NSU semesters, terms and nursing start dates
NSU runs three semesters a year: fall, winter and summer. The registrar publishes undergraduate dates (fall 2026 runs August 17 to December 6), while graduate nursing programs set their own. MSN APRN and BSN to DNP students start in fall or winter, and because NSU wants a preceptor named two semesters before each clinical course, your start term decides when that search begins.
Get your placement plan
Tell us your NSU program and your home ZIP area. A placement advisor replies with preceptor and site options near you that fit your NSU course.
Fall, winter and summer
NSU's academic year has three semesters: fall, winter and summer. The registrar reports academic progress “on a trimester basis,” and the naming catches out students who come from other schools. NSU's winter semester is the one that runs from January to early May, so there is no separate spring semester to plan around.
Undergraduate full semesters run about 16 weeks and divide into two terms of about eight weeks each, Term I and Term II, and the handbook includes provisions for students enrolled in eight-week courses. Graduate nursing courses follow dates the program sets, covered further down this page.
Summer is a full working semester for graduate nursing students. The MSN APRN requires continuous enrollment, so a six-semester full-time plan spans two calendar years when every fall, winter and summer semester is used, and clinical courses can land in any of the three.
NSU's 2026-27 undergraduate dates
The registrar's undergraduate calendar is the most concrete public picture of how NSU's year runs.
| Semester | Full semester | Term I | Term II |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | Mon Aug 17 to Sun Dec 6, 2026 | Aug 17 to Oct 11 | Oct 12 to Dec 6 |
| Winter 2027 | Mon Jan 4 to Sun May 2, 2027 | Jan 4 to Feb 28 | Mar 8 to May 2 |
| Summer 2027 | Mon May 3 to Sun Aug 8, 2027 | May 3 to Jun 20 | Jun 21 to Aug 8 |
Other published dates: fall 2026 drop/add week runs August 17 to 23, the last day to withdraw from full-semester fall classes is November 15, 2026, and fall finals run November 30 to December 5. Winter 2027 spring break is March 1 to 7, which is why winter Term II opens on March 8. Drop, withdrawal and refund rules for nursing courses are on the withdrawals page.
Graduate nursing programs set their own dates
The registrar's calendars are undergraduate calendars. For everyone else, the registrar says: “Graduate and first-professional students should consult with their academic program for specific registration, drop/withdraw policies, and exam schedules.” NSU has not posted a public term calendar for ACON's graduate or APRN programs, and the nursing Students page lists “Academic Calendars” without one.
So MSN APRN, certificate and DNP students get their term dates from the program itself: at orientation, from the program director and inside each Canvas course. Intensive dates are not public either; the intensives page covers what NSU does publish. Treat the undergraduate dates above as a guide to the shape of NSU's year, not as your graduate schedule. Ask for the start date of each clinical course as soon as the program can give it, because a preceptor needs a firm date before committing.
Start terms and application deadlines
MSN APRN and BSN to DNP students start in fall or winter. The fall deadline is August 1 in every NSU source; the winter deadline is not.
| Program | Start terms | Deadlines |
|---|---|---|
| MSN APRN (FNP, AGACNP, PMHNP) | Fall, winter | Aug 1 for fall. Winter: Dec 1 (program pages), Dec 9 (2025-26 catalog), Dec 19 (2026-27 graduate catalog) |
| BSN to DNP | Fall, winter | Aug 1 and Dec 1 on the program page |
| Postgraduate APRN certificates | Twice a year per the 2026-27 catalog, which has fall/winter and summer plans | Aug 1 and Dec 1 (certificates page). Program pages: FNP and AGACNP winter only or fall only, depending on prerequisites; PMHNP winter and fall, or summer and fall |
| DNP, post-master's | Fall, winter | Aug 1 and Dec 1. Students with a master's in a related field start in August only |
| Entry and Accelerated BSN | Fall, winter | Fall: Aug 7 (program pages) or Aug 1 (applicant page, catalog). Winter: Dec 1 |
The graduate admissions page adds that “applications are accepted all year long.” Where NSU's dates differ, confirm with admissions in writing. One timing rule is fixed: NSG 5000B, the bridge course for registered nurses holding a non-nursing bachelor's, is “only offered in the fall term,” so those students start in fall. The NSG 5000B page explains how that shifts clinical timing.
