Freshmen Direct Admit Overview

**We offer three types of entry into the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN): Freshman Direct Admit, Accelerated BSN and RN-BSN. Please note we do not have a Traditional BSN track.

The Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing offers freshmen-direct admission into the Nursing major. This track is for currently enrolled high school seniors who are preparing to enter FAU the fall semester following their May/June high school graduation.

The Freshmen Direct Admit is a full-time four-year program. The first semester freshmen year, students are in Nursing! This is in synchrony with our College of Nursing Philosophy, vision and mission in that students are fully interconnected with us from the beginning of their Nursing education through graduation.

Admission Criteria

Freshman Direct Admit: For applicants graduating from high school May/June 2026

Deadline Fall 2026

Application Review Criteria:

High school GPA: 3.60 recalculated high school cumulative grade point average.
SAT 1200 or ACT 25. Must submit official scores to be considered.

Application Process

Freshman Direct Admit: For applicants graduating from high school May/June 2026

Deadline Fall 2026

To be considered for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Direct Admit track, the College of Nursing students should apply for admission by January 15, 2026. If students submit late or incomplete applications for the January 15 deadline, they will not be considered for admission into the Direct Track. They would only be considered for their 2nd choice major as indicated on the application for admission. All decisions will be communicated via email and letter by March 2026.

Early decision deadline: October 15, 2025

Students who meet or exceed criteria and submit a complete application by October 15 will be considered for all admissions decisions which will be communicated via email and letter by December 2025.

Students who do not meet or exceed admission criteria and apply by October 15 will be deferred to the general admission which will be January 15, 2026 deadline.

General admission deadline: January 15, 2026

To be considered for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Direct Admit track, the College of Nursing students should apply for admission by January 15, 2026.
If students submit late or incomplete applications for the 1/15 deadline, they will not be considered for admission into the Direct Track. They would only be considered for their 2nd choice major as indicated on the application for admission.
All decisions will be communicated via email and letter by March 2026.

Step one: Apply to Florida Atlantic University.

Step two: The Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing Admission, Progression and Retention Sub-Committee will offer preliminary acceptance to the applicants who meet or exceed the admission review criteria.

Step Three: When the background check and fingerprinting are cleared, the Admission, Progression and Retention Sub-Committee will then offer the student full admission into the Freshman Direct Admit Track. The cost of all components of these procedures including any repeat procedures if needed is the responsibility of the applicant/student.

Information Sessions

Information Sessions (See link below for Sign up)

Freshmen Direct Information session will be hosted via Zoom

Upcoming Information Session dates to be announced.

Click Here to Sign Up for An Information Session

Curriculum

Freshmen Direct Admission Plan of Study

You can download the plan of study here: FDA Plan of study

Nursing Courses for this track are onsite

Note: *The official Flight Plan is reviewed with the student by the advisor, and also found at http://www.fau.edu/uas/curriculum.php. Pre-requisite and co-requisite course information is officially found in the FAU Catalog. **These courses will be blocked the first half of the semester; ***these courses are blocked the second half of the semester.

FAU Tuition Breakdown

To view the estimated expense, please download the following document: Estimated expenses by semester .

You can view further information on this page: Tuition Breakdown

FAQ

Who qualifies for the Freshman Direct Admit and what semester does the student enter the program?

This track is for currently enrolled high school seniors who are preparing to enter FAU in the Fall Semester following their May/June high school graduation.

The admission criteria:
High School GPA 3.60 recalculated
SAT 1200 or ACT 25

High School Senior with an AA Degree/College Credits:

High School Seniors who have AA degrees or college credits are still eligible for the freshman direct track.
However, these college credits do not decrease the length of the program. The freshman direct track is a 4-year program. Dual-enrolled college credits will be calculated to determine if any credits fulfill the required prerequisites. If so, the student’s schedule will be adjusted.
If there are gaps in the schedule, we recommend that the student consider doing a minor or certificate. All Nursing students are required to take a minimum of 12 credit hours a semester per semester (summer excluded) to remain in the program.

What if a student is denied because of a low SAT/ACT score?

If a student is denied to the Freshman Direct Admit Track because of SAT/ACT scores, the student can retake the SAT/ACT. The new scores will have to be resubmitted before the application deadline to the Admissions office before the College of Nursing can evaluate them.
If the new score meets the admission criteria, the student may be offered preliminary acceptance.

If the student is denied the Freshman Direct Admit Track, how can the student get into nursing at FAU?

If a student is denied admission to the Freshman Direct Admit Track, there are two options to pursue nursing:
Accelerated track
RN-BSN track
The Freshman Direct Admit Track only admits students once a year and only to currently enrolled high school seniors to begin in August after high school graduation in the same year.

What is the estimated cost of the Freshmen Direct program?

Freshman Direct Admit Track Estimated Costs by Semester for Florida Residents Please Click HERE