Program Overview
A fast career change with structured clinical-judgment training and scheduling that flexes — Widener University’s 15-month ABSN weaves a dedicated four-course Knowledge Synthesis sequence through all four semesters to build clinical judgment and NCLEX readiness, with daytime, evening, and weekend learning options through the Dwyer School of Nursing.
Widener University offers an on-campus Accelerated Nursing BSN (ABSN) for students who already hold a non-nursing bachelor’s degree, completable in as little as four semesters. Delivered through the Dwyer School of Nursing, the program uses immersive, hands-on learning with daytime, evening, and weekend experiences that include labs and clinical work.
A distinguishing feature is its Knowledge Synthesis sequence — four courses spread across the program that systematically build clinical judgment and prepare students for the NCLEX-RN. Students enter with advanced standing (beginning as juniors) based on their prior degree.
The program notes a waitlist for Fall 2026, so applicants may be deferred to a later start term.
Accreditation
Widener University’s baccalaureate degree program in nursing is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) and approved by the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing. Widener University is institutionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE). The program directs students to review state licensure requirements, since RN licensure rules vary by jurisdiction, and graduates are eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN.
ABSN Admission Summary
Widener’s ABSN requires a completed bachelor’s degree (or completion before the start term) plus prerequisite science and support courses. The admissions cycle includes published deadlines and encourages early confirmation because seats fill quickly.
Eligibility and requirements
- Bachelor’s degree earned, or in progress but completed before program start
- Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA from all prior colleges/universities
- Required prerequisites completed with C or better before enrolling
- Anatomy & Physiology I and II must be completed within 5 years of program start
Required prerequisite courses
- Chemistry (4 credits with lab)
- Anatomy & Physiology I (4 credits with lab, within 5 years)
- Anatomy & Physiology II (4 credits with lab, within 5 years)
- Microbiology (4 credits with lab)
- Statistics
- Nutrition
Application process and deadlines
- Application opens: August 1
- Regular action deadline: January 15
- Final action deadline: March 1
- Start timing: students start as a junior in the fall term (courses begin mid-August)
- Fall 2026 note: a published waitlist may push applicants to a later start term
Curriculum
The ABSN includes 68 credits and follows a structured sequence that begins with a short online pre-session and then moves into four full-time semesters, with writing-enriched coursework, skills training, and clinical courses.
Program structure (68 total credits):
- Pre-session (online): NURS 125 Introduction to Nursing (3 credits)
- Semester 1 (17 credits): health assessment, medication administration, pathopharmacology, adult care, and synthesis
- Semester 2 (17 credits): maternal-newborn, pediatrics, psychiatric/mental health, research, and synthesis
- Semester 3 (17 credits): advanced pathopharmacology and adult care across multiple levels with synthesis
- Semester 4 (15 credits): leadership, population health, elective, and final synthesis
Students must earn C or higher in required and elective courses; C- is not acceptable.
NURS 125 – Introduction to Nursing (W) (3 Credits)
Introduces the profession of nursing and the core roles and competencies that shape professional thinking and behavior. Students apply the nursing process and a clinical judgment framework through structured activities and assignments. Writing-intensive work supports self-awareness of values and attitudes, strengthens communication skills, and fosters accountability in caring for individuals, families, and populations.
NURS 202 – Introduction to Gerontological Nursing (3 Credits)
Examines healthy aging and the diverse health needs of older adults in the United States. Emphasizes safe, culturally responsive care across the continuum from prevention to end-of-life. Through engagement with an older adult, students use evidence-based strategies to promote quality of life, function, and independence and apply the nursing process to focused assessments and health-promoting interventions.
NURS 205 – Pharmacokinetics and Medication Administration (3 Credits)
Builds foundational knowledge and skills in basic nursing procedures, dosage calculation, and safe medication administration. Covers essential pharmacologic principles, mathematical processes used in medication and fluid calculations, and strategies to prevent medication errors. Students consider cultural, ethical, legal, and lifespan factors while developing a personal problem-solving approach that supports critical thinking in medication safety.
