes Nov 30, 2026 (Cal State Apply); transcripts by 2027-02-15; TEAS and optional documents by 2027-03-15 Open nowSee it in the deadlines table
Selection method
Points (ranked)ranked (68-point system) Details and source
TEAS minimum
71% Check your score
Prerequisites
8 courses listed by the school See the list
Check yourself against these published rules
Prerequisites you have completed or will finish in time

    A checklist against the school’s published rules only: this is not a prediction of a decision. Section minimums, GPA, grade and recency rules, and anything else the school lists still apply; read the full requirements above.

    Admissions requirements

    Here is what CSU San Marcos publishes about applying to its BSN program, taken from the school’s own website, catalog or application documents. Each row links to the page we used and shows the date we checked it. Requirements change from cycle to cycle, so confirm with the school before you apply.

    RequirementWhat the school publishesSource
    Entrance examTEASSourceChecked
    Minimum overall score71%SourceChecked
    Section minimumsNot published by the schoolSourceChecked
    Minimum GPA, overallNo separate minimum stated (0 points below 2.75)SourceChecked
    Minimum GPA, prerequisites or science2.75 Pre-Nursing Core GPASourceChecked
    Selection methodPoints (ranked)ranked (68-point system)SourceChecked
    Application opensCal State Apply Oct 1, 2026SourceChecked
    Application closesNov 30, 2026; supplemental steps by Feb 15, 2027 and Mar 15, 2027SourceChecked
    Published applicant and admit countsNot published by the schoolSourceChecked

    How we label selection. SEAPHE sorts each school’s stated method into one of five groups: Lottery, Points (ranked), Points and lottery (hybrid), Holistic review or Eligibility-based. The school’s own wording appears under the label, with a link to the page we used. How California nursing schools choose students.

    Published points rubric

    Criterion (school’s wording)Points
    Pre-Nursing Core GPA (2.75-2.80=1 ... 3.96-4.00=25)25
    Overall cumulative GPA through prior Fall5
    TEAS composite (71.0-73.5=1 ... 98.6-100=12)12
    Language other than English (optional)10
    Work/volunteer experience (optional)5
    Residency - last school attended (local area 8; SD/Imperial/Riverside/Orange 4)8
    4 core sciences completed in consecutive 12 months (optional)3
    Maximum total68

    Rubric source, checked . Point values are the school’s; they change between cycles.

    Prerequisite courses

    Course names are the school’s; the grey label is the category SEAPHE uses in the prerequisite planner.

    CourseRequirementsSource
    Oral CommunicationCommunication (speech)
    Units
    Not published by the school
    Lab
    Not published by the school
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    English CompositionEnglish composition
    Units
    Not published by the school
    Lab
    Not published by the school
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    Critical ThinkingCritical thinking
    Units
    Not published by the school
    Lab
    Not published by the school
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    Math (Statistics)Statistics
    Units
    Not published by the school
    Lab
    Not published by the school
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    Anatomy or Anatomy/Physiology IAnatomy
    Units
    4-5 (semester)
    Lab
    Yes
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    Physiology or Anatomy/Physiology IIPhysiology
    Units
    4-5 (semester)
    Lab
    Yes
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    MicrobiologyMicrobiology
    Units
    4-5 (semester)
    Lab
    Yes
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked
    Inorganic, Organic and Biochemistry (general, inorganic, organic or integrated; intro chem not accepted)Chemistry
    Units
    Not published by the school
    Lab
    Lab if required at institution where taken
    Minimum grade
    C (C- not accepted in any separate course incl. labs; max two science courses at B- or less; C- or below repeatable once, grades averaged; A-F only)
    Recency limit
    Not published by the school
    When to complete
    Completed no later than end of Spring semester prior to enrollment; in-progress Spring courses not counted in core GPA
    		SourceChecked

    © Enzo Creationz LLC. All rights reserved. You may read and quote this with credit to “SEAPHE Nursing Data, seaphe.org”, but please don’t bulk-copy or redistribute it. Details

    SEAPHE collected these details from official school pages. “Not published by the school” means we couldn’t find the detail on the school’s public pages when we checked; we don’t estimate missing values. “Could not be retrieved from the school’s website” means the page was blocked or wouldn’t load. Spot an error? See our corrections policy.

    Admissions

    The BRN does not publish acceptance rates for individual schools. Across California’s BSN programs, 29.9% of 37,452 qualified applications were accepted in 2024–25.4 This program is approved for 80 new students a year.2 Ask the school for last cycle’s qualified applicants and seats.

    Applied here? Share your results in our 2-minute anonymous survey. It helps future applicants see what other applicants reported.

