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Admissions Policies

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Students who apply to Johns Hopkins School of Nursing (JHSON) may only apply to one academic program per academic term. Below are a list of policies for admission to our programs.

Before an admitted student can enroll at the School, all prerequisite coursework must be completed at a regionally accredited college or university with a grade of B- or higher (for the MSN Entry into Nursing Track) or with a grade of B or higher (for the MSN Specialty Tracks and DNP). No exceptions will be made.

Learn more about Online Prerequisites for Health Professions at Johns Hopkins School of Nursing by clicking here

Applications are processed and files managed through the School of Nursing’s Office of Admissions. Admission decisions are made by admissions committees. All admission decisions rendered are final and cannot be appealed. Applicants who are offered admission can expect to receive notification of their decision by email and mail. Applicants will have a deadline by which to accept and deposit or decline the offer of admission using an online response form. For most programs, the response deadline is within three weeks of admission. Only letters or email sent directly from the Office of Admissions may be considered official notifications of admission. Be sure to keep your email and mailing address current by emailing the Office of Admissions at [email protected] with the subject line, “Applicant Address Update.” The School of Nursing offers admission with the expectation that students will enroll in courses in the semester for which they are admitted, unless a deferral is granted (see below).

Due to the large volume of applications, staff cannot provide individual explanations to those who are not admitted.

For some programs, admitted students may request to defer admission for up to one year from the semester for which they were admitted. Admitted students cannot defer admission once they have registered for a course in the School of Nursing. Financial aid and tuition support are not automatically deferred. For questions regarding deferrals, please contact the Office of Admissions at [email protected].  If you wish to defer your attendance, you must submit a written request and explanation either by email or within your admissions offer response and it is reviewed by the Director of Admissions. Only students who have paid the non-refundable enrollment deposit may seek a deferral. Deferral request decisions are formally communicated by the Director of Admissions to the student via email.

Each year, a number of applicants may be placed on a wait list for admission to each program. Students on this list are notified if and when seats become available in the entering cohort. Final notifications for wait list applicants are sent as soon as space becomes available. The majority of applicants are generally notified at least one month prior to the start of the program. Rankings within the wait list for each program are not disclosed, and there is no guarantee that candidates will be offered a seat in the entering cohort. Wait list candidacies are not held over for the following year, nor is special consideration given to those students if they choose to reapply in a future year.

Students who leave the School in good standing may be considered for readmission. The student must complete the application process. Students will be notified in writing by the Director of Admissions of their readmission status.

We will make every attempt to notify applicants of missing documents, however you are responsible to ensure all required documents are received by the Office of Admission and your admissions file is complete. The Admissions Committee(s) reserve the right to request additional information from an applicant, including an interview. Submitted applications and documents become the property of Johns Hopkins University and will not be returned.

If Johns Hopkins University receives false, fraudulent, deceitful, or misrepresented information that is material to student admissions as part of your application or application process, you are subject to sanctions, including denial or revocation of admission and revocation of any credits or degree(s) earned at Johns Hopkins.  Johns Hopkins University will notate the sanctions imposed on your transcript, and may notify any institution where you seek or intend to enroll, or are enrolled in the future, of the sanctions imposed.

Applicants are welcome to reapply to the School. Reapplications are treated as new applications for purposes of evaluation, and are considered without reference to the initial admissions decision. All application materials must be submitted anew for a reapplication by the published deadline. Applicants who have not been offered admission to the same academic program for three consecutive years are no longer eligible to apply.

Admitted students must send a $500 enrollment deposit ($1,000 for the DNP Nurse Anesthesia program) to the Office of Admissions on or before the date specified in their notification letter to hold their place in the entering cohort. The enrollment deposit can be made online.  Instructions are emailed to admitted students.  Questions can be directed to the Office of Admissions at [email protected] or 410-955-7548.

The deposit is credited toward the student’s tuition for the first semester and is nonrefundable.  Enrollment deposits cannot be waived under any circumstances.

All non-native English speakers must demonstrate English proficiency in their admissions application. English proficiency will be demonstrated by submitting an official passing TOEFL or IELTS score.  For more information, visit the international students page.

The curricula of the School of Nursing requires that students engage in diverse and complex experiences directed at achieving competencies, knowledge, skills, attributes and professional values. Applicants for all academic programs, and enrolled degree-seeking students, must possess certain abilities and skills deemed essential for meeting the professional standards of accrediting agencies. 

Admission to the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing is open to all qualified individuals and in accordance with the 1973 Vocational Rehabilitation Act and the American with Disabilities Act. The Johns Hopkins School of Nursing is committed to accommodating the needs of students with documented disabilities, and will do so to the extent possible without compromising the essential components of the curriculum. Questions or concerns regarding these technical standards should be directed to the Associate Dean for Enrollment Management & Student Affairs, (410) 955-7545.

Candidates for nursing degrees must be able to meet the minimum standards (listed below) with or without reasonable accommodation:

  • Observation: Students must have sufficient capacity to make accurate visual observations and interpret them in the context of laboratory studies, medication administration and patient care activities. A student must be able to observe a patient accurately at a distance and close at hand. Students must have a sufficient level of hearing to determine both high and low levels of frequency and amplitude (monitor, assess and respond to health needs).

  • Communication: Students must communicate effectively both verbally and non-verbally to elicit information and to translate that information to others. A student must be able to read and write English effectively in order to fulfill academic requirements, and to maintain accurate clinical records on patient care.

  • Motor: Students are required to possess motor skills sufficient to elicit independently information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and other manually-based diagnostic procedures. Students should be able to conduct laboratory and diagnostic tests, and carry out physical assessments. Students must possess motor skills required for their specialty’s scope of practice. The student must also be able to coordinate fine and gross muscular movements to treat patients in emergency situations. Emergency situations include any circumstance requiring immediate remedy.

  • Intellectual-Conceptual, Integrative, and Quantitative Abilities: The student must be able to develop and refine problem-solving skills that are critical to practice as a nurse. The student must have the ability to measure, calculate, reason, analyze and synthesize objective and subjective data and to make decisions that reflect consistent and sound clinical judgment. Students must possess good judgment in patient assessment, and the abilities to incorporate new information, comprehend three-dimensional relationships, and retain and recall pertinent information in a timely fashion. This includes decision-making in order to maintain safety and security of patients and to behave appropriately with patients, staff, students, supervisors and faculty.

  • Behavioral and Social Attributes: Students must possess the physical and emotional health required for the application of his/her intellectual abilities and the employment of sound judgment in an appropriate and prompt manner. Students must be able to function effectively under physically taxing workloads, and in times of physical and mental stress. Students must display compassion, sensitivity, and concern for others, and maintain professional integrity at all times. Students must be able to adapt to changing environments; display flexibility; accept and integrate constructive criticism and learn to function cooperatively and efficiently in the fact of uncertainties inherent in clinical practice. This includes appropriately interacting with individuals, families, and groups from a variety of social, emotional, cultural, and intellectual backgrounds.

  • Program Specific Requirements: In addition to the areas enumerated above, applicants and students must also possess any abilities and skills deemed essential for their particular program. These areas of enumerated skills and abilities are the minimum attributes required of applicants for admission to the specific nursing program and of students who are candidates for graduation.

  • Ability to Manage Stressful Situations: Students must be able to adapt to and function effectively to stressful situations in the classroom and clinical settings (including emergency situations). Students will encounter multiple stressors while in the nursing program; these stressors may be (but are not limited to) personal, patient care, faculty, peer, family, and or program-related.

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