UCCS Accelerated BSN: four clinical semesters in 16 months
UCCS's Accelerated BSN compresses the nursing major into 16 months on campus in Colorado Springs, beginning only in summer and placing a clinical course in every one of its four semesters. UCCS assigns those rotations, so your energy goes into keeping pace. The preceptor search arrives later, if you continue to a nurse practitioner program.
Get your placement plan
Tell us your UCCS program and where you live. A placement advisor replies with the preceptor and site options that fit your UCCS course.
Two pathways in
Pathway 1 is for applicants who already hold a bachelor's degree and a 3.0 GPA. Pathway 2 opens the door on college credit rather than a finished degree, with a higher bar of a 3.25 GPA. Under both, science courses must be no older than ten years and the TEAS is required.
Two details in Pathway 2 are stated differently across UCCS's documents, so confirm them before you apply.
Where UCCS's sources differ
- Credits needed: the catalog says a minimum of 57, the program page says 59, and the plan PDF says 57 while showing a 59-hour prerequisite block.
- What the GPA covers: the program page applies it to prerequisite courses, while the plan PDF applies it to all previous college-level coursework.
Applications open July 10 and close January 10 for the following summer's cohort. Like the Traditional BSN, the program takes Colorado residents or applicants who intend to live in Colorado, and it is delivered in person.
The four-semester plan
The 2025-2026 plan PDF lays out 68 nursing credits across four consecutive semesters, with pre-term courses starting in May. The load peaks in the first fall, when three clinical courses run at once.
| Semester | Courses (credits) | Total | Clinical courses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Summer 1 | NURS 1010 (1), NURS 1230 (3), NURS 2050 (3), NURS 2080 (3), NURS 2100 (4), NURS 2200 (6) | 20 | NURS 2100, NURS 2200 |
| Fall | NURS 3100 (6), NURS 3200 (6), NURS 3210 (6), NURS 4010 (3) | 21 | NURS 3100, NURS 3200, NURS 3210 |
| Spring | NURS 4100 (6), NURS 4200 (6), NURS 4300 (3) | 15 | NURS 4100, NURS 4200 |
| Summer 2 | NURS 4290 (6), NURS 4400 (6) | 12 | NURS 4290 |
The clinical courses are the same ones Traditional BSN students spread across three years: health assessment and fundamentals, mental health and adult care, children and the childbearing family, then the medical-surgical capstone. The academic calendar shows how UCCS's 16-week and 8-week terms fall in 2026-27.
Who arranges your rotations
UCCS does. The undergraduate handbook describes students being assigned to a facility for each clinical rotation, coordinated by the Undergraduate Clinical Placement Coordinator and the Clinical Facilities Coordinator, with a prioritization system because slots are limited. Accelerated students take part in that same system on a faster clock.
What falls to you is getting cleared on time. Compliance documents go into myClinicalExchange, and the summer deadline, April 1, exists only for the accelerated cohort; the fall and spring dates are August 1 and December 1. UCCS warns that missing an initial compliance deadline can put a clinical placement at risk, and with a summer start that deadline arrives before your first class. The immunizations and compliance page lists the items.
If an assigned site becomes unavailable, the college itself works on an alternative, though it notes one is not always available.
The April 1 compliance date lands weeks before the May pre-term, so start gathering immunization records as soon as you accept your seat.
The pace and the rules that come with it
The accelerated option carries a strict rule on leaving: an accelerated student who drops or withdraws forfeits their position and is dismissed, although retention can be appealed. Plan work and family commitments around sixteen straight months before the first summer begins.
The academic standards match the campus BSN. Every required nursing course needs at least a C (74%), and a single failure in a required, non-elective nursing course of 3 credits or more ends progression unless the one appeal to the Admissions and Progressions Committee succeeds. Failing the clinical side fails the whole course.
Attendance is tracked in hours as well as days. Absence beyond two clinical days, more than 14 hours where days run 6 to 7 hours or more than 24 hours where they run 12, counts as an automatic clinical failure, and make-up days need the community partner's pre-approval.
Accelerated or traditional: choosing the route
Both options lead to the same BSN through the same clinical courses, so the decision rests on where you are starting and how much time you can give the program.
