Checked 15 Nov 2026 by the team. Sources are listed at the end of the page.
For an RN to BSN online New Jersey nurses often look at Thomas Edison State University. Its BSN needs at least 120 credits, and an associate degree in nursing can bring up to 90 of them. New Jersey has no BSN in 10 law. What is usually left is general education and 28 upper-division nursing credits taken at TESU.
Thomas Edison State University's BSN for RNs requires a minimum of 120 credits, and associate degree nursing graduates may apply up to 90 credits in transfer; New Jersey has no BSN in 10 law, and the 2026 bill A1302 would only let county colleges propose their own baccalaureate nursing programmes.
The rule asks for 120 credits minimum; up to 90 in transfer from an associate degree (60 from a diploma programme). The legal source is A1302.
| Item | What the source says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Total credits | Minimum of 120 | [1] |
| From an associate degree | Up to 90 credits | [1] |
| From a diploma programme | Up to 60 credits | [1] |
| General education | 45 credits; ADN graduates usually bring about 30 | [1] |
| Upper-division nursing | 28 credits, taken online at TESU | [1] |
| BSN in 10 in New Jersey | No law; A1302 is about county college BSN programmes | [5] |
Thomas Edison State University, W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing and Health Professions (degree rules); New Jersey Board of Nursing, Division of Consumer Affairs (RN licensing) decides how this rule applies to you. We read its published rule and the pages below; each was checked on 15 Nov 2026.
Each nursing programme sets its own prerequisite list, its own time limits for science courses and its own rule on which credits it takes. Read the programme's published list first and ask its admissions office in writing before you enrol in any course.
UPI Study does not yet offer Microbiology with lab, Nutrition or Lifespan Development. Our courses carry no clinical hours, and they do not clear a deficiency for a board of nursing.
Each course below is ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended for college credit. Whether it counts here is the decision of the college and of Thomas Edison State University, W. Cary Edwards School of Nursing and Health Professions (degree rules); New Jersey Board of Nursing, Division of Consumer Affairs (RN licensing).
Statistics is one of the subjects TESU names for all BSN students; ask the advisor before you take it.
Self-paced online Principles of Statistics course (Statistics 101). ACE and NCCRS recommend 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
English composition is named in TESU's general education for the BSN.
Self-paced online English Composition 1 course (ENG 101). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
TESU's written communication area lists Composition 1 and 2.
Self-paced online English Composition 2 course (ENG 102). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
A social science course; ask whether you still have a social science gap.
Self-paced online Introduction to Sociology course (Sociology 110). ACE and NCCRS recommend 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
A humanities course; ask whether you still have a humanities gap.
Self-paced online Principles of Philosophy course (Philosophy 200). ACE and NCCRS recommend 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
TESU's general education includes a history area; check your evaluation first.
Self-paced online US History 1 course (HIST 101). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →TESU and UoPeople are partner colleges that consider ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit; for this BSN, TESU is the partner to start with, and its nursing advisor decides which requirement each course meets.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
| Option | Price | For this rule | Price checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPI Study PRO | $99 a month, every course | $99 for each month you are subscribed; take as many courses as you finish in that time | 15 Nov 2026 |
| TESU courses (BSN tuition) | $317 a credit (from the August 2026 term) | $951 for one 3-credit course; $4,755 for 15 general education credits | 15 Nov 2026 |
TESU's rate is the same for New Jersey and out-of-state residents; a $50 application fee is extra. UPI Study PRO is $99 a month for as many courses as you finish, but it saves money only if TESU's advisor approves the course first.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
Ask a TESU nursing advisor in writing to approve each course before you take it; TESU's handbook says credit earned elsewhere must be approved before you earn it.
TESU's BSN for registered nurses has four parts: 45 credits of general education, 20 credits of lower-division nursing, 28 credits of upper-division nursing and 27 credits of electives. A graduate of an associate degree nursing programme may apply up to 90 credits, and the lower-division nursing block is met by that degree. TESU's handbook says ADN and diploma graduates have usually completed about 30 general education credits, so a typical nurse arrives with roughly 15 general education credits still open.
The upper-division nursing courses are taken online at TESU. The general education gap is where you have choices: TESU courses, another college, examinations or other credit the advisor approves.
TESU names five subjects required of all BSN students: English composition, anatomy and physiology, statistics, ethics and microbiology. Anatomy and physiology and microbiology are normally met by your nursing programme. Statistics must be done before NUR-4190, the evidence-based practice course, and TESU's own HPS-2000 Statistics for the Health Professions meets both the quantitative literacy area and that prerequisite.
The rest of the 45 credits is spread across areas such as oral communication, information literacy, diversity, civic engagement, social sciences, history, humanities and natural sciences. Your evaluation shows which areas are still empty.
New Jersey has no law requiring nurses to earn a BSN within ten years of licensure. A BSN in 10 bill sat in committee in the last session, and the New Jersey State Nurses Association said in March 2026 that it hoped to see it reintroduced. A separate 2026 bill, A1302, with a Senate version S3578, would let county colleges propose their own baccalaureate nursing programmes; it was referred to committee. Neither changes what you need today.
TESU's handbook is direct: credits taken elsewhere, or by any method other than a TESU online nursing course, must be approved by the nursing academic advisor before you earn them. That one email protects your money. List each course, ask which requirement it would meet, and keep the reply.
TESU's 2026-2027 handbook says graduates of associate degree nursing programmes may apply up to 90 credits, and graduates of RN diploma programmes up to 60, toward the 120-credit BSN. You need a current unencumbered RN licence valid in the United States.
No. New Jersey has no BSN in 10 law. A bill sat in committee in the last session, and nurses' groups hoped to see it reintroduced in 2026. Check the New Jersey Legislature's site for the current status.
It depends on your associate degree. TESU says ADN graduates usually bring about 30 of the 45 general education credits. Statistics and ethics are common gaps. Your evaluation from TESU lists exactly which areas are open.
TESU lists $317 a credit for BSN students, the same for New Jersey and out-of-state residents, approved 12 June 2026 and effective from the August 2026 term. There is also a $50 application fee.
TESU is a partner college that considers ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit, but its nursing advisor decides which requirement a course meets. TESU's handbook says to get that approval before you earn the credit, so ask in writing first.
TESU's public health nursing course, NUR-4430, needs a valid RN licence and malpractice insurance before you register. Ask TESU about the practice experience in that course; UPI Study cannot provide clinical hours or nursing courses.
Get TESU's nursing advisor to approve each course first, then finish your general education at your own pace.