Admission to the University of Colorado College of Nursing’s Accelerated Nursing program (UCAN) program is competitive. To keep the selection process fair, admission requirements are definitive and applied to each application in the same manner. Please keep in mind that applications are not reviewed unless they are received by the application deadline and coded as ‘verified’ in NursingCAS.
Students requiring an F-1 visa are encouraged to contact the Office of International Admission prior to starting the UCAN application.
- Earned grades in the prerequisite courses by the application deadline. These courses must be earned from a regionally accredited institution with a grade of C or higher. A minimum 3.0 prerequisite GPA is required. This prerequisite GPA only includes the highest grade attempts for courses listed on transcripts at the time of application. Prerequisite courses must be completed within 10 years of the application deadline.
The required courses include: (view BS prerequisite descriptions and track your prerequisite progress)
Watch our video guide on prerequisite information.
- Human Anatomy (or Anatomy & Physiology I)
- Human Physiology (or Anatomy & Physiology II)
- Microbiology
- Statistics
- General Chemistry
In addition, we strongly suggest a minimum overall GPA of 3.0. Note that the overall GPA calculation includes all previous course attempts from regionally accredited institutions, regardless of the year courses were completed. Grade forgiveness and repeat/delete policies are not honored for the overall cumulative GPA.
- Baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution earned prior to the start of the UCAN. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 is recommended, but not required.
- Healthcare experience. Healthcare experience is critical to students’ success due to the pace and rigor of the UCAN program. It is preferred that applicants have direct patient care experience and be exposed to the nursing profession in some way, through paid or volunteer work in a professional setting. This can also include experience as a Certified Nurse Aide (CNA), Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Medical Assistant (MA), phlebotomist, etc. There is no minimum number of hours required; however, applicants are encouraged to have at least 500 hours of experience.
- International credential evaluation for degrees earned outside of the United States. To request an evaluation of a foreign degree, a prospective student should submit copies of their diploma and transcripts to nursing.admissions@cuanschutz.edu.
- English language proficiency (see Additional Requirements below)
- Letter of good academic standing if you have previously attended or are transferring from another nursing program.
- Meet the minimum requirements outlined in the Technical Standards for admission, progression, and graduation.
How to Apply
- Complete the application and pay the required application fee. Note that two fees are associated with the application (NursingCAS and CU Nursing). Both must be paid for an application to be considered complete.
- Submit official transcripts from all institutions attended directly to NursingCAS. Official transcripts from all institutions must be sent regardless of years attended, the number of credits enrolled, or grades earned. This includes any concurrent/dual enrollment courses you took in high school; you must submit official transcripts for any post-secondary school(s) from which you earned college credit while in high school. Submitting transcripts is a two-step process:
- Order your official transcripts in NursingCAS and submit directly to NursingCAS.
- Enter all courses from each transcript into NursingCAS; this includes the school name, course name, course code, grade, credit number, and term completed. Applicants have the option to pay for this service offered by NursingCAS, and is available on the transcript entry page in the application. Failing to accurately report can result in an application being withdrawn from admissions consideration.
- Three professional or academic references (at least one academic reference is recommended). The NursingCAS application will ask for the contact information for your three references. References will be contacted by NursingCAS to complete an online Likert-scale reference form, which is then submitted directly back to NursingCAS. Letters of reference are not accepted.
- Personal statement – respond to the following: “Given your personal background, describe your interest in nursing and what makes you special or unique”. Statements must be no more than 500 words, 12 point size, Times New Roman font, double spaced with one-inch margins).
- Official TOEFL scores reports (international applicants only - see Additional Requirements below).
- The application process often takes several weeks (including entering courses into NursingCAS, receiving recommenders' ratings, and ordering all official transcripts [domestic and foreign]), therefore applicants should allow themselves ample time to complete each section. We recommend applicants submit their applications 4 to 6 weeks prior to the application deadline. For details on deadlines, refer to undergraduate application deadlines.
- Applications must be submitted (i.e., in a Received status) by the application deadline. After the application deadline, there is a consecutive 10-day grace period which allows for: all references to reach a Completed status, all official transcripts to be received by NursingCAS, and the application to reach Verified status. Applications submitted after the deadline may be considered based on space availability. All required documents must be received for an application to be considered. Learn more about your application status.
