Anatomy and Physiology I
Self-paced online Anatomy and Physiology I course (Biology 211). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →MontanaNursing
LPN to RN in Montana: prerequisite checklist and time limits
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
LPN to RN Montana prerequisites usually match the ASN list: A&P I and II and Microbiology with labs, General Chemistry with lab, College Algebra and Writing, with a C or higher. MSU-Northern also asks for a 2.50 GPA and a Kaplan score of 65%, and gives value points for a current LPN licence. Check your college and confirm in writing.
A prerequisite checklist
MSU-Northern publishes its 2026 Associate of Science in Nursing application. Use it as a model and check the page for your own college:
- Admission to the university first, with official transcripts from every college.
- A 2.50 selective cumulative GPA, with a C or higher in each course; a C- is not enough.
- A 2.85 GPA on College Algebra, A&P I with lab, College Writing I and General Chemistry with lab.
- A&P II with lab and Microbiology with lab finished when you apply.
- The Kaplan Nursing Admissions Exam at 65% or higher, dated this academic year.
- Applications from 1 May to 10 June 2026 for the fall intake.
How an LPN licence counts
MSU-Northern's application does not describe a separate LPN track. Instead, a current LPN, EMT or CNA licence earns value points, which make up 10% of the selection score alongside GPA, the Kaplan exam and finished sciences. Other Montana colleges may run LPN-to-RN tracks with their own rules, so read your college's page. The Montana Board of Nursing approves programmes under MCA 37-8-301, and each programme sets its own entry rules.
Time limits
MSU-Northern includes in its review major courses taken within 5 years of admission and general education within 15 years; older work may be reviewed at its discretion, and that decision cannot be appealed. If your sciences come from an LPN programme several years ago, ask in writing whether they still count before you retake anything.
Montana State University's BSN uses a 15-year limit on prerequisites. Plan backwards from the deadline: MSU-Northern wants your sciences finished at application, and a college transcript can take weeks to arrive.
What an LPN should ask in writing
Send one email covering everything, and keep the reply:
- Do my existing A&P and Microbiology still count, given their dates?
- Would a named online course, recorded on a college transcript, meet a listed prerequisite?
- Would it count in the admission GPA, or is a letter grade needed?
- How does my LPN licence count in selection?
Where online courses can fit
UPI Study's A&P I and II are NCCRS-recommended, as a 3-credit lecture and a separate 2-credit online lab. College Algebra, English Composition and Introduction to Psychology are also available. UPI Study does not offer Microbiology with lab, Nutrition, Lifespan Development, Organic Chemistry or Pharmacology. Microbiology with lab and General Chemistry must come from a college. MSU-Northern also leaves ungraded CLEP and AP credit out of its GPAs, so ask about grades first. No course here gives clinical hours, and none is a remedy for a deficiency the Montana Board of Nursing has named.
The credit reaches your programme via a college transcript. TESU and UoPeople are partner colleges that consider ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit. Ask your programme in writing first; take only what it agrees to.
Planning a 12-month timeline
Month 1: read your programme's application and send the written question. Months 2 to 6: finish the courses the programme agreed to, and take Microbiology and Chemistry with labs at a college. Month 7: book the Kaplan exam and have transcripts sent. Then apply in the window, which at MSU-Northern ran from 1 May to 10 June for the 2026 fall intake.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Ask your Montana nursing programme's admissions office in writing whether each named UPI Study course, including a separate online lab, would meet a listed prerequisite via a college transcript, and how it would count in the admission GPA, before you enrol.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
what do i need to go from lpn to rn in montana
Usually the college's ASN prerequisites: A&P I and II and Microbiology with labs, General Chemistry with lab, College Algebra and Writing, with a C or higher. MSU-Northern also asks for a 2.50 GPA, a 2.85 GPA on four key courses and a Kaplan score of 65%. Check your own college and ask in writing.
does an lpn licence help with msu northern nursing admission
Yes, a little. MSU-Northern's 2026 application gives value points for a current LPN, EMT or CNA licence, and value points make up 10% of the selection score. Attach a copy of your licence to the application.
can i take microbiology through upi study
No. UPI Study does not offer Microbiology with lab, Nutrition, Lifespan Development, Organic Chemistry or Pharmacology. Take Microbiology with lab at a college, so it arrives on a college transcript with a letter grade, and check your programme's time limit for it.
how old can my courses be for montana lpn to rn
Each school decides. MSU-Northern includes in its review major courses within 5 years and general education within 15, and may consider older work at its discretion. Ask your programme in writing whether your courses still count, giving the dates you took them.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
Anatomy and Physiology I Lab
Self-paced online Anatomy and Physiology I Lab course (Biology 211L). NCCRS recommends 2 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
College Algebra
Self-paced online College Algebra course (Math 111). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
Ask your programme in writing first, then take only the courses it agrees to consider.
Sources
- Montana Code Annotated 2025, 37-8-301: Nursing education programs, application for approval (official)An institution that wants to run a nursing education programme applies to the department with evidence it complies with the chapter and the board's rules; the board adopts rules on the conduct of nursing education programmes. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.
- Montana State University College of Nursing: Traditional BSN (official)3.0 GPA in prerequisite courses; C- or better; no more than two retakes (a W counts); three of five sciences done by application, including A&P I; prerequisites completed within the last 15 years; prerequisites from a regionally accredited institution; all pre-nursing coursework can be done elsewhere; list includes A&P I and II with lab, Microbiology with lab, General Chemistry with lab, Organic and Biochemistry with lab, Lifespan or Developmental Psychology, Human Nutrition, Statistics, College Algebra, Writing I and II. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.
- MSU-Northern: Associate of Science in Nursing application 2026 (official)2.50 selective cumulative GPA with a C or higher (C- not enough); 2.85 extracted GPA from College Algebra, A&P I with lab, College Writing I and General Chemistry with lab; Kaplan admissions exam 65% dated this academic year; A&P II with lab and Microbiology with lab done by application; CLEP and AP grades do not count in either GPA; value points for a current LPN, EMT or CNA licence; transfer work within 5 years included in review for major courses, 15 years for general education. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.