University of Cincinnati College of Nursing Review

Featured Programs:

Favorite Features

Nursing programs are CCNE accredited

If you are going to earn your master’s or doctoral degree in nursing, it is important to know that your educational time and money has been put to good use.

That is the case at this university: The nursing programs at the University of Cincinnati are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or CCNE. This is the top nursing education accreditation body in the United States.

The accreditation of your program is of high importance. A CCNE accreditation informs you of the quality of your nursing degree. It also informs your employers and coworkers that you have graduated from a program with very high educational standards.

Highly ranked by US News and World Report – 91 out of 100 total score

The University of Cincinnati has a very highly ranked nursing program. US News and World Report ranks the graduate nursing program #5 in the entire country. It gives the program a very high total score of 91 out of 100 points.

This high score is notable especially in light of the fact that the tuition at this university is quite reasonable and almost the same for in state and out of state residents.

Low acceptance rate

The acceptance rate for University of Cincinnati’s graduate nursing program is approximately 60%, making it a very selective program. Selectivity can indicate that a program is of higher quality than others.

A more selective program tends to hire better professors, and the quality of students admitted is generally higher, which can enhance program quality.

No GRE requirement

While the program is quite selective, no GRE scores are required to be accepted for admission. Instead, the program looks at factors that it deems of greater importance, such as undergraduate GPA, recommendations, work experience in nursing, and writing samples.

Some educational experts cast doubt on the notion that high GRE scores necessarily mean that someone will be successful in graduate school.

Very affordable tuition

The tuition for both master’s and doctoral programs of nursing are quite reasonable at $724 per credit hour in state; $739 out of state. Considering that US News and World Report ranks the graduate nursing program so highly, this is quite a bargain.

The total tuition cost for earning your master’s in nursing – which generally means you can earn a quite high salary of $90,000 or more – is most likely less than $30,000.

Least Favorite Features

Average US News peer assessment score of 3.8 out of 5.0

One of the interesting rankings that US News and World Report provides is its peer assessment score. This is a score from 1-5 that indicates how other universities in the graduate nursing profession view the University of Cincinnati’s program.

Their score is only 3.8 out of 5, which is slightly above average. US News does not publish which factors those who responded were considering when giving their peer assessment score.

Average US News student services and technology score of 52 out of 100

One of the aspects of attending an online university is that you want to get the same level of services as an online student as the campus-based students. You want to ensure that you get career counseling and placement services, help with finances, tutoring, mentoring and networking.

US News states that the student services and technology available to online students is quite average at 52 out of 100. This suggests that perhaps the students online do not receive the same level of service that campus students receive. It would behoove you to check with your student advisor to ensure that you will be able to get the same level of student services.

The Details

General Information

Founded in 1819
Application deadline: June 1
Application fee: $50
School type: Public
Term Schedule: Semester
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Student-faculty ratio: 17:1
60% overall acceptance rate for graduate nursing – very selective

Tuition Rates

Master’s: $724 per credit hour in state; $739 out of state
Doctoral: $724 per credit hour in state; $739 out of state

Nursing Degrees

Master of Science in Nursing
Doctor of Nursing Practice

Nursing Specialties

MSN – Nurse Practitioner Adult Gerontology Primary Care or Acute Care, Nurse Midwifery, Nurse Anesthesia, Family Nurse Practitioner
DNP – Adult Gerontology Acute Care or Primary Care, Nursing Administration, Pediatric Primary Care, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner

Class Profile

Total student body is 25,054 for undergraduates
1,605 total enrollment for graduate nursing program
Graduate nursing program has 1180 applicants and 712 accepted last year, for acceptance rate of 60%
4 average undergraduate GPA for admitted graduate nursing students
50% male/female ratio for entire student body

Faculty

82% of faculty in online graduate nursing programs have a doctoral degree and are certified in what they teach.

Graduation and Retention Rates

86% of UC freshmen return for their next year, which is higher than the national average of 70.9%.
The university has an overall on time graduation rate of only 28.1%, and an overall graduation rate of 65.2%.
8% of UC students did not graduate within the expected time.

US News Rankings