Updated October 24, 2026

Rush CRNA Program Interview: Format, Deadlines and Who Gets In

What happens at the Rush nurse anesthesia (CRNA) interview, how you get one, and how it decides your offer.

Rush includes interviews with faculty in its review of nurse anesthesia applicants, but it does not publish the interview's format, length or setting. For a Fall 2028 start, the early decision deadline is December 28, 2026 and the final deadline is April 1, 2027. Admitted students average a 3.56 GPA and 2.8 years of ICU work.

Practice the Rush CRNA interview now How CRNA school practice works

Key facts (Fall 2028 start)

Format: Interviews with faculty. Rush does not publish their length, structure or questions.
Online or in person: Not published. Rush does not say where interviews take place.
Who is interviewed: Applicants with at least 1 year of recent full-time ICU work by the deadline, a BSN and a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Rush strongly prefers 2 years of ICU.
When: For a Fall 2028 start: the application opened August 6, 2026, early decision closes December 28, 2026, the final deadline is April 1, 2027, and the term starts September 5, 2028.
Admitted averages: 3.56 cumulative GPA, 3.6 prelicensure nursing GPA, 3.37 science GPA and 2.8 years of ICU experience.
Tests: No GRE required, though you may send scores if they help. CCRN is highly recommended.
How offers are decided: A holistic rubric review. Program leadership makes recommendations and the College of Nursing Admissions Committee makes the final decisions.

What happens at the interview

Rush says only that applicants are evaluated on interviews with faculty, so plan for a conversation with practicing nurse anesthesia faculty.

Faculty interviewers. Rush lists interviews with faculty as one of the things applications are evaluated on.
Holistic rubric review. Rush reviews each qualified applicant with a holistic rubric before program leadership sends recommendations to the College of Nursing Admissions Committee.
Trained interviewers. Rush says all faculty in the admissions process receive formal implicit bias training.

Expect practitioners. Rush teaches through a teacher-practitioner model, with faculty who have over 100 years of anesthesia practice experience, including two chief CRNAs. Be ready for questions about real cases from your unit.

How offers are decided

Rush describes an equitable, holistic process that scores every qualified applicant on a rubric.

A holistic rubric. Each qualified applicant is reviewed with the same rubric.
Two steps. Program leadership makes recommendations, and the College of Nursing Admissions Committee makes the final decisions.
One program, one term. You may apply to only one Rush program and one admission term.

How you get an interview

You apply through NursingCAS, then complete a short Rush supplemental application. Incomplete or inaccurate applications are not considered.

ICU experience

You need at least 1 year of recent full-time RN work in an intensive care unit by the application deadline. Rush strongly prefers 2 years, and admitted students average 2.8 years.

Grades, letters and paperwork

BSN and GPA. A bachelor's degree in nursing from a regionally accredited school and GPAs of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale. Admitted students average a 3.56 cumulative GPA, 3.6 prelicensure nursing GPA and 3.37 science GPA. No undergraduate prerequisite courses are required.
Three professional letters. They should come from people in leadership roles who know your clinical work and can evaluate your abilities, critical thinking and potential for successfully completing graduate school. A letter from your current manager, who is responsible for your evaluation, is strongly preferred.
One academic letter allowed. One letter may come from a faculty member if the coursework was within the past two years.
Essays and a resume. Substantive answers to the personal essay questions in NursingCAS, plus a resume covering service, leadership, scholarly work and work experience.
Certifications and tests. RN licensure in the United States is required, and CCRN certification is highly recommended. The GRE is not required, though you may submit GRE scores using NursingCAS school code 3262 if you feel they strengthen your application.

Apply early. Rush recommends finishing well before the deadline, because NursingCAS can take several weeks to verify transcripts.

Dates and other details

Rush admits far ahead. The current application is for a class that starts in September 2028.

