If you are searching Rush ABSN prerequisites for Chicago accelerated nursing, start here: Rush University College of Nursing does not offer a BSN or ABSN. Rush nursing is graduate-only. Career changers with a bachelor’s in another field apply to the Generalist Entry Master’s (GEM) / Direct Entry MSN for Non-Nurses: Clinical Nurse Leader, a roughly two-year hybrid program in Chicago’s Medical District.
This guide maps Rush University ABSN prerequisites search intent to official Rush GEM prerequisites: four sciences, C or better, 3.0 cumulative and 3.0 prerequisite GPA floors, NursingCAS deadlines, and an honest gap-fill plan. Where online coursework may help after admissions confirmation, PrereqCourses.com offers self-paced sections through Upper Iowa University (UIU), accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Credit appears on a UIU transcript. PrereqCourses does not guarantee acceptance by Rush or any program; final decisions rest with Rush College of Nursing Admissions.
| Requirement | Lab required? | Recency | Online OK? | Gap-fill notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Chemistry I | Recommended, not required | No hard window published | Not published → VERIFY | True Gen Chem I only (not survey/basic/fundamentals/foundations) |
| Human Anatomy | Recommended, not required | Within 3 years recommended, not required | Not published → VERIFY | Separate Anatomy or A&P I in a combined sequence |
| Human Physiology | Recommended, not required | Within 3 years recommended, not required | Not published → VERIFY | Separate Physiology or A&P II in a combined sequence |
| Microbiology | Recommended, not required | No hard window published | Not published → VERIFY | Cellular/Molecular Biology does not substitute |
Program snapshot: Rush’s GEM / Direct Entry MSN for Non-Nurses: Clinical Nurse Leader runs about two years, full-time, hybrid, with clinicals arranged by Rush (mostly Rush University Medical Center and the Chicago metro). GPA floors are 3.0 cumulative and 3.0 prerequisite (4.0 scale). Every Rush nursing prerequisite course needs C or better. Apply via NursingCAS plus a $40 Rush supplemental. Starts: Spring and Fall in Chicago. Official tables: GEM admissions guidelines.
Last verified: Mon Sep 28, 2026 ET against rushu.rush.edu. Policies can change; confirm on Rush before you enroll or apply.
Rush only offers graduate nursing programs. There is no BSN and no ABSN. Career changers who want an accelerated Chicago path apply to GEM, also called Direct Entry MSN / DEMSN, with a Clinical Nurse Leader focus. Rush Direct Entry MSN prerequisites are the same four sciences in the glance table above.
Who qualifies: a regionally accredited bachelor’s, the four sciences at C or better with a 3.0 prerequisite GPA, a 3.0 cumulative GPA, and a complete NursingCAS file. The program prepares graduates for RN licensure eligibility and Clinical Nurse Leader certification (summarize NCLEX claims on Rush’s page; do not over-claim). Tuition is listed as $1,154 per credit hour on the program page; confirm the live figure and do not invent a program total.
For ABSN context at schools that do offer ABSNs, see accelerated nursing programs and ABSN prerequisites online.
Rush publishes four sciences only. Official tables do not list fixed credit hours, so do not invent 3- vs 4-credit mandates. Courses must come from a regionally accredited college or university and be completed by the application deadline (you may apply while finishing; rolling cohorts often fill early).
Typical pricing is about $675 for a 3-credit UIU section and about $695 for a 4-credit lab section; textbooks and lab materials are separate. Confirm live prices on product pages. Courses begin on the 1st of each month. Treat every UIU science below as a candidate only until Rush confirms content and online modality.
Must be true General Chemistry I. Survey, Basic, Fundamentals, or Foundations titles are not accepted. One semester only. Lab recommended, not required.
UIU candidate after VERIFY: CHEM 151 General Chemistry I. Email Bendita_L_Qian@rush.edu with the syllabus before you enroll. VERIFY true Gen Chem I content (not survey) and online lecture/lab acceptance for your cycle.
Rush accepts separate Human Anatomy and Human Physiology or a combined A&P I + A&P II sequence. Labs recommended, not required. Rush recommends, but does not require, A&P within the last 3 years.
UIU candidate pair after VERIFY: BIO 270 Human Anatomy and Physiology I and BIO 275 Human Anatomy and Physiology II. Do not claim automatic satisfaction. Send syllabi and VERIFY A&P I/II equivalency plus online lab acceptance first.
Must be Microbiology. Cellular and Molecular Biology is not accepted as a substitute. Lab recommended, not required. No hard Micro recency window was published on the Sep 28, 2026 guidelines.
UIU candidate after VERIFY: BIO 210 Microbiology w/ Lab. VERIFY Microbiology content (not Cell/Molecular) and online lab acceptance before counting it.
Rush’s admissions guidelines and GEM FAQ are consistent on labs: “We recommend, but do not require, that required courses include a lab.” That is softer than many ABSN programs.