- All five prerequisites must be completed (including final grades on transcripts) by the application deadline.
- Make sure all references and final official transcripts have been received in NursingCAS, and enter any new courses and final grades within the consecutive 10-day grace period.
- Make sure your application is listed in ‘verified’ Status. Verified status means the application has been received and transcripts have been delivered and determined to be accurate and complete. Learn more about your application status.
- You must be available for the interview and orientation dates listed in the NursingCAS application. Please note the interview dates are not negotiable.
- If any academic history (grades, courses, student standing, etc) has changed after your application has reached Verified status, you may do an Academic Update in NursingCAS. S, contact the Office of Admissions and Student Affairs to discuss if your application needs to be amended. Information of additional hours, and certifications earned after the deadline cannot be submitted as an update after the deadline has passed.
A select number of students will be invited to interview for a position in the UCAN cohort. The admission interview consists of program presentations, individual and group interview activities.
All admission notifications are delivered by email to the address listed in NursingCAS. Admission decisions are generally admitted, waitlist, or deny. All admits are given 10 consecutive days to respond to the offer of admission. Failure to respond to the offer will result in administrative withdrawal. An enrollment deposit is not required.
Students placed on the waitlist are notified by phone if space becomes available. The waitlist ranks are not provided.
All students at CU Nursing are admitted conditionally pending successful completion/passing of the pre-enrollment requirements including, but not limited to background checks, drug screens (including marijuana), immunizations, etc. Prospective students who have criminal convictions (or pending criminal activity) are encouraged to contact an admissions representative prior to applying. If criminal history or a pending criminal charge prohibits the possibility of clinical placements, admission will be rescinded/denied.
Admitted students should not start any of the pre-enrollment requirements until properly informed and instructed to do so. Many of the pre-enrollment requirements are timed and starting items prematurely can result in a financial loss to the student.
Admitted students are considered CU Nursing students and are held to all policy and procedures that govern the university and college.
Additional Requirements
Transfer Credit
All of your prerequisite classes will be considered transfer credit. This college level credit may be accepted by the University of Colorado if:
- It has been earned at a regionally accredited college or university.
- A grade of C (not C-) or better has been attained.
- The credit is for courses appropriate to the degree sought at this institution.
- It is not vocational-technical course work.
- It is not remedial course work
Advanced Placement (AP) Credit
- Only specific prerequisites and electives can be met using AP credit; view the AP Credit Transfer Guide.
- The minimum score shown is required to transfer the AP credit to meet prerequisites and electives.
- The official transcript (score report) from the College Board is required to show the score(s) earned. This document needs to be sent directly to the University of Colorado College of Nursing.
- To ensure that your official score report is received by the College of Nursing, please request that the College Board mail the document to:
University of Colorado College of Nursing
Office of Admissions
13120 E. 19th Avenue, Mailstop C288-6
Aurora, CO 80045
International Baccalaureate (IB) Credit
- Only specific prerequisites and electives can be met using IB credit. View the IB Credit Transfer Guide.
- The minimum score shown is required to transfer the IB credit to meet prerequisites and electives.
- Instructions for ordering your IB diploma are available through on the IB Requesting transcripts and certificates page.
- To ensure that your official score report is received by the College of Nursing, please request that the International Baccalaureate program mail the document to:
University of Colorado College of Nursing
Office of Admissions
13120 E. 19th Avenue, Mailstop C288-6
Aurora, CO 80045
College Level Examination Program (CLEP) Credit
- Only specific prerequisites and electives can be met using CLEP credit; view the CLEP Credit Transfer Guide.
- The minimum score shown is required to transfer the CLEP credit to meet prerequisites and electives.
- The official transcript (score report) from the College Board is required to show the score(s) earned.
- To ensure that your official score report is received by the College of Nursing, please use the following school code when ordering the report from College Board: 5281.
Pass/Fail Credit
- Standard Pass/Fail Policy for Prerequisite Courses - For the College of Nursing, courses taken on a Pass/Fail (P/F) or Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) basis may not be used to fulfill prerequisite requirements.