NURS 206 – Pharmacokinetics and Medication Administration Laboratory (0 Credits)
Provides hands-on practice in medication calculation and administration to support safe nursing care. Reinforces basic pharmacologic concepts and the math processes used in medication and fluid dosing. Students refine individual problem-solving styles to deepen conceptual understanding of critical thinking and medication calculation in a lab setting.
NURS 261 – Health Assessment (3 Credits)
Develops skills in comprehensive physical, spiritual, and psychosocial assessment across the lifespan. Students learn history-taking and examination techniques, conduct a health interview, and document findings in a structured written format. Core clinical and assessment skills are practiced and demonstrated in the laboratory component.
NURS 262 – Health Assessment Laboratory (0 Credits)
Applies Gordon’s Health Patterns Model to adult physical, spiritual, and psychosocial assessment. Students practice interviewing, focused examinations, and use of the nursing process to develop prioritized plans of care with appropriate interventions. Laboratory work emphasizes demonstration and refinement of fundamental clinical and assessment skills.
NURS 305 – Pathopharmacology I (2 Credits)
First in a three-course sequence establishing core pathophysiology and pharmacology concepts. Uses prototype diseases and drugs to trace progression from normal physiology to altered states and to examine pharmacologic management. Highlights pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safe medication practices with diverse patients across the lifespan.
NURS 330 – Medical/Surgical Nursing Interventions: Care of the Adult I (4 Credits) (C)
Introduces fundamental concepts and skills for adult medical-surgical nursing practice. Focuses on basic nursing actions, promotion of healthy physiologic and psychological responses, and whole-person health. Students apply the nursing process and a clinical judgment model while developing core psychomotor skills in lab and clinical settings (3 credits theory; 1 credit lab/clinical; 42 lab/clinical hours).
NURS 374 – Knowledge Synthesis I (2 Credits)
Introduces clinical decision-making through focused development of thinking strategies. Students examine each component of the clinical judgment model and apply it to individual case studies. Small-group activities help students identify strengths and gaps and create a personal and professional success plan.
NURS 333 – Family Focused Maternal Newborn Care (4 Credits)
Covers evidence-based nursing care for childbearing individuals and families across pregnancy, birth, and the first four postpartum weeks. Emphasizes culturally relevant care in varied settings and addresses psychosocial factors such as family dynamics, diversity, finances, and emotional responses. Legal, ethical, policy, and emerging trends in U.S. maternal-child care are integrated with clinical practice (3 credits theory; 1 credit clinical; 42 clinical hours).
NURS 334 – Family Focused Care of Children (4 Credits)
Focuses on nursing care of infants through adolescents within the context of the family. Addresses health promotion, restoration, and common acute and chronic conditions seen in pediatric settings. Students apply the nursing process and provide care in hospitals and long-term care environments, with attention to normal growth and development (3 credits theory; 1 credit clinical; 42 clinical hours).
NURS 371 – Research, Design, and Evidence-Based Nursing Practice (W) (3 Credits)
Introduces nursing research and evidence-based practice as the foundation for high-quality clinical care. Topics include research design, developing clinical questions, locating and appraising evidence, and translating findings into practice. Emphasis is on advanced writing and scholarly dialogue to strengthen students’ ability to read, evaluate, and apply research in nursing.
NURS 375 – Knowledge Synthesis II (2 Credits)
Builds on earlier decision-making and thinking strategies for nursing practice. Students work in groups with progressive case studies that integrate concepts from prior and concurrent courses. Presentations using the clinical judgment model and targeted activities guide refinement of a personalized success plan.
NURS 465 – Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing (4 Credits)
Expands mental health content introduced in medical-surgical and pathopharmacology courses. Examines patterns of behavior related to coping, stress, cognition, perception, and thought, along with family, group, cultural, spiritual, and developmental influences. Clinical experiences emphasize therapeutic communication and application of psychiatric nursing concepts (3 credits theory; 1 credit clinical; 42 clinical hours, plus additional clinical as noted by program).