- Starting point: the accelerated option asks for a prior bachelor's degree (Pathway 1) or 57 to 59 college credits (Pathway 2), while the traditional route runs as a four-year degree.
- Entry: accelerated cohorts begin only in summer; traditional clinical cohorts begin in fall or spring.
- Pace: the accelerated plan fits 68 nursing credits into four semesters, including a 21-credit fall, where the traditional plan spreads clinical courses over years two to four.
- Application windows: July 10 to January 10 for the accelerated option, against January 1 to March 1 (fall) or September 1 to November 1 (spring) for a traditional clinical seat.
Either way, UCCS assigns the rotations and the myClinicalExchange deadlines apply. The Traditional BSN guide explains the clinical seat process in more depth.
After graduation: where our help begins
If advanced practice is your next goal, expect the model to flip at the graduate level. UCCS's MSN page says clinical hours are found by the student where they reside, the same practicum handbooks govern the NP courses in the MSN Family NP and the BSN to DNP, and one required application essay asks for your plan to line up clinical sites. Those graduate pages list no minimum years of RN experience, so confirm current expectations with admissions.
That transition is where we come in. Your placement advisor can map the preceptors available in your area of Colorado or another approved state before you apply, so your essay describes a real plan. Once you are admitted, we search for each rotation's preceptor, confirm their credentials and exact hours, and prepare the details UCCS's Clinical Site Sheet and Affiliation Agreement call for, then find a replacement quickly if anyone withdraws.
UCCS approves every graduate site; our part is a packet that is complete and within its rules when it arrives. The finding your own preceptor guide sets out that graduate expectation.
Questions UCCS students ask
Does the UCCS Accelerated BSN have a fall or spring start?
No. UCCS states that the Accelerated BSN only offers a summer start, with pre-term courses beginning in May. Applications run from July 10 to January 10 ahead of that summer. If you need a fall or spring entry, the Traditional BSN admits clinical cohorts in both terms, over a longer timeline.
Do Accelerated BSN students find their own clinical sites?
No. UCCS assigns clinical rotations for both campus BSN options through its undergraduate placement coordinators. Accelerated students are responsible for clearing compliance in myClinicalExchange by the deadlines, including the April 1 date that applies only to the summer cohort, and for meeting attendance and performance standards once rotations begin.
What happens if I drop a course in the Accelerated BSN?
The undergraduate handbook says an accelerated student who drops or withdraws forfeits their position and is dismissed from the option. Retention can be appealed. Because the cohort moves through four fixed semesters, talk with your advisor before withdrawing from anything, even a course that seems minor.
How many credits do I need for Accelerated BSN Pathway 2?
UCCS's sources disagree. The catalog asks for a minimum of 57 college credits, the program page says 59, and the plan PDF lists 57 alongside a 59-hour prerequisite block. The GPA basis also varies between prerequisite courses and all college work. Ask an advisor to review your transcript against the current requirement.
Can I start a UCCS NP program right after the Accelerated BSN?
UCCS's MSN page asks for a bachelor's degree with an upper-division nursing major, a 3.0 GPA and an unrestricted RN license from an approved state, and neither the MSN nor the BSN to DNP lists a minimum number of years of RN experience. Pass the NCLEX, hold your license, and confirm current expectations with graduate admissions before you apply.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-25
We check these pages against UCCS's catalog, practicum handbooks and college pages. Your degree plan, the handbook for your cohort and the Graduate Clinical Practicum Coordinator have the final word.
UCCS asks you to find your clinical hours where you live. Let us run that search.
Tell us your UCCS track, your next clinical course and where you live. We find preceptors who fit the course and prepare the details your Clinical Site Sheet needs, early enough for the agreement to be signed before the semester.
- Preceptors matched to the course: pediatrics for
NURS 6900, acute and chronic care forNURS 6915andNURS 6925, psychiatric prescribers forNURS 6801toNURS 6803 - Credentials, license, certification and the site's signer ready for the Clinical Site Sheet
- In Colorado Springs, along the Front Range, or in any of UCCS's approved states
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