BSN Programs in New Hampshire
Colby-Sawyer College
541 Main St, New London, NH 03257
The college has a strong affiliation with Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in offering the Bachelor of Science in nursing program (BSN). Students start –off with a strong foundation of liberal arts courses and general education upon initial admission to the college. At the end of sophomore year, student makes a supplemental application to the nursing major.
Merit ranking based on GPAs on prior Colby-Sawyer courses and pre-determined courses are used to determine admission to the competitive major. Students spend time for clinical courses at the highly rated DHMC; the only academic medical center in the state among other clinical partners. In four years, students become eligible to graduates with a BSN degree and take the NLCEX-RN exam to become registered nurses.
* * * *
Keene State College
229 Main St, Keene NH 03435
Each year, Keene College selects 48 students to take the upper division nursing courses from a pool of Keene college students and transfers students. Entering first year students must have a high school GPA of 3.25 to be considered for the pre-nursing curriculum and declaration of the nursing major. Freshmen take a pre-licensure track of prerequisites courses that must be completed with an average 3.0. The 48 students are selected based on the GPA scores. Non-nursing majors at Keene and transfer students from other colleges can be considered based on space availability basis and GPA scores. A new cohort is admitted once annually every fall semester for the nursing major courses.
* * * *
Plymouth State University
17 High St, Plymouth NH 03264
The BS pre-licensure nursing program at Plymouth University is designed for cover prerequisites and general education prior to starting on any nursing courses. Admission to the program is a 2-step affair; making a common application to the university and the nursing program application. The first application permits students to be admitted to the aforementioned preparatory courses. Upon completion of the first phase and meeting admission requirements, the second application for nursing courses is required. This second phase starts once annually during the fall semester at junior year. Applicants must note that meeting minimum GPA admission requirements of 2.5 does not guarantee progression to the professional phase; admittance is selective and competitive.
* * * *
Rivier University
420 S. Main St, Nashua NH 03060
Rivier University offers a 4-year professional track of the Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree program that is very unique offering an associate degree midway the program. Ideal candidates are recent high school graduates who start-off by taking general education and core courses during the first year. In the sophomore year, the sequence of nursing courses starts and continues to the third year. By the end of junior level, students are usually eligible to write the NCLEX-RN exam and receive licensure to become registered nurses. They are also awarded an associate degree in nursing. All students entering senior year are expected to have received their licensure before starting on the 4th year capstone project. Despite this unique arrangement, the program has a regular curriculum of 126 credits and finishing the 4th year awards the students a Bachelor of Science in nursing degree. The university also runs the Epsilon Tau Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau and a chapter of the National students nurses association.
* * * *
Saint Anselm College
100 Saint Anselm Dr, Manchester NH 03102
The 4-year undergraduate nursing program at Saint Anselm has a foundation of liberal arts courses and takes a holistic approach of teaching and giving nursing care. It is a very competitive program since admittance is given to about 85-90 students out of the average 600 applications received in one application cycle. Students are admitted directly into the program in the freshman year and as such, supplemental applications to the nearing major are not required. It is also unique in that students start on the nursing course sequence as early as first year 2nd semester. Academically endowed students at senior level with high scholastic standings become eligible to join the Epsilon Tau honor society and enjoy the numerous membership benefits.
* * * *
University of New Hampshire
4 Library Way, Durham NH 03824
The Bachelor of Science in nursing at UNH prepares students to write the NLCEX-RN exam and become registered nurses. Unlike many programs, the UNH program engages students to a full-load of nursing courses as early as the second year going on to the senior year. Prerequisites courses are only reserved for the freshman year. To be eligible for retention in the program, students must maintain a minimum GPA of 2.50 throughout the program and no more than one prerequisites course may be repeated. Students must also pass all nursing courses as no nursing course may be repeated. Besides the regular curriculum, students who have achieved a cumulative GPA of 3.5 and 3.75 on all nursing courses by the end of sophomore year can take extra courses from the honors-in-major program. As part of their outreach activities for student nurses, UNH has programs with local communities in addition to international outreach activities in Norway, Russia, UK and Brazil.
