The UNM College of Nursing is enthusiastically interested in all applicants. Our Faculty Admissions Committee holistically reviews academic records, experience in health care, professional and community experience, accomplishments, professional goals, and personal characteristics.
Interviews (graduate programs only) and recommendations will also be taken into consideration.
This entry-option is for current high school seniors only. If you have taken advanced placement/college credit courses in high school, you may still apply for this admission option.
To be considered, students first must complete the admission application to The University of New Mexico. Applicants should declare Nursing as their intended major at the time of application to UNM. Next, the applicant should apply to the College of Nursing through NursingCAS, the common application system for nursing programs at accredited institutions.
To be considered for the Direct-Entry admission option, you must be accepted into the University of New Mexico and meet the following criteria:
Specific requirements for the College of Nursing Ph.D. program are:
All applicants must also be eligible for graduate admission to UNM. Visit Apply to UNM Graduate and Professional Programs to submit an application and all official transcripts to UNM Graduate Admissions. This is in addition to your NursingCAS application.
Personal interview (completed after review of NursingCAS submission and by invitation).
*Exceptions to any program admission criterion are considered individually, at the discretion of the Admissions Committee, with a recommendation to the UNM College of Nursing, Academic Dean.
All concentrations must complete the below admissions requirements
Question 1:
Health equity and social justice are important core concepts in nursing and are emphasized and valued in the UNM College of Nursing DNP program.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2017) define health equity as, “when every person has an opportunity to attain his or her full health potential” and no one is “disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of social position or other socially determined circumstances.” And health inequity as, “the distribution and allocation of power and resources differentially, which manifest in unequal social, economic, and environmental conditions.” Health inequities are reflected in differences in length of life; quality of life; rates of disease, disability, and death; severity of disease; and access to treatment.
Please describe a health inequity you have encountered and discuss how you could address this inequity in your practice as a DNP-prepared Advanced Professional Nurse to improve health outcomes. How have your personal and professional experiences influenced your approach to addressing this issue?
Question 2:
Healthcare is increasingly complex. Advanced nursing professionals should have extensive systems literacy to know how to negotiate the healthcare system and meet the challenges of modern healthcare while reducing cost and advancing health equity. Systems-based practice involves responding to and leading within complex systems of health care. This requires nurses to effectively and proactively coordinate resources to provide safe, high quality, and equitable care to diverse populations. Health care systems rely on DNP prepared nurses to be responsible for quality improvement and the promotion of optimal health outcomes for patients in our care.
Please provide one example of a quality improvement project you would like to implement to improve the quality of care and include your rationale for this project (patient safety, access to healthcare, efficiency of services and care, and/or improved health outcomes).
Question 3:
The health outcomes of patients, populations, and communities are impacted by local, national, and global structures, systems, and policies. Advanced nursing professionals learn leadership and advocacy skills to foster positive working environments that increase their reach to all these levels.
Describe the personal attributes you possess that contribute to fostering a positive and healthy workplace environment. How will you leverage these attributes as a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) to improve health outcomes in your workplace community? Provide examples from your past experiences to support your response.
Question 1:
Health equity and social justice are important core concepts in nursing and are emphasized and valued in the UNM College of Nursing DNP program.
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2017) define health equity as, “when every person has an opportunity to attain his or her full health potential” and no one is “disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of social position or other socially determined circumstances.” And health inequity as, “the distribution and allocation of power and resources differentially, which manifest in unequal social, economic, and environmental conditions.” Health inequities are reflected in differences in length of life; quality of life; rates of disease, disability, and death; severity of disease; and access to treatment.
Please describe your professional experiences with one health inequity experienced by individuals in your care and discuss how you could address this inequity in your practice as a DNP prepared Advanced Professional Nurse to improve health outcomes.
Question 2:
Healthcare is increasingly complex. Advanced nursing professionals should have extensive systems literacy to know how to negotiate the healthcare system and meet the challenges of modern healthcare while reducing cost and advancing health equity. Systems-based practice involves responding to and leading within complex systems of health care. This requires nurses to effectively and proactively coordinate resources to provide safe, high quality, and equitable care to diverse populations. Health care systems rely on DNP prepared nurses to be responsible for quality improvement and the promotion of optimal health outcomes for patients in our care.
Please provide one example of a quality improvement project you would like to implement to improve the quality of care and include your rationale for this project (patient safety, access to healthcare, efficiency of services and care, and/or improved health outcomes).
Question 3:
The health outcomes of patients, populations, and communities are impacted by local, national, and global structures, systems, and policies. Advanced nursing professionals learn leadership and advocacy skills to foster positive working environments that increase their reach to all these levels.
What ideals encourage a positive and healthy workplace? How do you plan to use these ideas for improving health outcomes in your community?
Visit The UNM Main Campus Admissions website to submit your application and transcripts to UNM Graduate Admissions. If accepted into the College of Nursing, you must be admitted to UNM before you start the graduate nursing program.”
The Post-Graduate Certificate Program currently has the following three admitting concentrations:
All concentrations must complete the below admissions requirements:
There are a few more requirements for international applicants to be considered for admission to the UNM College of Nursing.
The University of New Mexico is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity institution. To comply with the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, UNM provides this publication in alternative formats. If you have special needs and require an auxiliary aid or service please let us know.
As the No. 1 nursing school in New Mexico, we don’t just educate nurses. We change the entire field of nursing. We educate inquisitive professionals who improve patient care. Our nurses are scientists who find smarter methods of serving the people of our state.
Admissions & Recruitment
College of Nursing
Building 214
Strategic & Enrollment Services
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1 University of New Mexico
