Admission Requirements

All applicants to the Nurse Anesthesia program must meet the general requirements for doctoral degree students at UNC Charlotte as outlined on the UNCC Office of Graduate Admissions website.

In addition to the general requirements for admission to the Graduate School, the following are required for admission** to the DNP Nurse Anesthesia major:

Academic Preparation

• Baccalaureate degree in nursing (BSN) from an accredited nursing program.
• Satisfactory performance on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE); a combined score of 950 (under the old format) or 293 (under the current format) is preferred (MAT scores are not accepted).
• A grade point average (GPA) of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale for all undergraduate work after high school.
• A grade point average of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale for all basic undergraduate science courses taken since high school (Chemistry, Biology, Anatomy and Physiology and Microbiology).
• Completion of an undergraduate statistics course with a grade of B or better.
• An essay (statement of purpose), limited to a single page, describing the applicant's experience, fit to the CRNA role and examples of leadership. Candidates should highlight unique characteristics such as being bilingual and leadership experiences.

Grade Point Average Calculation

Many students attend more than one undergraduate institution. You can use the GPA calculator below to determine your composite overall and science GPA. The calculator contains detailed information about what should be included in your calculation.

If you are not sure if your current undergraduate overall and/or science GPA meet admission requirements you may use the GPA calculator below for the calculation.

GPA Calculator (Microsoft Excel Format, XLS)

Career Preparation

• Current unrestricted licensure as a Registered Nurse. Current license in North Carolina or a compact state or the state identified by faculty for clinical practice before enrollment.
• For the three letters of recommendation required by the Graduate School, all must be from persons familiar with the applicant's professional qualifications, such as clinical manager or supervisor, academic professor or physician.
• A minimum of 18 months of current full-time critical care experience with adult clients prior to matriculation
  • Acceptable experience includes Intensive Care Unit, Coronary Care Unit, Trauma Intensive Care Unit, Neuro Intensive Care Unit, Surgical Intensive Care Unit or Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit.
  • Experiences not acceptable include: Flight Team, Emergency Room, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Post Anesthesia Care Unit and Operating Room.
  • Current certification in Basic Cardiac Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support with documentation provided only to Carolinas Medical Center Nurse Anesthesia Program.  Documentation of certifications or plan for certification/s are required at time of application (all certifications must be achieved prior to start of Program).
• Computer literacy is required for coursework.

Applicants who meet the admission requirements are eligible to be invited to an interview with the Clinical Program’s Admission Committee. Applicants may interview only one time per admission cycle. An admission cycle consists of two interview sessions as listed below.

Session I:

First week of August of the year prior to the intended start date.
Application submission deadline for this session is June 10.

Session II:

Last week of November of the year prior to the intended start date.
Application submission deadline for this session is September 10.

Applicants will be notified of their admission status shortly after the completion of each interview session.

**Please Note: The application process requires two applications - one to UNC Charlotte and one to Carolinas Medical Center Nurse Anesthesia Program.