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  1. NAU
  2. Nursing
  3. How to apply to nursing programs at NAU
  4. How to apply for undergraduate nursing programs at NAU
Undergraduate nursing programs Graduate nursing programs

How to apply for undergraduate nursing programs

Have you completed your pre-professional and liberal studies requirements with Northern Arizona University or another institution? If so, then you are eligible to apply for our Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program. If not, you can still get started today by applying to NAU.

N A U Nursing students practice taking each other's vitals.

How to apply for your Bachelor of Science in Nursing

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Step 1: Apply to NAU

Are you a new or continuing student? Before you’re ready to apply to a College of Nursing program, you’ll need to complete all of your preprofessional requirements (prerequisites and liberal studies courses).
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Step 2: Apply to the College of Nursing

The traditional, accelerated, compressed, and American Indian programs all have separate application forms. During an open application cycle, admission requires a completed application, the HESI A2 exam, and completed prerequisite courses or degree.

College of Nursing admission requirements

  • Completed online application with unofficial transcripts from each college or university attended
  • Completion of all nursing requirements and prerequisite courses with a 3.0 or higher
  • 5 or fewer in-progress prerequisite courses at the time of application (all prerequisite courses must be completed by the beginning of the program)
  • Proctored HESI A2 admissions exam
  • For Accelerated BSN program only; must have a bachelor’s degree complete by the start of the program

Incomplete applications will not be considered for admission.

Application dates and deadlines

Traditional/Compressed BSN

Spring admissions:

  • Application: July. 1–Sep. 10
  • HESI A2: July. 6-Sep. 15

Summer admissions (Compressed BSN only):

  • Application: Oct. 1-Nov. 8
  • HESI A2: Oct. 7-Nov. 15

Fall admissions:

  • Application: Feb. 1–Mar. 25
  • HESI A2: Feb. 6–April 1

American Indian Program BSN

Fall only admissions:

  • Application: Feb. 1–Mar. 25
  • HESI A2: Feb. 6–April 1

N A U Nursing students working together in class.

Accelerated BSN

Summer admissions (North Valley):

  • Application: Feb. 10-Mar. 24
  • HESI A2: Feb. 14-Mar. 28

Fall admissions (Flagstaff and North Valley):

  • Application: June 1-July 8
  • HESI A2: June 5-July 13

Spring 2026 admissions (North Valley):

  • Application: Oct. 7, 2025-Nov. 18, 2025
  • HESI A2: Oct. 11, 2025-Nov. 22, 2025

HESI A2 exam

The HESI A2 admission exam score is used to screen and rank undergraduate nursing applicants for pre-licensure programs. You may take the HESI A2 exam only once per application cycle through ProctorU, and the exam must be completed in the cycle for which you are applying by the exam deadline.

The College of Nursing will not accept HESI A2 exams from previous testing cycles or other institutions. A complete application must be submitted to take the HESI A2 exam. Incomplete applications will not be considered for admission.

Those applying to the Accelerated BSN program, please note that the admissions cycle is a first-come, first-served enrollment, so the application may close before the deadline if seats are filled. The College of Nursing encourages applicants to complete the HESI A2 as soon as possible.

Exam preparation and content

To help prepare for the HESI A2 admissions exam, we recommend the Admission Assessment Exam Review, 5th Edition (2021–2022). ISBN: 9780323582261

Exam subjects

SectionNumber of questionsAllotted time
Anatomy and physiology (A&P)30 questions25 minutes
Grammar55 questions50 minutes
Reading comprehension55 questions60 minutes
Vocabulary and general knowledge55 questions50 minutes
Math55 questions50 minutes
Learning style14 questions15 minutes
Personality style15 questions15 minutes

 

Applicants are required to complete the learning and personality style questions within the HESI A2 exam, but the results will not be a factor in the admissions decision. The learning and personality style results will be used to support and guide learning within the nursing program.

How to schedule your HESI A2 exam

  1. Apply to NAU.
  2. Submit your undergraduate College of Nursing BSN application during the application cycle.
  3. The College of Nursing admissions team will review your application. If the application meets all the prerequisite criteria, then you will receive an email with instructions on how to register, schedule, pay for, and take the HESI A2 exam via ProctorU.
  4. Schedule and pay for your HESI A2 exam. Once you have done so, the College of Nursing will receive a registration confirmation email with the date and time of your exam.
  5. Take the HESI A2 exam through ProctorU.
  6. The College of Nursing will automatically receive your exam scores. You do not need to send your scores.
  7. Admissions decisions will be sent to your NAU email address 4–6 weeks after the exam deadline.