Orientation and commencement
NSU's orientation page lists Tuesday, August 11, 2026, for new MSN APRN students (AGACNP, FNP and PMHNP) and BSN to DNP students, and August 26, 2026, for DNP students. Winter 2027 orientations for the Entry and Accelerated BSN run December 7 to 9, 2026. Orientation “is mandatory for all new incoming students.”
Orientation is also where registration finishes for new ACON students. You accept the Student Enrollment Agreement in SharkLink beforehand, and your adviser completes your registration at orientation; the SharkLink and Canvas page walks through those steps. At the other end of the program, nursing commencement is “typically held during the month of May for undergraduate students and August for graduate students.”
Mark the orientation date in the same calendar as your clinical plan. On a full-time plan, the first preceptor notice point falls in the very semester that orientation opens.
From start term to preceptor notice
The calendar matters for placement because of NSU's notice rule: an APRN student who has a preceptor and site in mind tells the clinical coordinator two semesters ahead of the clinical course. Count back from the semester of your first clinical and you reach your first notice point. The table does that count for NSU's published plans.
| Plan and start | First clinical course | Two semesters before |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time MSN APRN, fall 2026 start | Semester III, summer 2027 (NSG 5549, NSG 5629 or NSG 5719) | Fall 2026, your first semester |
| Full-time MSN APRN, winter 2027 start | Semester III, fall 2027 | Winter 2027, your first semester |
| FNP or AGACNP flex, fall 2026 start | Semester V, winter 2028 | Summer 2027 |
| PMHNP flex, fall 2026 start | Semester VI, summer 2028 | Fall 2027 |
| BSN to DNP, any concentration, fall 2026 start | Semester IV, fall 2027 | Winter 2027 |
One reading stands out: for a full-time student, the first notice point lands in the program's opening semester, and every later clinical course brings a notice point of its own. Confirm your plan's exact timing with your program director, and see the two-semester deadline page and the full-time vs flex page for the detail.
This is exactly why NSU students start with us early. We take your start term and plan, mark each notice point, and have a preceptor near home ready to name before the first one arrives, along with the credential file the coordinator reviews. Your clinical coordinator approves the match; we time the file so it lands complete and ahead of the notice point.
Questions NSU students ask
Is NSU's winter semester the same as a spring semester?
In practice, yes. NSU's year runs fall, winter and summer, and the winter semester covers the months many schools call spring: for undergraduates in 2027 it runs from January 4 to May 2, with spring break March 1 to 7. Graduate nursing programs publish their own dates to enrolled students.
Where do I find the graduate nursing term calendar at NSU?
Not on a public page. The registrar publishes only undergraduate calendars and tells graduate students to consult their program. ACON graduate students get term dates at orientation, from their program director and inside each Canvas course. Intensive dates also come from the program rather than a public calendar.
Can I start an NSU nurse practitioner program in summer?
Not the MSN APRN or the BSN to DNP, which admit in fall and winter. The postgraduate APRN certificates are the exception to check: the 2026-27 graduate catalog prints separate summer certificate plans, and the PMHNP certificate page mentions summer and fall entry. The FNP and AGACNP pages still show winter-only or fall-only entry, so confirm with admissions.
What is the winter application deadline for NSU's MSN APRN?
NSU's sources disagree. The program and graduate admissions pages say December 1, the 2025-26 catalog says December 9, and the 2026-27 graduate catalog says December 19. The admissions page also says applications are accepted all year. Aim for the earliest date, December 1, unless admissions tells you otherwise in writing.
When do NSU graduate nursing students graduate?
The handbook says nursing commencement is typically held in August for graduate students and in May for undergraduates. The degree itself is conferred automatically once you complete all of its requirements with no holds on your account, so clear any SharkLink holds well before your final term ends.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against NSU's own handbook, catalog and program pages. The graduate clinical guide, your course in Canvas, your clinical coordinator and your program director have the final word.
NSU lets you name your own preceptor. We make sure you have one, close to home and in time.
Tell us your NSU program, your home ZIP area and when your next clinical course starts. We find preceptors who fit the course and have everything ready for your clinical coordinator well before the two-semester notice.
- Preceptors matched to the course: primary care for FNP, acute care for AGACNP, psychiatric care for PMHNP, a practice site for DNP project hours
- Named early enough for NSU's two-semester notice, with license, credentials and site details ready for the coordinator
- Close to your home ZIP code, with clinic days we plan around your work schedule
Start your placement plan
Program, ZIP area and start term is all we need to begin.