Three Start Dates. One Year. Chattanooga’s Public University Path to RN Licensure
Where most ABSN programs offer one or two annual entry points, UTC opens three — Fall, Spring, and Summer — on a public university tuition structure with a flat-rate semester cap for Tennessee residents. Three semesters and twelve months is the timeline, not the marketing language: the curriculum is structured to complete in a single calendar year when entered at any of the three cohort dates.
The essay requirement and resume submission distinguish this process from fill-in-the-blank applications — UTC is evaluating character attributes alongside academic metrics.
Enrollment is limited and competitive each cycle; meeting minimum requirements doesn’t guarantee a seat.
ABSN Admission Summary
Admission is competitive with limited cohort capacity — qualified applicants who don’t receive a seat must reapply for the next cycle. The evaluation weighs GPA, prerequisite performance, a resume, and a structured essay that explicitly asks about cultural humility, self-awareness, and lessons from prior life or work experience.
Academic requirements:
- Completed bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing field (conferred by the degree deadline for the chosen entry term)
- Fall (August) entry: degree conferred by May 31
- Spring (January) entry: degree conferred by September 15
- Summer (May) entry: degree conferred by January 31
- 3.0 GPA in the last 30 hours of the prior bachelor’s degree (waiver available — contact the ABSN advisor)
- Minimum 2.75 prerequisite GPA across all required prerequisite courses
- Grade of C or better in every individual prerequisite course
- Maximum two prerequisites may be in progress at the time of application — all must be complete before the program starts; in-progress courses with a final grade below C require forfeiture of the nursing program seat
Prerequisite coursework — all must be complete with C or better:
- Human Anatomy or A&P I with lab (BIOL 2060)
- Human Physiology or A&P II with lab (BIOL 2080)
- Microbiology with lab (BIOL 2100)
- Chemistry with lab
- Writing and Communication — 6 hours (English Composition I and II, Public Speaking)
- Introduction/General Psychology (PSY 1010)
- Statistics (DATA 2130, ENCE 2220, MATH 1530, or PSY 2010)
The prerequisite GPA is calculated on all eight course areas listed above. UTC does not accept transfer credit from Sophia.org, Study.com, or StraighterLine — verify course acceptability through the UTC Transfer Equivalency page before enrolling elsewhere.
Application process — two parallel submissions required:
- Complete the UTC Admissions Application at utc.edu/apply (apply as a post-baccalaureate student; $30 application fee unless prior UTC applicant); send official transcripts from all previous colleges to UTC Admissions
- Complete the ABSN Nursing Application through the UTC Application Portal — log in with the same credentials as the admissions application; select “Other Applications” → BSN Program Application (Accelerated Track)
- Upload resume following the UTC recommended resume template
- Upload completed essay (3 double-spaced pages maximum)
Applications without both the resume and essay uploaded are not reviewed. Students who have not been admitted to UTC or whose coursework has not been transcribed by the nursing application deadline will not be considered.
Essay requirements:
The essay addresses three specific areas — each requiring substantive, personal responses:
- The role(s) of a nurse in today’s healthcare environment and personal responsibility in patient care
- Why the applicant is positioned for an accelerated 3-semester program vs. a traditional 5-semester track; lessons learned from prior life/work experience
- A specific situation requiring cultural humility — where the applicant was open to other viewpoints, how it challenged personal values, and how it was resolved
Notification: Admission status communicated approximately 4–6 weeks after the application deadline.
Post-acceptance requirements (final acceptance conditions):
- Completion of any in-progress prerequisite courses with C or better
- ATI Launch Readiness program certificate of completion
- Criminal background check — offer may be rescinded based on results
- Health requirements: physical examination, immunizations as required by state law and clinical agencies
- Mandatory health insurance and school liability insurance participation throughout enrollment
- CPR certification, respirator fit testing, uniforms, standardized test fees, and other clinical requirements are student-funded expenses
- Students are responsible for their own transportation to all clinical sites, including remote locations
Transfer limitation: Students who have started a nursing program at another school and wish to transfer into ABSN are not eligible — they must apply to the traditional BSN track instead. No nursing course transfers are accepted with grades below C.
Curriculum
The ABSN nursing sequence spans three semesters and covers the full scope of BSN nursing education — pathophysiology/pharmacology, health assessment, fundamentals, all major clinical specialties, research, and a final preceptor practicum. Specific credit hours per course are not published in available materials; contact the School of Nursing at 423-425-4644 or April Anderson at 423-425-4652 for the current credit breakdown per semester.
Prerequisite Overview
See the admission summary above for the full prerequisite list. All prerequisites must be complete with C or better before nursing courses begin; two may be in progress at application.
Three-semester nursing course sequence:
Semester 1
NURS 2520 – Health Assessment Introduction to health assessment of individuals from structural, functional, and developmental perspectives.
NURS 2550 – Fundamentals Introduction to basic nursing knowledge and skills including professionalism, leadership, communication and collaboration, scholarship, health promotion, technology and information management, and healthcare policy.
NURS 2555 – Fundamentals Clinical Practical application of competencies necessary to meet the fundamental health needs of adults in a safe, legal, and ethical manner using the nursing process.
NURS 3000 – Pathophysiology & Pharmacology Covers concepts of pathophysiologic events throughout the life span, including pathogenesis, morphologic changes, clinical manifestations, and implications for treatment.