Online lecture and online/virtual lab acceptance is a different question. On the GEM admissions guidelines, program page, applying page, and common-applicant-questions pages fetched Mon Sep 28, 2026 ET, Rush does not publish whether fully online lectures or online/virtual labs satisfy the four sciences. The enrollment-restrictions page covers state residency for Rush’s own online degrees, not prerequisite modality.
Do not enroll in online sciences for Rush GEM on the assumption they will count. Email Bendita_L_Qian@rush.edu with titles and syllabi before you pay. Prefer in-person wet labs when also applying to schools that ban online labs.
Light compare (link, do not rewrite): Northeastern ABSN prerequisites require in-person labs for lab-bearing sciences. NYU Meyers ABSN prerequisites accept many online prerequisites but require in-person chemistry with lab. Rush: labs recommended only, online acceptance unpublished. Related: do nursing programs accept online labs and online nursing prerequisites.
UIU sciences may align if admissions confirms content and modality. Never treat BIO 270, BIO 275, BIO 210, or CHEM 151 as automatically approved.
Grade and GPA floors, applied to GEM:
Recency: Anatomy and Physiology within the last 3 years is recommended, not required. No hard expiration for Chemistry or Microbiology was published on the Sep 28, 2026 guidelines page.
Take courses at any regionally accredited college or university. UIU is HLC-accredited (regional). Credit for PrereqCourses sections appears on a UIU transcript. Never claim that PrereqCourses itself is accredited.
System: NursingCAS for your Rush GEM term, then the Rush supplemental application ($40). One Rush program and one term per cycle. Incomplete applications are not considered. Materials must be completed without AI.
Materials (admissions guidelines):
Published deadlines (verified Mon Sep 28, 2026 ET):
| Cohort | Early Decision | Final deadline | Term starts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring 2027 | August 17, 2026 (passed) | October 19, 2026 | January 4, 2027 |
| Fall 2027 | January 4, 2027 | May 24, 2027 | September 7, 2027 |
Tip: Admissions is rolling. Spring 2027 Early Decision has already passed. For the January 4, 2027 start, finish NursingCAS before the Oct 19, 2026 final; otherwise plan Fall 2027. If a cohort fills early, Rush may auto-consider the next term.
State / logistics note: Rush’s enrollment-restrictions page covers its own online programs. GEM is hybrid with Chicago clinicals. Non-Illinois applicants should VERIFY clinical logistics; international applicants should VERIFY F-1 / hybrid eligibility. See applying to Rush College of Nursing and essay questions.
Match your transcript to the four sciences, then email Rush with titles and syllabi before buying online sections. UIU candidates (~$675 / ~$695; materials separate; courses begin on the 1st of each month) are for Rush-only applicants after VERIFY.
Scenario A: Missing all four. Map CHEM 151, BIO 270 + BIO 275, and BIO 210. Email Bendita_L_Qian@rush.edu first. If also applying to schools that ban online labs, take shared sciences as in-person wet labs locally.
Scenario B: Survey / basic / fundamentals chemistry only. Retake true General Chemistry I.
Scenario C: Cellular or Molecular Biology instead of Micro. Take real Microbiology.
Scenario D: A&P older than three years. Optional retake (recommended, not required).
Suggested order: Gen Chem I → A&P I → A&P II → Microbiology.
Multi-school tip: Applying to Rush GEM plus NYU Meyers or Northeastern? Lab rules diverge (see links above). Use the advisory service so you do not pay for a modality one school rejects. MATH 220, BIO 165, EDU 142, PSY 190, SOC 110, and ENG 101 are multi-school only (not on Rush GEM’s list). See exclusive self-paced courses.
No. Rush does not offer a BSN or ABSN. Rush nursing is graduate-only. Career changers with a non-nursing bachelor’s apply to the GEM / Direct Entry MSN for Non-Nurses: Clinical Nurse Leader. Search traffic for “Rush ABSN” maps to that program.
Four sciences from a regionally accredited school, each at C or better, with a 3.0 prerequisite GPA: General Chemistry I (not survey/basic/fundamentals/foundations); Human Anatomy; Human Physiology (or A&P I/II); Microbiology (not Cellular/Molecular Biology). Labs are recommended, not required.
Recommended, not required. Official language: Rush recommends, but does not require, that required courses include a lab.
Not published on the official GEM admissions and program pages verified Mon Sep 28, 2026 ET. Email Bendita_L_Qian@rush.edu with syllabi and ask about online lecture and online/virtual lab acceptance for your cycle before you enroll (VERIFY).
On the official GEM path: cumulative GPA ≥ 3.0 and prerequisite GPA ≥ 3.0, plus C or better in each prerequisite. GRE is not required.
No. PrereqCourses does not guarantee acceptance, transfer, or admission to Rush or any nursing program. Final decisions rest with Rush College of Nursing Admissions. UIU courses are HLC (regional) candidates; confirm content and modality with Rush before counting them.
Map your transcript, clear modality with Rush in writing, then finish the four sciences. That is the practical path behind “Rush ABSN prerequisites” searches that point at Rush GEM.