Fall 2028 deadlines

August 6, 2026. The application opened.
December 28, 2026. Early decision deadline, at 10:59 p.m. Central.
April 1, 2027. Final deadline, at 10:59 p.m. Central. Your application must be complete and verified by NursingCAS by then.
September 5, 2028. The term starts.

Fees

Rush's page lists an $80 NursingCAS fee and a $40 fee for the Rush supplemental application.

The program

It is a full-time, hybrid program of up to 9 semesters for every student. The first year is mostly coursework, clinical education starts in year two and is full time in year three across 22 current clinical sites, with 756 clock hours of DNP specialty practicum and more than 2,300 hours of DNP specialty immersion residency. Tuition is $1,508 per credit hour plus a $644 clinical administrative fee in both the fall and spring semesters.

For the 2025 cohort Rush reports 0% attrition, 100% employment within six months and an 86% first-time certification pass rate, with 95-100% of students securing jobs before graduation. Its 30-year first-time pass rate is 96%, and the program was re-accredited by the COA in May 2025 for 10 years until May 2035.

How to prepare

With so little published about the format, prepare for both clinical and personal questions.

Know your unit cold. Review the drips, ventilator settings and monitoring you use every shift, and why each one works.
Know Rush's mission. Rush trains students for care in urban and rural underserved communities and has a tuition forgiveness program tied to two years of service at Rush. Think about where you want to practice and why.
Have a plan for the workload. Rush has no rule against working, but says most students choose not to because the time commitment is extensive. Clinical time can reach 64 hours a week.
Rehearse out loud. Practice short, specific stories about a hard patient, a mistake and a conflict, each with what you learned.

Say what you don't know. If a clinical question goes past your knowledge, say so, then explain how you would find the answer safely.

Practice questions

Questions in the style of a Faculty interview station, written for applicants to Rush University College of Nursing, Nurse Anesthesia DNP. They are practice questions, not the school's own. Open one for what a strong answer does.

What ICU experience do you have that has prepared you for anesthesia?

Name the patients, drips and devices you manage on your own, and link each to a skill an anesthesia provider needs.

Describe the signs and management of a transfusion reaction.

Stop the transfusion first, then walk through the signs, the checks and the treatment in a clear order.

Tell me about a time you made a mistake. How did you handle it?

Choose a real mistake, own it plainly, and show what you changed so it would not happen again.

Where do you see yourself practicing as a CRNA?

Give a specific setting and a reason rooted in your experience, such as a rural or underserved community you know.

How will you manage stress during CRNA school?

Describe habits and support you already use, with a concrete example from a hard stretch at work.

Why did you choose our CRNA program?

Use facts from the program's own pages, such as its clinical sites or simulation training, and tie them to your goals.

Frequently asked questions

Who interviews applicants at Rush CRNA?

Rush lists interviews with faculty as part of its admission evaluation. All faculty involved in the admissions process receive formal implicit bias training and review each qualified applicant with a holistic rubric before program leadership makes recommendations to the College of Nursing Admissions Committee.

When is the Rush CRNA application deadline?

For a Fall 2028 start, the early decision deadline is December 28, 2026 and the final deadline is April 1, 2027. You apply through NursingCAS and then complete a Rush supplemental application.

What GPA and ICU experience do Rush CRNA students have?

Admitted students average a 3.56 cumulative GPA, 3.6 in prelicensure nursing and 3.37 in science, with 2.8 years of ICU work. The minimums are a 3.0 GPA and 1 year of recent full-time ICU work.

Does Rush require the GRE or CCRN for nurse anesthesia?

Neither is required. The GRE is optional if you think it strengthens your application, and CCRN certification is highly recommended.

How long is the Rush CRNA program?

Up to 9 semesters of full-time study for every student, whether you enter with a bachelor's or a master's degree.

Sources

Official pages only, read on the date shown. Schools change their process every year, so check the school's own page before you apply.

Rush University: Nurse Anesthesia DNP Admissions · read October 24, 2026
Rush University: Nurse Anesthesia DNP (CRNA) Program · read October 24, 2026