The Anschutz Medical Campus is a remarkable new health care city located at I-225 and Colfax Avenue in Aurora. It is the largest academic health center between Chicago, Texas, and the West Coast and the world’s only completely new education, research, and patient care facility. Programs in nursing, medicine, dental medicine, and public health are all offered at the campus. The campus is home to the world-renowned University Hospital and Children’s Hospital, as well as, several other patient care facilities.
The College of Nursing, founded in 1898, created the country’s first school nurse programs and the first nurse practitioner programs in the world. With award-winning faculty and cutting-edge facilities, the program employs teaching and clinical instruction supplemented by simulation technology. The college touts the use of innovative multi-disciplinary curriculum, numerous national rankings, and real-world experience through multiple clinical placements. In addition to the bachelor of science programs in nursing, graduate level programs at the master’s and doctoral levels in a variety of areas are also available.
BS classes range from 30 to 140 students depending upon the type of course; MS courses range from 12 to 40 students; DNP and PhD courses are seminar format and range from 6 to 20 students.
The MS program is designed to prepare nurses for advanced practice roles. Our graduates are prepared to formulate clinical, administrative or policy decisions to promote health with clients experiencing wellness, acute or chronic illness, and to develop, manage, and evaluate the care within communities and health care systems.
- 10 different specialty options
- The US News & World Reports ranks many of our options in the top ten in the US!
- Nurse Practitioner - Pediatric 3rd in the US
- Nurse Practitioner - Family 5th in the US
- Clinical Nurse Specialist 6th in the US
- Nurse Practitioner - Adult 8th in the US
- MS Program overall 15th in the US
- Birthplace of the "Nurse Practitioner movement". Thirty-five years of excellence in nurse practitioner education.
- One of the largest nursing faculty practices in U.S. Our students have clinical experiences in our nurse managed health centers or faculty practice sites.
- One of the national projects in the Campus-Community Partnerships Initiative demonstrating integration of community service and student learning.
- A 25 year history of commitment to distance learning across the state of Colorado. Interactive television to deliver classes in over 9 locations across the state.
- Leader in online education since 1996. Over half of our courses may be taken online. Students may complete most MS options through distance learning.
In addition to the MS program, the College of Nursing also offers a MS to DNP and MS to PhD pathways for bachelor-prepared nurses.
The College of Nursing offers two doctoral programs: a doctor of nursing practice (DNP) and the doctor of philosophy (PhD). Each program is carefully crafted to address the needs of the nursing profession and the population they serve.
The DNP degree appeals to nurses with an MS or a BS degree in Nursing who are interested in a practice-focused doctorate. DNP graduates will be prepared as clinical leaders, who will design models of health care delivery, evaluate clinical outcomes, identify and manage health care needs of populations, and use technology and information to transform health care systems. The DNP degree has been suggested as a way to increase the number of doctoral prepared nursing faculty. The DNP program is 38 credits. The DNP program is a competency-based curriculum with courses available in a distance accessible format including online and in-class intensives. Post-MS in Nursing: If you have an MS degree in nursing with an advanced practice specialty you can complete the DNP with a total of 41 credits. This can be completed in two to three years.
The PhD program is designed to prepare nurse scholars to advance the art, science, and practice of the discipline. PhD preparation in nursing promotes knowledge development for reflective, theory-based, and research-guided nursing practice. Our PhD program equips nurses to conduct knowledge development and scholarly inquiry and to be actively engaged in many roles including: researcher; educator; clinician-scholar; administrator; health care policy analyst.
The PhD program is fully distance accessible! The competency-based curriculum is taught with a combination of online and intensive formats. Courses begin online, students attend a one to two week intensive in Denver then courses are completed online. Students will travel to Denver once each semester (fall, spring, summer) while completing coursework and two to three times during dissertation research.
We do not have a time limit on Research and Statistics, our only prerequisite.
The admission process for the College of Nursing is competitive. In the most recent years we have received between 150 to 200 applications for all terms. In general we admit 75 to 100 students for all terms combined.
