University of Pennsylvania's Nurse Anesthetist Program
The CRNA Program at University of Pennsylvania offers prestige, technology and an MSN in only 24 months! It looks like a very quality and well run program.
Pennsylvania University School of Nursing Nurse Anesthesia Program Claire M. Fagin Hall 418 Curie Blvd Philadelphia, PA 19104
Contact Information Maria Magro, CRNA, MS, MSN, Program Director Carol Ladden, , Director Graduate Enrollment ph: (215) 898-9746 fax: (215) 573-7507 email: magro@nursing.upenn.edu
Quick Facts
CRNA Degree (s) offered Master of Science in Nursing
Program Length 24 months, full time
Credit Hours 27 course units
Starting Month(s) May
Application Deadline The School of Nursing operates on a rolling admissions basis, meaning that applications are processed and reviewed until all slots in the program are filled. Most nurse anesthesia programs begin filling available spots about a year before the program begins.
Tuition is calculated at the 2011-2012 rate. Tuition at most schools increases each academic year. Over the duration of the program, expect to pay a tuition that is 5% to 15% higher than what is shown here.
Cost of Tuition: $72,596 *Fees and expenses: $3,000 Grand Total: $75,596
*This includes the cost of health insurance, books and supplies, test fees and miscellaneous school expenses.
Are you concerned that University of Pennsylvania’s Nurse Anesthetist Program won’t give you the specific experiences or training you need to be a successful CRNA? Learn what standards CRNA Programs must meet in order to be accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia (COA).
This CRNA program (as well as all others that are accredited by the COA) prepares you to take the CCNA certification exam at the conclusion of the program, allowing you to become a CRNA.
In this integrated program, you’ll begin in the summer with a heavy load of class work. By your second semester, you’ll begin your clinical field work. As in any integrated program, your class load will gradually decrease as your clinical work increases.
University of Penn’s nurse anesthesia program integrates learning from the classroom, the simulation lab, and the clinical setting. Their goal is to educate you to become a great practitioner, scholar, educator, researcher, or policy maker.
The simulation lab will give you the opportunity to learn and practice newly acquired skills, integrate these skills into clinical scenarios, and develop the ability to handle rarely seen anesthetic clinical situations including Malignant Hyperthermia and Operating Room fires.
Clinical experience at the University of Penn includes rotations at three nationally-ranked children's hospitals (pediatrics), top hospitals in neighboring three states (cardiovascular), and others for trauma, cardiac-thoracic specialties, obstetrics, and more.
At Penn, students are matched with a primary site where they spend most of their rotation, enabling faculty to establish mentoring relationships with them. With five primary clinical sites to choose from, students can leave their primary clinical sites for specialty experiences.
As a graduate of this program, you will exceed the minimum number of clinical cases by 50-100%, giving you all the experience you need to be a confident and professional nurse anesthetist.
Looking for something specific? Find CRNA schools categorized by their unique requirements.
Some CRNA schools require much more out of their applicants than others. See how the requirements at University of Pennsylvania compare to most CRNA school’s requirements.
CRNA Program Requirements Required Bachelor Degree BSN degree from an accredited college or university. You may apply to the program while you are completing your BSN. Acceptance into the program is contingent on your completion of your BSN.
RN: Current, active nursing license
Critical Care: 1 year of full time acute care experience is required. Each applicant is evaluated on an individual basis to determine the quality and quantity of critical care experience they possess. Note that all critical care experience must have taken place within the last 5 years.
Unacceptable critical care experiences include:
Telemetry
Cardiac Cath Lab
Operating Room
Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU or RR)
Emergency Room
GPA: A competitive applicant usually has a minimum GPA of 3.0 in their BSN program. If your GPA is above a 3.2, you are eligible for a GRE waiver (to be decided by program director)
GRE scores: GRE scores of 500 or higher in both verbal and math are competitive (there is no required minimum score). If your BSN GPA is less than 3.2, then you must submit scores from the GRE general test. A competitive applicant has a minimum score of 500 in the verbal and quantitative sections and 4.0 in analytical writing.
International Students: If you are a non-native English speaker, you must submit scores from the TOEFL or IELTS exam. You should score a minimum of 100 on the iBT and 7.0 on the IELTS.
Certifications: It is strongly encouraged that applicants are CCRN certified.
Course Prerequisite
Undergraduate Statistics: This should include inferential and descriptive statistics
Attrition Rate 13% This is a percentage of students who either withdrew or were dismissed over the course of the program.
CRNA CRNA Employment Rate at time of graduation Employment of graduates within six months of graduation from the University of Pennsylvania = 100%
University of Pennsylvania Nurse Anesthetist Program was last reviewed 10/2005. It was given the maximum of 10 years accreditation and will be reviewed again 10/2015. This shows that the program is in full compliance with the COA’s accreditation standards.
Will I be able to work on a part-time basis? No, you will not be able to work on a part time basis as there is very limited free time available.
Do I have to have a PA license to apply? Yes, you must have a PA license by the start of the program or be eligible for one.
Do all applicants get an interview? Unfortunately, no. Only highly qualified and competitive applicants are interviewed. We pay attention to all aspects of the application, in particular your GRE test scores, GPA, professional experience, employer evaluation, references etc.
I am interested in the MSN/PhD option of studies. Do you offer this option to Nurse Anesthesia applicants? Yes, at the University of Pennsylvania, we offer the MSN/Phd option for nurse anesthesia applicants. Note that the deadline for this course of study is November 1st.
