Application Requirements
As a Registered Nurse who is embarking on your doctorate education at WesternU, we are here to provide you with guidance and direction as a prospective student and applicant for the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) program. We are here to serve you from day one, step one.
State and federal laws require that colleges and universities obtain authorization to offer online degree programs in any state where their students reside. If you are an applicant from outside California, please confirm that we have authorization in your state.
The next step in the admissions process is to ensure you’re on track to complete the requirements below in time to apply for your preferred year of entry.
You must have the following requirements:
- A Bachelor of Science or Master of Science in Nursing degree from a board approved program. (Bachelor or Master degrees in related fields will be considered on a case-by-case basis).
- Minimum GPA of 3.0 for overall and last 60 semester or 90 quarter units.
- An active and unencumbered Registered Nurse (RN) license in the state where you will obtain your practice hours.
- One year (at least 1800 hours) of experience as a Registered Nurse (RN). Applicants without one year (at least 1800 hours) of experience as an RN still qualify for this program. You will be placed in the appropriate modified curriculum and will be required to complete the 1800 hours of RN employment by the end of the first year in the program. Students that do not fulfill the RN work requirement will not be allowed to move on to the second year of the program.
- Completion of a statistics course (2 semester units or 3 quarter units) with a grade of “C” or higher.
- Scholarly Writing
- Please upload an example of your scholarly writing
- Acceptable scholarly writing samples include written scholarly academic paper, journal publication, position statement, policy brief, master’s thesis, or written case study.
- Will not accept: PowerPoint presentation, poster presentation, brief essays or SWOT analyses.
- If you need further guidance on what would qualify as scholarly writing you can contact the Admissions office at admissions@westernu.edu
- 2 Reference Forms
- To be completed by an employer or faculty member (non-relative)
- Forms will be sent electronically to your recommender based on the information you provide in your application.
Requirements for International Students
- All coursework taken from non-US institutions (including Canada) must be submitted to an approved service for evaluation.
Proof of Legal U.S. Residency – If Required
- International applicants, or any other applicants who are not U.S. citizens and who are living in the U.S., must provide proof of legal U.S. residency prior to matriculation.
Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) – If Required
- The TOEFL is required for all applicants submitting coursework from foreign schools
- TOEFL scores are valid for two years
- Internet-Based test (IBT) minimum score: 80
- Computer Based test minimum score: 213
- Exceptions:
- The TOEFL exam will be waived for permanent and temporary residents of the United States who have completed six semester units of the communication requirement from a regionally accredited U.S. institution
- You have a confirmed bachelor’s degree at the time of application from a regionally accredited U.S. institution
The apply now page will provide you with step-by-step instructions as well as an application checklist. There are a number of supporting materials that make up your completed application and it is essential that you print and carefully follow the checklist to ensure that you properly submit these pieces by the deadline.