NURS 306 – Pathopharmacology II (2 Credits)
Second course in the pathopharmacology sequence, using a system-based approach to disease and treatment. Explores progression from normal physiology to pathology and links this to pharmacologic management of selected conditions. Continues emphasis on pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and safe medication practices across the lifespan.
NURS 331 – Medical/Surgical Nursing Interventions: Care of the Adult II (5 Credits) (C)
Advances medical-surgical nursing care of adults with a range of acute and chronic conditions. Organizes care using the nursing process and diagnoses, integrating psychosocial, developmental, cultural, nutritional, and gerontologic considerations. Reinforces foundational skills, pathophysiology, and pharmacology while expanding clinical practice (3 credits theory; 2 credits clinical; 84 clinical hours).
NURS 405 – Pathopharmacology III (2 Credits)
Final course in the pathopharmacology series, building on prior system-based learning. Further examines disease progression and corresponding pharmacologic management in complex conditions. Emphasizes evaluating the impact of disease and drug therapy on diverse patients and reinforcing safe medication practices.
NURS 432 – Medical/Surgical Nursing Interventions: Care of the Adult III (5 Credits)
Focuses on care of adults with complex acute and long-term, often multi-system, health problems. Stresses prioritization, clinical problem-solving, decision-making, and collaboration with interprofessional teams. Students refine technical skills, therapeutic communication, ethical practice, and culturally competent care in acute settings (3 credits theory; 84 clinical hours).
NURS 474 – Knowledge Synthesis III (3 Credits)
Reinforces clinical judgment competencies using complex, curriculum-wide scenarios. Students work individually and in groups to apply structured thinking strategies to diverse clinical situations. Identified strengths and gaps drive targeted activities designed to promote success in advanced coursework and practice.
NURS 445 – Nursing Leadership (5 Credits) (C)
Synthesizes leadership and management theories to support transition into professional practice. Emphasizes competencies in communication, collaboration, conflict management, delegation, prioritization, resource use, and change leadership for safe, evidence-based, patient-centered care. A capstone clinical experience pairs students with faculty and nurse mentors to practice leadership roles and contribute to a culture of quality and safety (3 credits theory; 2 credits clinical; 72 clinical hours).
NURS 475 – Knowledge Synthesis IV (3 Credits)
Uses established decision-making skills to integrate nursing knowledge in managing varied and complex clinical scenarios. Class activities and NCLEX-style testing focus on entry-level practice settings and clinical judgment development. Learning experiences build on identified strengths and gaps from prior synthesis courses to support readiness for professional practice and licensure.
NURS 480 – Senior Nursing Elective (W)(S) (3 Credits)
Offers an in-depth study of a selected nursing topic, integrating service learning and advanced writing. Community-based service experiences are linked with course content to foster civic responsibility and community engagement. Writing assignments focus on elevating professional written communication within the elective’s specialty area.
NURS 485 – Population Health (4 Credits) (C)
Explores determinants of population health and their contribution to health disparities. Addresses both individual- and population-focused, evidence-based interventions within a public health framework. Nursing care centers on primary and secondary prevention strategies, supported by clinical experiences in population health settings (3 credits theory; 1 credit clinical; 42 clinical hours).
More detail is available in the Widener nursing catalog.
Clinicals
The program includes clinical experiences across key areas of nursing practice, with clinical work scheduled during daytime, evening, and weekend hours. Widener highlights modern simulation training that supports skill building before and during clinical learning, and students practice in a nursing simulation center that includes simulated hospital rooms, mannequins, standardized patients, and technology-supported learning tools.
Tuition
Estimated total program tuition and required fees are about $52,217, based on the published flat tuition and listed per-semester fees (this estimate excludes items not priced in the published copy, such as books and uniforms):
- Flat-rate ABSN tuition: $50,940
- Technology fee: $155 per semester × 4 semesters = $620
- New student fee: $37
- Estimated total: $52,217
Confirm current figures via the official tuition and financial aid page.