Is Aspen University legit?
Yes. Aspen University is institutionally accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission, which is recognised by the US Department of Education, and its BSN, MSN and DNP nursing programmes are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. A degree from Aspen is a real degree and it qualifies you for licensure.
Where the doubt comes from
Three things drive the question, and only one of them is substantive.
The first is price. A nursing degree advertised at $325 a month reads as too cheap to be real, and people reason backwards from that to a scam. The price is real and the mechanism is mundane: a fixed programme cost spread over a long payment term at zero interest.
The second is the headlines about a nursing programme being shut down by a state board. That happened, and it concerned Aspen's campus-based pre-licensure BSN in Arizona — a programme for people training to become nurses, which closed after its NCLEX pass rate fell below the state minimum. It is a different programme from the online post-licensure routes most nurses are considering.
The third is accreditation, and this one is worth taking seriously.
The part that is a genuine consideration
Aspen's institutional accreditor is national rather than regional. That is not a lesser form of recognition in any legal sense, but it does affect one specific thing: whether another university will accept your credits or your degree later.
Regionally accredited universities each decide their own policy on nationally accredited credit. Many accept it. Some decline it outright. There is no central rule, so it has to be checked against the particular institutions you might attend rather than argued in the abstract.
If Aspen is where you intend to finish, this never becomes your problem. If Aspen is a stepping stone toward a programme elsewhere, it is the single most important thing to settle before enrolling.
Common questions
Is Aspen University accredited?
Yes. Aspen is accredited institutionally by the DEAC, and its BSN, MSN and DNP nursing programmes are accredited by the CCNE, which is the accreditation state boards of nursing look for.
Will employers accept an Aspen nursing degree?
Almost always. Hospitals looking for a BSN for a clinical ladder or a BSN-in-ten policy are looking for CCNE accreditation, which Aspen holds. Check your employer's tuition reimbursement wording separately, as some schemes specify regional accreditation.
Did Aspen University get shut down?
No. Its Arizona campus-based pre-licensure BSN closed after low NCLEX pass rates and a consent agreement with the state board. The online post-licensure programmes — RN to BSN, MSN, the bridge and the DNP — continue to run.