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Virginia, known as the Old Dominion State, is ranked #16 in total number of CRNA Schools in the United States. It shares the #16 CRNA School ranking with Maryland, Massachusetts, South Carolina, New Jersey as well as several other States. There are numerous established colleges and universities situated throughout Virginia State, including cities as Norfolk and Richmond, and CRNA Schools in Virginia are no exception. CRNA students appreciate the nature throughout the State – from the majestic Appalachian Mountains all the way to the miles of coastline along the Chesapeake Bay. These are just some of the things that make nurse anesthetist programs in Virginia unique.
Virginia has approved legislation to be part of the RN Compact States agreement and this should be implemented in 2021. This means RN nurses are able to move around freely and work within all 33 approved multi-license states. However, it’s important to note that there is no such APRN Compact for nurse anesthetists yet though this may change in the future. This is something that is important when people consider CRNA Schools in VA.
Nurse Anesthetist Programs in Virginia
There are two CRNA Schools in Virginia located in the cities of Norfolk and Richmond as shown below:
- Old Dominion University CRNA, Norfolk (Doctor of Nursing Practice)
- VCU CRNA Program, Richmond (Doctor of Nursing Anesthesia Practice)
VCU CRNA Program in Virginia
All CRNA programs in VA are 3-year doctorate degrees. Master of Nursing in Anesthesia degrees are no longer available in Virginia. VCU offers an incredibly unique program with a didactic curriculum at distance sites across Virginia. Students in Southwest Virginia (Abingdon), Roanoke, and Northern Virginia (Alexandria) are all able to learn together with the core Richmond class through video conferencing and web-based lessons. By doing this, the school was able to increase the class size to 44 students with the Richmond campus being the largest. Overall, the acceptance rate is 24% at the VCU CRNA Program.
Old Dominion University CRNA School in VA
Meanwhile, Old Dominion University CRNA is a boutique program not as well known, especially outside VA. Although the class size last year was 15 students, the graduating class size in 2018 was only 8 students. With that in mind, nevertheless, the Old Dominion graduate employment has consistently been 100% in the past decade and acceptance rates are at 50%. Therefore, this may be an excellent choice of school for those who may be concerned about being accepted into a CRNA school.
As of Year End 2020, there are 122 CRNA schools in the United States and 2.4 CRNA schools in each State on average. To compare, there are 13 CRNA schools in Pennsylvania and 9 CRNA schools in Florida. In addition, North Carolina and Tennessee both have 6 CRNA schools. On the other hand, there are no CRNA programs at all in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Nevada, New Mexico, Vermont, New Hampshire, Alaska, and Hawaii. Oftentimes, the States with more CRNA schools tend to have more CRNA jobs as well. This generalization applies to VA as it is ranked #16 in number of CRNA Schools in the US and #14 in number of CRNA jobs in the country.
CRNA Programs in Virginia Acceptance Rate
The average acceptance rate for CRNA schools in Virginia is 37%. This is extremely high compared the national CRNA average acceptance rate of 26%. The reason for this is because Old Dominion University CRNA has an extremely high acceptance rate of 50% as mentioned above. In general, the easiest CRNA schools to get into by State are generally in the States with more CRNA schools. For example, the average acceptance rate for CRNA schools in Florida is 30% with 9 CRNA Schools. This compares with an acceptance rate of 13% for CRNA schools in Georgia and 24% in South Carolina, which only have 2 CRNA schools.
Best CRNA Schools in Virginia
Please see the list below for the best CRNA schools in Virginia.
| Best CRNA School Ranking | All CRNA Schools | City | Degree Offered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | VCU CRNA Program | Richmond | DNAP |
| 11 | Old Dominion University CRNA | Norfolk | DNP |
Be sure to check out our exclusive best nurse anesthetist schools list. Through interviewing over 125 real CRNAs, we ranked all CRNA schools to come up with the best CRNA schools in America.
Other Virginia CRNA Information
Whether you’re looking to apply to CRNA programs in Virginia or already a CRNA, check out CRNA Salary in Virginia and Virginia Board of Nursing to learn more about nurse anesthesia in the State.
Map of CRNA Schools by State
With two CRNA schools in Virginia, you may also be interested in applying to CRNA programs nearby in other States. The States that have nurse anesthetist schools include:
- CRNA Schools in New York
- CRNA Schools in Pennsylvania
- Maryland: CRNA Schools in Maryland
- CRNA Schools in North Carolina
Notes:
The darker the blue color equivocates to more CRNA Schools in the State.
Tier 1 = 6 or more CRNA Schools
2nd Tier = 3 to 5 CRNA Schools
Tier 3 = 1 or 2 CRNA Schools
White means no CRNA schools in the State.
Data source: everythingCRNA
CRNA Salary in Virginia
Since you’re reading about CRNA Schools in Virginia, we thought you might be interested in learning about the CRNA Salary in Virginia if you’re going to work in the State. Be sure to also check out our CRNA Salary Guide and CRNA Starting Salary if you’re still a student or if you’re wondering how much a fresh CRNA can make right out of nurse anesthesia school. Different States have different demand and supply economics of nurse anesthetists, so my advice is to be sure to read up on different states to see which ones fit you best.
Nurse Anesthetist Programs in VA Conclusion
In summary, Virginia is an attractive state to study nurse anesthesia. CRNA Schools in Virginia offer the combination of flexibility in addition to an extraordinarily strong job market for nurse anesthetists upon graduation. Pursuing a CRNA program in Virginia will also make sense if you plan on staying within the State after graduation. This is because it is common that a SRNA nurse can find nurse anesthetist jobs within the same State easier than students from out of State upon finishing school.
Did you graduate from one of the CRNA Schools in Virginia? Please let us know what you thought of the programs and experience working with the graduates. Click on the image gallery below for more information on nurse anesthetist schools in VA.
Nelson is currently a CRNA in New York City. Previously, he worked as an ICU Travel RN and Critical Care RN in Philadelphia, Miami, Washington DC, and Boston. He earned his BSN from Penn State and his MSN from Bloomsburg. He is also a member of the American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA).
In his free time, he enjoys working out, exploring the outdoors, and helping future CRNAs.
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