Admission to the School of Nursing is competitive and based on evaluation of all portions of the application. To be considered for all UVA School of Nursing's MSN programs, applicants must submit a completed application and:

• Have a baccalaureate degree in nursing (BSN) from a nationally accredited school
• Have a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in undergraduate study
• Be licensed as a registered nurse in the US and be eligible for a RN license in Virginia. All matriculating students who are not active-duty military nurses must have a Virginia RN license before the first day of classes
• Submit a total of three satisfactory recommendations (academic, professional, and clinical), one of which should be from an APRN
• Submit a resume or CV
• Pay an $85 application fee
• Be available for an interview, if requested
• International applicants have additional admissions requirements

Please note that the GRE is no longer necessary for applicants.

RN experience:

• Applicants to the advanced practice programs (CNS and NP) must have at least one year of full-time RN experience before entering the program. A minimum of one year of full-time, relevant clinical nursing experience is necessary before enrolling in GNUR 6020 (Advanced Pharmacology), GNUR 6025 (Advanced Health Assessment), and the clinical practica.
• Applicants to the NNP track must have at least two years of full-time clinical practice experience (within the last five years) as an RN in the care of critically ill neonates or infants in critical care inpatient settings, typically in a NICU. This experience is mandatory.

A competitive applicant has:

• a BSN GPA of 3.25 or higher
• More than one year of relevant, full-time RN experience
• Active member of a national nursing organization (preferably in applicant’s practice area)
• Exhibiting leadership behaviors in a nursing practice setting (mentoring other nurses, participating in unit or hospital-based leadership teams, engaged in practice change and evidence-based practice projects)
• Possess a clinical certification, or on pathway to obtaining one or more certifications
• Excellent writing skills

Classes

Full-time students begin study in the fall, and complete the program in two years, including summer session in year one. During year one, students have didactic classes on Thursdays and Fridays (in the fall) and Wednesday-Friday (in the spring). In the second year, in addition to the didactic component, clinical practica are typically held Monday through Friday as the preceptor and student schedules permit.

MSN Core Coursework (23-24 credit hours)

• GNUR 6010: Advanced Pathophysiology (4 credits)
• GNUR 6020: Advanced Pharmacology (3 credits)
• GNUR 6027: Advanced Pharmacology Specialty Seminar (1 credit)
• GNUR 6025: Advanced Health Assessment (3 credits)/GNUR 6025: Advanced Neonatal & Pediatric Assessment and Reasoning (4 credits)
• GNUR 6031: Transition to Advanced Practice (2 credits)
• GNUR 6050: Theoretical Foundations of Nursing (3 credits)
• GNUR 6054: Research & Biostatistical Processes for Health Care (4 credits)
• GNUR 6056: Health Policy: Leading Change to Advance Population Health (3 credits)

AGAC CNS Specialty Diagnoses & Management Coursework (10 credit hours)

• GNUR 6310: AGAC Seminar I (4 credits)
• GNUR 6121: Diagnostics & Therapeutics (3 credits)
• GNUR 6315: AGAC Seminar II (3 credits)

AGAC CNS Specialty Practicum Coursework (10 practicum hours)

• GNUR 7311: AGCNS Practicum I (5 credits)
• GNUR 7313: AGCNS Practicum II (5 credits)

Students complete over 500 clinical hours in the AGCNS track in two semester-long preceptorships (GNUR 7311 AND GNUR 7313). The first clinical course (GNUR 7311) is typically completed at the top-ranked UVA Medical Center, which adjoins the School of Nursing. The UVA Medical Center—a top 100 hospital with a Level I trauma center—provides an excellent clinical site with a wealth of professional and technological resources. The second practicum (GNUR 7313) may be completed at another facility in Virginia with prior arrangement of the program coordinator. Clinical placement sites are assigned based upon optimal learning experiences, students' requests, interagency contracts, and availability.

The individual student determines his or her specialization focus (e.g., cardiology, digestive health, nephrology, neurology or neuro-surgery, general surgery, pulmonary, transplant, oncology, surgical-trauma, etc.) and learns to provide care across the lifespan and care settings within this specialty.

All clinical/practicum activities are generally conducted within the Commonwealth of Virginia. Clinical/practice activities may be conducted outside Virginia if the University is authorized to place students in that state and pending faculty approval.

All graduate nursing students are required to have a laptop; information about these requirements will be sent to enrolling students before classes begin. 

Nurses across the School's advanced practice specialty areas, including its MSN specialties, post-master's certificates, and DNP program pathways, earn clinical hours with qualified, highly-experienced mentor nurses, at sites across the Charlottesville-Albemarle area, central Virginia, the commonwealth, and the mid-Atlantic region, at sites including:

• Addiction Allies, LLC
• Bon Secours Blackstone Family Practice
• Bon Secours Patterson Avenue Family Practice
• Bon Secours St. Mary's Hospital
• Capitol Pediatrics, PC
• Carilion Clinic Family Medicine - Brambleton
• Carilion Roanoke Memorial (Clinic & Hospitalists)
• Charlottesville Integrated Psychiatry, LLC
• Children's Hospital a.k.a. CNMC
• CVHS - Buckingham
• CVHS - Southern Albemarle
• Family Medicine of Albemarle
• Inova Fairfax Hospital - Inova Health System
• Inova Health System
• KidMed Urgent Care
• Mental Fitness Matters, PLLC
• Old Dominion University Student Health Services
• Planned Parenthood 
• Raphine Medical Associates
• Revolution Healthcare LLC
• Sentara Cardiology Specialists
• Sentara Family & Internal Med Physicians - Hampton
• Sentara Family Medicine - Virginia Beach
• Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital
• Sentara Norfolk General Hospital
• Sentara Obici Hospital
• The Pediatric Center - VCC Main Office
• UNC Medical Center (Neurosciences Hospital)
• UVA Child and Family Psychiatry
• UVA Child Development & Rehabilitation (was KCRC)
• UVA Children's Hospital
• UVA Developmental Pediatrics Clinic
• UVA Family Medicine Stoney Creek
• UVA Health Culpeper Medical Center
• UVA Heart and Vascular Center Fontaine
• UVA HIV Clinic
• UVA Infectious Diseases Clinic
• UVA Medical Center
• UVA Memory and Aging Care Clinic
• UVA Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery Clinic
• UVA Midlife & Gynecologic Specialties Northridge
• UVA OB/GYN Outpatient Clinic
• UVA Pediatric Hematology/Oncology(Battle Building)
• UVA Pediatric Neurology and Epilepsy Clinic
• UVA Primary Care Locust Grove
• UVA Primary Care Riverside
• UVA School of Nursing Clinical Simulation Learning Center (CSLC)
• UVA Student Health and Wellness Center 
• UVA Teen and Young Adult Health Center
• UVA Transplant Center
• UVA University Medical Associates (UMA) Clinic
• VCU CHoR - Hematology and Oncology Clinic
• VCU Student Health Services
• VCU Virginia Commonwealth University Health System
• Veterans Affairs, Richmond, VA (McGuire)
• Virginia Hospital Center Arlington Health System
• Virginia Skin Medical and Cosmetic Dermatology