#1 in Minnesota for Nursing. Two States. Three Start Dates a Year.
Ranked #1 for nursing in Minnesota by Niche, Concordia University St. Paul’s ABSN operates on a blended model that separates where you learn theory (online, on your schedule) from where you build clinical skills (in-person labs and rotations). The result is a 16-month program that accommodates real life without cutting corners on clinical preparation.
Three annual cohort openings at both the St. Paul and Portland sites mean a missed deadline costs weeks, not a full year.
Between 2020 and 2024, CSP Global produced the highest number of accelerated BSN graduates in Oregon and the highest number of prelicensure graduates from a single campus location in the state — a volume metric that reflects both program capacity and employer confidence in the credential.
ABSN Admission Summary
CSP doesn’t require a completed bachelor’s degree — 54 non-nursing college credits satisfy the credit threshold, opening the door to students who hold an associate degree or have substantial college coursework without a completed four-year degree. An applicant denied twice may not reapply; the third application will not be reviewed.
Credit and degree requirements:
- Minimum 54 non-nursing college credits completed before enrolling — satisfied by a completed associate degree, non-nursing bachelor’s degree, or equivalent college credits
- Students with prior nursing coursework from another pre-licensure program must submit a dean’s or director’s letter confirming academic standing and that departure was not safety- or behavior-related
GPA requirements:
- Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA across all college coursework
- Minimum 3.0 combined GPA across the four science prerequisite courses (Microbiology, A&P I, A&P II, Chemistry for Health Sciences)
- Grade of C or higher required in every individual prerequisite course
ATI TEAS exam:
- Minimum overall score of 65% with proficiency in all subject areas
- Must have been taken within the past year before application
- Maximum two attempts per year
Six required prerequisite courses (C or higher in each):
- PSY 150 – Lifespan Developmental Psychology (3 cr.) — must be within 10 years of acceptance
- MAT 165 – Quantitative Reasoning for Health Care Professionals (3 cr.) — within 7 years
- CHE 105 – Chemistry for Health Sciences (4 cr.) — within 7 years; counts toward general education
- BIO 300 – Microbiology (4 cr.) — within 7 years; requires BIO 120 General Biology I as prerequisite if taken at CSP
- BIO 315 – Human A&P I with Lab (4 cr.) — within 7 years; requires BIO 120 if taken at CSP
- BIO 316 – Human A&P II with Lab (4 cr.) — within 7 years; requires BIO 315 as prerequisite
Science and math prerequisites expire at 7 years; Lifespan Development expires at 10 years. General education requirements transferred from another institution do not expire. Science prerequisite courses may be repeated a maximum of two times total (not two for failure and two for withdrawal separately — two total re-takes combined).
30 credit hours of general education are also required before starting nursing courses, in these content areas:
- Communication: 6 credits (writing and oral communications)
- Math: 3 credits
- Natural Science with lab: 4 credits
- Social Sciences: 6 credits
- Humanities/Arts: 6 credits
- Theology: 5 credits (completed during the nursing program itself)
Minnesota students may transfer general education courses with a D or higher; Oregon students require a C or higher. Prerequisite courses count toward general education requirements where applicable.
Application process:
- Contact an admissions counselor for a preliminary eligibility review and prerequisite planning session
- Complete prerequisite and general education coursework (can be done at CSP Global or any accredited institution)
- Submit the online ABSN application during the final semester of prerequisite completion
- Submit TEAS scores (taken within the past year, 65% minimum)
- Submit official transcripts through National Student Clearinghouse, Parchment, eScrip-Safe, or sealed mail — not via email or fax
Post-conditional acceptance requirements:
- Criminal background check — must clear before full admission to the nursing cohort
- Additional clinical compliance requirements per site-specific clinical agency standards
- English language proficiency exam required if English is not native language AND applicant has lived in the U.S. fewer than 8 years at time of application:
- TOEFL iBT: 84 overall, 26 speaking minimum
- IELTS: 6.5 overall, 6.0 minimum on all modules
- MELAB: 81 total, speaking score of 3
- Pearson Test of English Academic: 55 overall, 50 minimum on all sub-scores
Preferred admission pathway: Students who need additional credits to reach the 54-credit threshold may access a preferred admission pathway — contact an admissions counselor for specifics.
Curriculum
Sixty-one nursing credit hours are distributed across four semesters using a blended learning model: nursing theory delivered asynchronously online, skills developed in in-person labs, and patient care competency built through clinical rotations.
Three theology courses (5 credits total) are embedded in Semesters 2 and 3, reflecting Concordia’s Lutheran-rooted, Christ-centered mission integrated into the nursing curriculum rather than treated as separate general education coursework.
Prerequisite Overview
All six prerequisite courses must be complete with C or better before Semester 1 begins. Science and math prerequisites must be within 7 years; Lifespan Development within 10 years. See the admission summary above for the full prerequisite list.
Four-semester nursing sequence (61 credit hours):
Semester 1
NUR 376 Applied Pathophysiology
Explores pathophysiological processes in adults, focusing on health risks, symptom assessment, and disease manifestations. Active learning strategies engage students in identifying and evaluating these factors. 3 credits (135 contact hours)
NUR 378 Pharmacology in Nursing
Covers comprehensive patient care involving pharmacological therapies, emphasizing patient safety, rights, and administration techniques. Integrates technology, including electronic health records, to support safe medication practices.
NUR 380 Fundamentals of Professional Nursing
Introduces the professional nurse’s role within historical, ethical, and social justice frameworks. Includes primary, secondary, and tertiary interventions for client care and foundational skills in the lab.
