A BSN-to-DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) Degree with Adult Gerontology Acute Care Focus

Admission Requirements

• Possess a bachelor’s degree from an NLN or CCNE accredited institution with an upper division major in nursing and a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better (4.0 scale).

  If you are still completing your bachelor's degree at the time you apply, admission will be based on your current cumulative GPA, and you will need to re-submit your official transcript (showing your conferred degree and final GPA) during your first semester. If your final GPA fell below 3.00, you will be given additional academic stipulations to remain enrolled at UNC.

  If you have completed a master's degree, or at least 18 credit hours towards a master's degree, the GPA of your master's work will be used.

• Current Colorado Registered Nurse (RN) license; or current RN license in the state where you practice and eligibility for Colorado RN licensure.

• Minimum of one year of clinical RN experience required (acute care nursing experience preferred).

• Note: the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is NOT required for this program.

Eligibility by State

At this time, UNC can serve online education to students from every state, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. We are not currently accepting students to our online programs who reside in the CNMIs.

Because some states may have additional requirements or limitations for certain programs, please check the following page to verify your eligibility. Note: if your state is showing "limited authorization" it means you are likely eligible with additional documentation, but please contact lisa.grimes@unco.edu for details.

Current State Authorizations for This Program

International Student Eligibility

International students residing outside of the United States are eligible to apply to our online programs. Applicants for online programs must demonstrate English proficiency, or enroll in the UNC Intensive English Program, in order to be considered.

This program requires occasional visits to the United States. You will need to submit financial documentation before you plan to arrive in the U.S. (and again each time you travel to the U.S.). The financial documentation needs to demonstrate that you can pay for the cost of tuition and living expenses for the days that you will be in the U.S.

Please visit the International Students Admission Requirements page for details about English proficiency requirements, financial documentation and applying as an international student.

Transferring Credit

Applicable graduate credit with a grade of A or B from a regionally accredited university may be able to be applied towards this academic program. However, all doctoral students must complete a minimum number of semester hours through UNC, so please check with the Program Coordinator. Transfer credit cannot have been counted in the completion of another degree, will not be used to meet any residency requirements, and is not used in calculation of the grade point average. All work counted in a doctoral degree program must be completed within eight years. The time limit is calculated from the beginning of the first class transferred in and counted in the degree program. See the full Graduate Transfer Credit Policy.

Students must submit an original transcript to their advisor for review. Student and advisor then complete a Transfer of Credit form to submit along with the original transcript to the Grad School for review and final approval.

Tuition

This is an Extended Campus program, which means:

• A flat per-credit tuition rate for all students (in-state or out-of-state)
• There are no student fees – they are incorporated into our flat tuition rate
• Certain courses may carry specific course fees for additional services and materials

Program tuition for the 2022-23 academic year (which runs Fall, Spring, and Summer terms) is $672 per credit hour. Tuition for the 2023-24 academic year will be determined mid-June 2023.

Financial Aid

Students who cannot pay for tuition alone are encouraged to apply for federal financial aid. Students must first complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). The FAFSA priority filing date for each academic year (a Fall-Spring-Summer cycle which begins each August) is June 1, although the form is now available by October 1 of the previous year and requests tax information from the year prior. For example, the FAFSA form for aid for the 2022-23 school year is released on Oct. 1, 2021, and is based off of 2020 tax return information.

Late submissions of the FAFSA are still accepted throughout the school year but you may not be considered for the maximum amount of aid. If the priority deadline has passed for the upcoming/current school year, we encourage you to apply for FAFSA consideration as soon as you enroll for your first courses. Depending on the time of year, you may be able to submit an application for the current academic year and an early/priority application for the following academic year.

Doctoral degree students must be enrolled in a minimum of 5 credits per academic term for financial aid eligibility. Full time enrollment is based on 9 credits per term.

To apply for federal financial aid assistance

Fill out the FAFSA form at https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/fafsa

For more specific help, contact the Office of Financial Aid: ofa@unco.edu, 970-351-4862 or via the UNC Financial Aid website.

Students can also find helpful information such as the Guide to Federal Student Aid at https://studentaid.gov/resources. Most of the resources are available in English, Spanish, and Braille.

Insurance

Malpractice Insurance

You must carry student nurse practitioner malpractice insurance while fulfilling the clinical/practicum courses. Due to clinical contract requirements students must provide proof of insurance about three months prior to the semester that your clinical begins.

Student Health Insurance

The University of Northern Colorado offers a Student Health Insurance Plan (SHIP) to all degree-seeking students who enroll in courses on our main UNC Campus, an Extended Campus Center, or Online.

Degree-seeking graduate students enrolled in 6 or more credit hours will automatically receive this benefit each term. SHIP premiums will appear on your semester bill. If you have comparable insurance coverage, and do not want to be charged for SHIP coverage, you must opt out of this plan each Fall via an online waiver process.

Please visit the UNC Student Health Insurance pages for more information about the insurance plan.