Top nursing schools are scattered all about the United States.
Those interested in pursuing a nursing education have many options across the country to complete a quality program as an undergraduate and beyond. Attending a college well-known for its nursing program will look good on a resume and facilitate landing the best jobs. Nursing, like many other healthcare professions, is booming; nursing jobs are expected to grow much faster than the average occupation between 2008 and 2018, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Penn
The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia is a school with a notable nursing program that appears on U.S. News and World Report's 2010 Best Colleges list. Students at Penn's School of Nursing have the unique opportunity of working while learning within the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. The coursework is designed to fit in with the school's abundant resources, which include technologically advanced simulators that use mannequins that react to treatment in the same way human patients do. The program also specifically teaches care for the elderly and has classrooms equipped with the latest advances in electronic medical record-keeping. Penn's School of Nursing offers undergraduate degrees as well as accelerated undergraduate programs, graduate programs and doctoral-level opportunities.
University of Pennsylvania - Philadelphia
3451 Walnut St.
Philadelphia, PA 19104
215-898-7507
nursing.upenn.edu
Boston College
Boston College appeared at the top of the Princeton Review's list of best colleges in the northeastern U.S. in 2010. BC's William F. Connell School of Nursing began as Boston College School of Nursing in 1947, as the first college nursing program at a Catholic institution in the Boston area. The school was renamed in 2003 to honor the passing of one of the university's board of trustees members.
The Connell School stresses compassion and ethics to its students and aims to graduate professional nurses who will be lifelong contributors to the healthcare industry and leaders in their field. Among the academic tracks offered at the school are undergraduate, master's, post-master's and doctoral programs.
The bachelor of science in nursing is a combination of liberal arts, science and nursing education, offering a well-rounded learning experience and an emphasis on the requirements of the nursing profession. The advanced degrees include master's programs for several specialties such as family nursing, community health, adult care, forensic nursing and nurse anesthesia.
Boston College
140 Commonwealth Ave.
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
617-552-3100
bc.edu
Ohio State
Ohio State University in Columbus was ranked a respectable 53rd on the U.S. News and World Report Best Colleges of 2010 rankings, but its school of nursing is considered among the best, according to Education-Portal.com.
With undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs, the Ohio State College of Nursing offers a complete educational experience for nurses-to-be. The college was founded in 1914 as a three-year diploma program; it became a part of OSU and transitioned to a five-year nursing program in 1930, and was conformed to a four-year college standard a few years later.
OSU nursing students enjoy several quality education opportunities, including the four-year bachelor of science in nursing and the RN to BSN program that allows registered nurses holding an associate's degree to further develop their careers. Graduate students can choose to move into specializations such as mental health nursing, neonatal care, pediatric nursing, women's health and more. Doctoral candidates may pursue a Ph.D. for research and educational approaches to nursing or obtain a doctor of nursing practice to pursue leadership careers that include direct patient care.
Ohio State University
190 N. Oval Mall
Columbus, OH 43210
614-292-6446
con.ohio-state.edu
Tags: nursing program, Boston College, Ohio State, School Nursing, science nursing