The UMDNJ Nurse Anesthesia Program in Newark admitted its first class in 2004. We admitted 24 students in our fourth cohort this year. Our program begins each fall semester and continues for 28 months (seven semesters) of full time study. We do not accept part-time students. Many of the MSN core courses can be transferred from other institutions (see 2008 Handbook) or taken before beginning the anesthesia program. Both of these options require approval by the Dean of Graduate Studies and the Program Director.

Our deadline for application is December 1st of each year. Applications that are incomplete at that date will not be considered until the next year. The sooner your application is complete (references, transcripts etc.) the better. We interview candidates in January and February and make our selection in early March. The Nurse Anesthesia Program is fortunate to have a very large applicant pool and admission is competitive. Applications are reviewed and a select number of candidates are invited to interview before our admissions committee based upon academic transcripts, references, and critical care experience.

During the interview, the applicants’ critical thinking, communication and problem solving skills will be assessed. The extent of their critical care nursing knowledge base and their commitment to becoming a nurse anesthetist will be evaluated.

The UMDNJ university wide on line application process only supports spring admissions. Therefore you will not see anesthesia as an option and cannot use this method of submission. Please print the application available on the admissions page and mail it to:
Enrollment Services
65 Bergen Street, Room 147
Newark, NJ 07101
973-972-5336

My Personal Advice to Applicants:

Achieve the highest possible GPA. Admission is extremely competitive and the GPA is a big factor. Typically our applicants well exceed the 3.0 minimum GPA required by the School of Nursing. If you feel that your GPA is not reflective of your academic capability you might consider demonstrating that in some objective manner, such as taking one or two of the required graduate level MSN core courses (ie: pharmacology and Pathophysiology) obtaining a stellar grade in each. If you take them at other institutions, you will want to be certain the course is equivalent and can be transferred to UMDNJSN.

Acquire the most intense ICU experience you can as early as possible. We look for candidates who are accustomed to managing gravely ill patients on ventilators, with invasive monitoring, vasopressor infusions and other resuscitative efforts.

We require a minimum of one complete year of full time critical care experience at the time of the interview and prefer it to be in a dynamic/high acuity unit, preferably one of the following: surgical ICU, cardio thoracic ICU, neurosurgical ICU, burn ICU. We may consider pediatric ICU, neonatal ICU, and selected PACU experience if the applicant can demonstrate comparable critical thinking skills. However, we do not consider ER or OR experience, as it does not involve the type of experience we find beneficial. When working in your critical care unit, ask questions and read. We expect our candidates to know a good deal of physiology, pathophysiology and pharmacology. We assess this knowledge base during the interview process.

We prefer that the three references all should be from colleagues (RN, CRNA or physician) in the critical care setting familiar with your competence. It is acceptable to submit additional references that attest to your academic prowess, but it is not required.

"Shadow" a CRNA for a day or two in order to fully appreciate the scope of practice. This is rewarding for the applicant and is an excellent way to demonstrate a strong desire to accomplish your career goal.

You must submit a valid RN license with your application. However it need not be from New Jersey. You will be required to obtain a New Jersey license before matriculation, should you be admitted.

Include a well organized CV or resume in your application. We find this very helpful, particularly in evaluating clinical experience. It is also advisable to include a brief cover letter explaining any special circumstances or efforts you have undertaken to enhance your candidacy.

Didactic Courses

All anesthesia specific courses are currently held on the Newark campus. The curriculum exceeds all requirements of the Council on Accreditation and is designed to prepare the student for the clinical practice of anesthesia by introducing foundational and advanced concepts in a logical sequence. Core nursing courses (NURS prefix) are also available on the Stratford Campus and in web based format. Many students opt to take one or two core courses prior to the first semester of the anesthesia program. This requires consultation with the program director. A current schedule of didactic courses follows:

The Clinical Practicum

In addition to didactic classroom instruction, the UMDNJ Nurse Anesthesia Program includes a comprehensive clinical experience of approximately 2,500 hours. We currently have eight approved clinical sites in New Jersey and are in negotiations with a number of additional sites in New Jersey and New York City. Our primary clinical sites are University Hospital in Newark and Cooper Hospital in Camden. Our New Jersey clinical affiliates and specialty rotation sites include: Robert Wood Johnson University Medical Center in New Brunswick, Jersey Shore Medical Center in Neptune, Jersey City Medical Center in Jersey City, Englewood Medical Center in Englewood, the Veterans Administration Hospital in East Orange and Trinitas Hospital in Elizabeth.

The clinical experience begins in the second semester with one eight hour day. This serves as an introduction to clinical anesthesia. The student is able to integrate didactic knowledge with clinical application. During semester III the amount of clinical days increases to two. During semesters IV through VII the students are scheduled for full-time clinical experience averaging 36 - 40 hours per week.