    California nursing school acceptance rates →

    Cost

    The BRN lists a cost of $35,488 (Plus 1st Year RN Prgm Costs = $2,000) before financial aid (Tuition + Books).2 That figure comes from the school’s report to the Board and may not include housing, transport or exam fees. Check the program’s current cost of attendance.

    Key facts

    Last updated

    NCLEX pass rates

    In 2024–25, 95.2% of 188 first-time testers passed the NCLEX-RN, 5.0 points above the California average of 90.2%. Over five years, 93.4% of 992 testers passed.1

    Compare every program: California NCLEX pass rates by school.

    First-time NCLEX-RN pass rate, by reporting year

    CSU San Marcos (BSN)California, all programs
    80%85%90%95%100%2020–212021–222022–232023–242024–2596.1%91.9%89.8%95.6%95.2%CSU San MarcosCalifornia
    80%85%90%95%100%’20–21’21–22’22–23’23–24’24–2596.1%91.9%89.8%95.6%95.2%
    Data source: CA BRN NCLEX-RN pass-rate tables; California average is a SEAPHE tester-weighted calculation.Download CSV
    Embed this chart

    Free to republish under CC BY 4.0: credit “SEAPHE Nursing Data, seaphe.org” with a link back. The iframe updates when our data does; the image is a fixed snapshot.

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    Year (Jul–Jun)TestersPass rateCaliforniavs. state
    2020–2115596.1%89.2%+6.9
    2021–2220991.9%85.9%+6.0
    2022–2323589.8%85.7%+4.1
    2023–2420595.6%94.0%+1.6
    2024–2518895.2%90.2%+5.0

    Completion and attrition

    In 2023–24, the program reported 100% on-time completion and 0% attrition to the BRN.3

    Year (Aug–Jul)On-time completionAttrition
    2019–2096.9%2.7%
    2020–2193.0%5.0%
    2021–2289.0%9.0%
    2022–2389.0%8.0%
    2023–24100.0%0.0%

    Self-reported by the program to UCSF for the BRN Annual School Survey.

    Accreditation and program facts

    State approvalCalifornia BRN
    InstitutionWSCUC
    Nursing programCCNE
    DegreeBSN
    StateCalifornia
    CitySan Marcos
    SectorPublic
    AdmitsGeneric pre-licensure
    Phone(760) 750-7550
    WebsiteVisit

    State approval and program details from CA BRN, Approved Pre-Licensure RN Programs. Institutional and nursing program accreditation from CA BRN, Accreditation, Attrition and On Time Completion Rates. Retrieved Oct 7, 2026.

    What ACEN, CCNE and CNEA mean →

    Get this badge

    Based on its 2024–25 first-time NCLEX-RN results from the BRN, this program qualifies for a SEAPHE badge. Schools are welcome to display it on their website. How badges are awarded.

    CSU San Marcos: First-time NCLEX-RN pass rate above the California average in 2024–25 (95.2% vs. 90.2%). SEAPHE. Independent; not affiliated with the California BRN.

    Independent; not affiliated with the California BRN. Each badge links back to this page so readers can check the numbers.

    Similar programs

    Open public BSN programs with 30+ first-time testers in 2024–25, by pass rate.

    ProgramTesters2024–255-year
    CSU Long BeachLong Beach16998.8%98.5%
    CSU SacramentoSacramento14896.6%96.1%
    CSU Los AngelesLos Angeles10396.1%95.7%
    CSU FullertonFullerton7894.9%97.2%
    CSU FresnoFresno11494.7%93.0%
    CSU San BernardinoSan Bernardino11894.1%94.1%

    Sources

    1. California BRN, NCLEX-RN Pass Rates, First Time CA Educated Exam Testers, 2020–21 to 2024–25. Retrieved Oct 7, 2026.
    2. California BRN, Approved Pre-Licensure RN Programs (cost, enrollment, sector). Retrieved Oct 7, 2026.
    3. California BRN, Accreditation, Attrition and On Time Completion Rates. Retrieved Oct 7, 2026.
    4. California BRN, 2024–25 Annual School Report: Data Summary, Table 3, p. 3.

    SEAPHE Editorial Team. Data updated Oct 7, 2026. Spot an error? See our corrections policy.

    How to cite this data

    Last updated . Please cite SEAPHE and the original public source.

    Suggested citation: SEAPHE. (2026). CSU San Marcos (BSN): NCLEX-RN pass rates and program data [Data set]. Compiled from California Board of Registered Nursing public records. https://seaphe.org/schools/csu-san-marcos-bsn/ (updated Oct 7, 2026).

    Original source: California BRN, NCLEX-RN Pass Rates: First Time CA Educated Exam Testers; California BRN, Approved Pre-Licensure RN Programs.

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