NURS 3300 – Professional Nursing Introduction to the professional nursing role.
Semester 2
NURS 3150 – Maternal Newborn Nursing Covers nursing care concepts across the preconception, antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum, and newborn periods.
NURS 3155 – Maternal Newborn Nursing Clinical Clinical application of nursing care across the preconception, antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum, and newborn periods.
NURS 3160 – Pediatric Nursing Covers concepts of nursing care of children and families.
NURS 3165 – Pediatric Nursing Clinical Clinical application of nursing care for pediatric patients and families.
NURS 3545 – Medical Surgical Nursing I
NURS 3555 – Medical Surgical Nursing I Clinical Clinical application of core nursing concepts in the care of adults.
NURS 3560 – Psychiatric Nursing Covers concepts of nursing care for clients with psychiatric health disorders.
NURS 3565 – Psychiatric Nursing Clinical Clinical application of nursing concepts in the care of clients with psychiatric conditions.
Semester 3
NURS 4155 – Medical Surgical Nursing II Clinical Clinical application of complex nursing concepts in the care of adults.
NURS 4420 – Nursing Leadership Examines characteristics of the professional nurse as a leader and manager in the healthcare system.
NURS 4500 – Community Health Nursing Explores population and public health concepts with an emphasis on the nursing role in the community.
NURS 4545 – Medical Surgical Nursing II Centers on holistic nursing care of adults with health alterations.
NURS 4565 – Community Health Clinical Provides the opportunity to care for vulnerable populations in the community.
NURS 4575 – Preceptor Practicum
NURS 4855 – Research and Culminating Experience
The Medical Surgical Nursing sequence spans the final two semesters across theory and clinical tracks — the most sustained specialty thread in the program. The Preceptor Practicum (NURS 4575) and Research and Culminating Experience (NURS 4855) together constitute the final semester’s capstone, combining one-on-one real-world nursing role integration with an evidence-based research project.
Continuation standards: minimum C or S required in all nursing and required courses; 2.0 minimum cumulative GPA; only one nursing course failure (D, F, or NC) is permitted — a second failure results in dismissal from the program.
More curriculum details available in the course catalog: UTC ABSN Catalog
Clinicals
Clinical training is embedded throughout all three semesters — clinical companion courses run paired with every major nursing specialty beginning in Semester 1. The final semester’s Preceptor Practicum (NURS 4575) represents the program’s most intensive real-world clinical experience, placing students one-on-one with a supervising RN.
- Clinical start: Semester 1 — Fundamentals Clinical (NURS 2555) begins in the first term
- Clinical pairing structure: Every clinical specialty has a paired clinical course — Fundamentals, Maternal Newborn, Pediatrics, Psychiatric, Medical-Surgical I and II, Community Health, and Preceptor Practicum all include dedicated clinical sections
- Preceptor Practicum (NURS 4575): Final-semester capstone one-on-one supervised experience — the culminating real-world clinical immersion before graduation
- Medical-Surgical sequence: Spans Semesters 2 and 3 as the most credit-intensive and longitudinally sustained specialty track
- Community Health clinical: NURS 4565 in the final semester provides population-level clinical exposure beyond acute care settings
- Transportation: Students are individually responsible for transportation to all clinical sites — locations include both local and remote healthcare settings in the Chattanooga region
- Clinical compliance costs: Uniforms, standardized testing fees, liability insurance, health insurance, CPR certification, respirator fit testing, physical examinations, and immunizations are all student-funded
- Specific clinical partners: Not named in available program materials — contact April Anderson at 423-425-4652 or april-anderson@utc.edu for current hospital and clinical affiliate information
Tuition
Estimated total program cost (Tennessee resident): ~$16,143 base + nursing differential
UTC uses a flat-rate tuition structure for in-state undergraduates — the semester total caps at $5,381 at 12 or more credit hours. However, all NURS-prefix courses carry an additional $111 per credit hour differential fee on top of the base rate.
| Component | Detail | Cost |
|---|---|---|
Base flat rate (12+ cr., in-state) | $5,381 × 3 semesters | $16,143 |
Nursing course differential | $111/cr. × all NURS credits | Variable |
Estimated total | ~$16,143 + differential |
Estimating the nursing differential:
If each semester averages approximately 15 nursing credit hours, the differential adds ~$1,665/semester × 3 = ~$4,995. This would bring the estimated total to approximately $21,000–$22,000 for Tennessee residents — competitive with UofM (~$22,512) and Tennessee Tech (~$25,000) as the lowest-cost options in the state.
Out-of-state students face a different rate structure — the flat cap at 9+ hours is $5,723 (non-resident base), plus the same $111/credit nursing differential. Confirm exact per-semester totals with UTC’s Bursar before financial planning.
Additional student costs: uniforms, standardized test fees, liability insurance, health insurance, CPR certification, respirator fit testing, clinical transportation, and any miscellaneous nursing course fees.
See the official tuition page for more details: UTC Tuition Schedules
Accreditation
Accreditation body details for UTC’s BSN program are not explicitly named in the available materials beyond alignment with AACN’s 2021 Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice — prospective students should confirm current CCNE or ACEN accreditation status directly with the College of Nursing.
UTC is regionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC).
Graduates who successfully complete the baccalaureate program are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN, subject to Tennessee Board of Nursing requirements and licensure background check standards.