NUR 382 Health Promotion and Assessment
Focuses on health assessment and promotion for adult and geriatric clients, covering interviewing, history-taking, physical assessments, and documentation. Skills lab allows students to apply assessment and promotion techniques for optimal patient outcomes.
Semester 2
NUR 384 Behavioral Health Nursing
Examines the nurse’s role in managing clients with altered behavior, thoughts, or moods. Emphasizes ethical issues, therapeutic relationships, and evidence-based care in mental health, fostering interprofessional collaboration.
NUR 388 Population Health
Focuses on nursing roles in population care, addressing health promotion, disease prevention, and social determinants of health. Explores the nurse as a change agent in public health policy.
NUR 390 Nursing Care of the Adult I
Introduces medical-surgical nursing, emphasizing safe, holistic care for adults with acute and chronic health issues. Students apply theory and skills in interprofessional settings to achieve optimal health outcomes.
Semester 3
NUR 417 Nursing Care of the Adult II
Builds on Nursing Care of the Adult I, focusing on complex adult health issues. Incorporates the nursing process and promotes effective communication within interprofessional teams. Includes labs, clinicals, and simulation.
NUR 418 Nursing Care of Childbearing and Childrearing Family
Studies family-centered care for childbearing families, mothers, newborns, and pediatric patients. Emphasizes evidence-based practices in maternity, newborn, and pediatric care in both didactic and clinical settings.
NUR 419 Aging, Chronicity, and Palliative Care
Focuses on managing complex conditions in aging and chronically ill patients, integrating patient assessments with pathophysiology. Develops roles in education, collaboration, and advocacy, especially in palliative and end-of-life care.
Semester 4
NUR 420 Nursing Informatics
Introduces information management and patient care technologies for safe nursing practice. Students develop skills to locate, evaluate, and use information resources for patient and community health education.
NUR 424 Transition into Professional Nursing
Prepares students for professional practice with an internship emphasizing leadership, management, and contemporary healthcare issues. Focuses on delivering safe, holistic care within complex health systems.
NUR 426 Nursing Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice
Teaches evidence-based practice skills, including forming practice questions, evaluating evidence, and implementing changes to improve outcomes. Covers basic nursing research principles and scholarly writing.
NUR 428 Leadership & Management in Nursing
Develops leadership skills, emphasizing individual and organizational responsibility, emotional intelligence, and the importance of a collaborative, respectful healthcare environment. Students learn to identify and drive positive changes in healthcare settings.
The Transition into Professional Nursing (NUR 424, 7 cr.) is the single largest course in the 61-credit program — functioning as the capstone clinical and professional role integration experience. The palliative care and aging course (NUR 419) is a distinctive curricular feature rarely seen as a standalone required course in comparable ABSN programs.
More curriculum details available in the course catalog: CSP ABSN Nursing Catalog
Clinicals
Clinical training begins in Semester 1 and runs through all four terms, with complexity and independence escalating as online coursework advances. CSP Global operates clinical placements in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro for Minnesota students and in the Portland metro for Oregon students — two of the nation’s most active nursing employment markets.
- Clinical start: Semester 1 — NUR 380 Fundamentals of Professional Nursing includes clinical hours from the first semester; students enter patient care settings before completing foundational classroom content
- Clinical progression: Entry-level skills (ADLs, vital signs, patient communication, documentation) → intermediate assessment and intervention → complex multi-system care, specialty rotations, and leadership immersion in the final semester
- Simulation: Available at both the St. Paul and Portland learning sites — human patient simulator manikins react to clinical decisions in real time; scenarios include managing childbirth, responding to unresponsive patients, and other high-acuity situations; simulation counts toward clinical learning hours
- Skills labs: Task trainers for IV insertion, wound care, and other procedural skills; human patient simulators that reproduce breath sounds, bowel sounds, and pulses; faculty-controlled responses to student nursing interventions
- St. Paul clinical market: Minneapolis-St. Paul ranks 14th nationally for RN employment with 40,510 practicing nurses — one of the most RN-dense metro areas in the country
- Portland clinical market: Oregon ranks third-highest nationally for RN pay per BLS data — significant nursing shortage drives ongoing demand for new graduates
- Transition to Professional Nursing (NUR 424, 7 cr.): The final semester’s capstone course carries the program’s highest clinical credit weight — an intensive professional role transition experience that prepares students for day-one practice as a licensed RN
- Clinical site specifics: Named hospital and clinical facility partners are not published in available materials — contact the admissions team at (866) 892-1562 for current clinical affiliate information at each site
Tuition
Estimated total nursing program cost: ~$67,485
CSP Global charges $1,050 per credit hour for nursing coursework, plus fixed program fees.
| Component | Detail | Cost |
|---|---|---|
Nursing tuition | 61 cr. × $1,050 | $64,050 |
ATI fee (testing materials) | Fixed program fee | $3,284 |
Nursing course lab fee | Per course (one fee) | $150 |
Nursing program subtotal | ~$67,484 |
Prerequisite courses, if taken at CSP Global, are billed separately at $420 per credit hour — approximately $8,400 for the 20 prerequisite credits if completed entirely at CSP.
St. Paul scholarship: Students accepted to the St. Paul location receive a $4,000 scholarship paid at $1,000 per term — reducing effective nursing tuition to approximately $60,050 for Minnesota-site students.
At ~$67,484 in nursing tuition, CSP is priced in the mid-to-upper range of private ABSN programs — comparable to Lipscomb (~$69,738) and less expensive than PLU (~$75,450) or Emory (~$82,000+). The blended model, three annual start dates, two-state footprint, and 54-credit admission threshold (no bachelor’s degree required) distinguish CSP from comparably priced programs.
See the official tuition page for more details: CSP Tuition & Financial Aid
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