The cumulative college grade point average for all attempted undergrduate college work, the grade point average of Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing coursework, e personal essays, and letters of recommendation are all considered.
To be eligible for consideration to the MS program, if the cumulative grade point average is below a 3.0, the GRE is recommended. For the DNP program, the minimum required cululative grade point average is 3.0. For the PhD program, the minimum required cumulative grade point average is 3.0 undergraduate and/or a 3.5 graduate grade point average. Contact an admissions specialist if you have questions about your eligibility.
For the MS program, if the cumulative grade point average is below a 3.0, the GRE is recommended.
For the DNP program, the GRE is not required.
For the PhD program, a GRE total score of 1004 is required with minimum 450 on verbal and quantitative tests and 4.0 on writing beginning with tests completed fall 2002. For tests before fall 2002, an overall score of 1500 (verbal, analytic and quantitative) on the Graduate Record Examination with a minimum of 450 on each exam preferred. GRE scores must be within 10 years of application date. Test scores over 10 years old will not be accepted.
It is the policy of the College of Nursing to require all applicants to the College whose primary spoken language is not English to submit Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores as part of the application process. (All international applicants to the College of Nursing must submit a TOEFL score.) Effective July 1, 2009, a total score of at least 550 on the paper-based TOEFL and 50 or above on the Test of Spoken English (TSE), 213 on the computer-based TOEFL and 50 or above on the TSE, or 80 on the Internet-based TOEFL with 26 or above on the Spoken portion is required. The College of Nursing TOEFL Exam Code is 3377. Please be sure to use this code when registering for the exam to ensure that we receive the results. Potential applicants that do not currently meet the minimum TOEFL requirement may participate in the College’s free English as a Second Language (ESL) workshops that are offered on Saturdays throughout the school year.
Students should review the complete admissions information on the College of Nursing programs website and select the specific graduate program applying to before beginning the application process. We accept only online applications (except for the DNP program).
For application deadline information, review the admissions requirements section of the program you wish to apply to.
The admissions committee meets twice a year to review applications and make final decisions. The committee meets once after the spring entry term application deadline (April 1 through June 15) has passed and once after the summer entry application deadline (August 1 through October 15) has passed. Students who have applied to the fall term will begin to receive notification between May and June and students who have applied to the spring term will begin to receive notification between November and December.
We do not use wait lists in our admission process. Students who are offered admission may apply for a future term and will be required to submit a new application, fee, and credentials.
Yes. The College of Nursing offers information sessions at the College of Nursing several times a year.
A current schedule of tuition and fees as well as financial aid information is available online.
Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Learn more about financial aid programs and forms.
Yes. Numerous scholarships are awarded to new and continuing students by the College of Nursing and outside organizations. Learn more about scholarships.
The Anschutz Medical campus does not have on-campus housing. The Student Assistance Office helps students find convenient and affordable housing in the areas close to campus and the downtown Denver area. This office also has resources to help students find roommates and day care.
A wide variety of student services to meet the diverse needs of our student body are available. For more information on these as well as other services go to the Student Assistance Office.
- Tutoring
- Career Center
- Computer labs and printers
- Disability resources and services
- Copy machines
- Internet access
- Writing Center
There is an extensive list of student governance and professional organizations on the Student Assistance Office web page.
On campus recreational areas include a large lounge area with table games, swimming pool, and a free-weight area. In addition, there are many outside spaces throughout the campus for students to play Frisbee, kick-ball, volleyball and other outdoor games. Several campus intramural sports programs available. Students may also use the recreation facilities at the UC Denver Downtown campus and CU Buffaloes Football season are also available to students at a discounted rate.
Learn more about campus safety.
Learn more about campus parking.
Campus tours are arranged on an individual basis. Students can contact the Student Assistance Office at 303-724-7686 for information. Since current students lead the campus tour, we cannot always guarantee a tour will be available on a requested and time.
You can send can contact admissions or call 303-724-1488.