- COVID-19 Exception for Prerequisite Courses - The CU College of Nursing's strong recommendation is that students choose to have standard grades listed on their transcript and not the Pass/Fail grade option. However, for courses completed in Spring 2020 only, Passing (P) or Satisfactory (S) grades may be accepted to fulfill prerequisite courses, provided the P or S indicates that the student has earned a C grade or higher. For GPA calculation purposes, an approved P or S course grade will be converted to the lowest score associated with the P or S by the sending institution (e.g. a C grade will be calculated as a 2.0). For spring 2020 grades only, the student, via the sending institution, will have the option of submitting the underlying/actual grade earned, e.g. A, B, etc., which will be used in the GPA calculation for review purposes. There will not be a cap to the total number of prerequisite credits that may be taken on a P/F or S/U basis for spring 2020 coursework, provided that the aforementioned criteria are satisfied.
Foreign Transcripts and Study Abroad Credits
Transcripts for all foreign (non-study abroad) coursework must be submitted directly to the University of Colorado College of Nursing for evaluation through the Office of International Affairs.Transcripts for study abroad coursework from a non-U.S. institution may be required depending on how foreign coursework is posted on the domestic (receiving institution) transcript. If all course information (course title, credits hours and grades) is posted to the domestic transcript, applicants do not need to submit a separate transcript from the study abroad institution. If any course information is incomplete, or the grades are posed as Pass/Fail, a transcript for the study abroad coursework will need to be submitted directly to the University of Colorado College of Nursing .
Due to the clinical nature of the nursing profession, all students must meet the following communication standards, as outlined in the Technical Standards of our Student Handbook:
- A student must be able to communicate clearly and effectively in English with clients, teachers and all members of the health care team. Written and oral communication must use standard, professional medical terminology.
- He/she must communicate with clients clearly and effectively in English to elicit information regarding history, emotional status and activity, and to perceive nonverbal communications.
- Communication includes speech, hearing, reading, writing and computer literacy.
- A student must be able to clearly and effectively report in English to members of the health care team. Additionally, students must be able to relay appropriate information to clients, as well as teach, explain, direct and counsel a wide variety of individuals.
- In some instances the student will be required to provide clear, direct communication in English during highly stressful, crisis situations. These skills necessitate a strong command of the English language and prompt, timely interpretation of pertinent patient data.
- Students must be able to communicate online in a timely, professional manner, e.g., enter an electronic medical record immediately after the patient visit.
If your primary language is not English, or if you are an International Student, you will need to demonstrate required English language proficiency by meeting one of the following criteria:
- You are a citizen of a country whose official language is English including Australia, Belize, Botswana, Canada (except Quebec), Commonwealth Caribbean, Ghana, United Kingdom, Ireland, Kenya, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa, and Zimbabwe.
- You have obtained a total score of at least 560 on the paper-based TOEFL and 50 or above on the Test of Spoken English (TSE); a score of 83 on the Internet-based TOEFL with 26 or above on the spoken English section. For other minimum subscores see internationaladmissions.ucdenver.edu. The College of Nursing TOEFL Exam Code is 3377. Be sure to use this code when registering for the exam to ensure that we will receive the results.
- You have obtained a total score of 6.5 on IELTS with a minimum speaking subscore of 8. Official IELTS scores must be sent directly to the College of Nursing.
- You have graduated from the University of Colorado Denver’s ESL Academy.
- You have graduated from a US/UK accredited school abroad with English as the medium of instruction.
- You have earned a Bachelor’s degree in the U.S. or you have successfully completed a minimum of 2 semesters of full-time study in a master’s program at an accredited institution in the U.S.
*For non-international applicants whose primary language is not English (i.e. permanent residents), there may also be an opportunity to complete an English language evaluation to demonstrate language proficiency. Candidates may be identified and contacted during the application cycle if proof of English language proficiency is required.
Applicants who were previously enrolled in another nursing program (prerequisite courses excluded) are required to submit a letter of good standing from the previous school indicating that the student left in good academic standing. Documentation can be sent to nursing.admissions@cuanschutz.edu and will also need to be included in the NursingCAS application profile.
All College of Nursing students must meet the minimum requirements outlined in the Technical Standards for admission, progression and graduation.
