BSN Programs in Massachusetts

American International University
1000 State St, Spring Field, A 01109
The American International University offers a bachelor of science in nursing degree in preparation for the NLCEX-RN exam. The university offers the program on a full time basis at the campus in Springfield. The program starts with a strong foundation of liberal arts and general education courses reserved for the freshman and sophomore year.

However, students take a number of non-nursing support courses in the junior and last year along with the clinical nursing courses. It has the advantage of students learning in a small private campus.

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Anna Maria College

50 Sunset Lane, Paxton MA 01612

Anna Maria College has a NLNAC accredited 4-year curriculum leading to the Bachelor of nursing science degree. The college is affiliated with the Catholic Church and therefore incorporates spiritual growth in all its programs. The program is unique from many in that students are admitted directly into the nursing program right from the freshman year. During the first two years, students are immersed in liberal arts and general education courses before starting on the nursing program at junior level. Specific Catholic Teachings courses are taken along with the upper division nursing courses. Intellectually and scholarly motivated students can join the honors program right from the freshman year. The track is offered at the Paxton campus on a full time day basis.

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Boston College

140 Commonwealth Ave, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467

The CCNE accredited traditional BSN is offered at the serene Suburban campus at Chestnut Hill. The 4-year pre-licensure curriculum is a combination of liberal arts and social science courses in addition to nursing and non-nursing support courses. One interesting fact about this program is that undergraduate students can be allowed to take some master of science in nursing level courses during the last year of college. Such courses count towards both the BSN and master nursing degree for students who intend to take a master degree. Junior level students can also apply to take part in a number of sponsored study-abroad programs.

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Curry College

1071 Blue Hill Ave, Milton MA 02186

A120-credit curriculum is designed for entry-level bachelor of nursing students seeking initial licensure as registered nurses. Admission and entry into the program is a rigorous and competitive process and calls for high performing students. The 4-year program is designed to start with general education courses in the first three semesters of college. In the next five semesters starting at the 2nd semester of sophomore year, students start on nursing and clinical courses. Upon enrollment for nursing courses, students can apply to go for international study programs in China. The college also runs the Theta at Large chapter of Sigma Theta International honor Society for nurses. This chapter invites scholarly motivated students who rank top 35% of their nursing level class to join.

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Elms College

291 Springfield St, Chicopee, MA 01013

Elms College Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) program is accredited by the CCNE. It features a strong foundation of liberal arts courses general science curriculum with a specialization in nursing at the junior and senior level. Nursing courses start as early as the sophomore year and continue to the upper division major courses. If students start at Elms as freshmen, they are expected to take 4 years to meet the graduation requirements. The program is taught from a Catholic-Christian perspective and emphasizes student preparation for the NLCEX-RN exam.

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Endincott College

376 Hale St, Beverly MA 01915

The nursing major BSN at Endicott College is designed to prepare students for initial licensure as registered nurses. It is open for both entry-level high school graduates and transfer students who have completed a number of general education courses. Freshman applicants must have at least 16 units from high school English, Chemistry, Math, Biology, Social Studies to be eligible for admission. On the other hand, transfer students with a cumulative GPA of 2.5 can transfer up-to 85 college credits but acceptance is based on seats availability. On the transfer case, at least 43 of the 128 BSN credits must be complete at Endicott while 24 of the last 30 semester hours must also be taken at the college. Student can also request induction in the recently launched chapter of Sigma Theta international nursing honor society.

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Fitchburg State University

160 Pearl Street, Fitchburg, MA 01420

As the first public university to offer a baccalaureate nursing program, Fitchburg is proud to continue with the old tradition of credible nurse training. The Bachelor of Science in nursing degree if fully accredited by the Commission on collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) and approved by the MA board of nursing. Freshman students are admitted and designated as pre-nursing major. General education courses are reserved for the first year and such courses must be completed with a cumulative GPA of 2.5 by the end of the spring semester. Admission to the traditional day nursing major occurs in the first semester of the sophomore year. However, even after meeting the GPA requirements, all students must take and pass the Accuplacer Mathematics placement exam prior to admission. The next three years after admission into the major is reserved for nursing theory and clinical courses. Academically talented students can apply to join the Epsilon Beta chapter of Sigma Theta Tau.

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Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS)

179 Longwood Ave, Boston MA 02115

MCPHS offers a unique accelerated BS in nursing program at the Boston campus different from the post-baccalaureate BSN offered at Worchester and Manchester campuses. The college utilizes a year-round learning mode such that pre-licensure students starting at the freshman level complete the BSN in 32 months. Classes start in fall each year and take 15 weeks for fall and spring semesters and 12 weeks for summer semesters. All students get direct-entry admission into the program and no supplemental applications to the major are required. The curriculum consists of 122 credits: 54 in pre-professional courses and 68 in nursing courses. Transfer students that have completed the pre-professional program may also apply to the professional phase. By the end of the 32 months of full time accelerated study, students become eligible to take the NLCEX-RN exam for registered nurses.

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Regis College

235 Wellesley St, Weston MA 02493

Regis College is proud to be designated as a Center of Excellence in Nursing Education by NLN. For the 4-year baccalaureate nursing program, Regis offers two admission options: direct entry and pre-nursing major status admissions. The direct admission option is reserved for students that meet all BSN admission requirements. The second option is offered to students that do not meet all the admission requirements. Such students are admitted to take the freshman year curriculum and decisions for admission to the major are made in the first semester of the sophomore year. A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required from the 1st year courses taken.   Upon admission, all students must maintain a GPA of 2.7 in all nursing courses to ensure retention in the program. Students taking the BSN can plan their courses to gain advanced standing in the school of nursing graduate programs and fast-track a master of nursing degree.

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Salem State University

352 Lafayette St, Salem MA 01970

Salem State University offers a four-year undergraduate bachelor of nursing program at their Central Campus. The program grounded in a strong foundation of liberal arts is open to both fresh high school graduates and transfer students. The curriculum starts with general education and liberal arts courses that can be taken on a full time, part time of evening class basis. Nursing courses with a clinical component start at sophomore year and continue over the next three years. Talented students may take two extra courses from the honors program in order to graduate with a BSN with honors. Students eligible for the honor program may also apply for induction in the Eta Tau Chapter of sigma Theta Tau international honor society for nurses.

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Simmons College

300 The Fenway, Boston MA 02115

Simmons College 4-year traditional baccalaureate nursing degree is fully accredited by the commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. The program is segmented into two portions. Upon admission as freshmen, students take the first section of multidisciplinary and core university and science prerequisites courses usually in the freshman and sophomore years. Progression into the major for junior and senior years is dependent on the grades obtained and general professional conduct and behavior during the first two years. Students with outstanding academic records may be initiated in the Theta-at-Large chapter of Sigma Theta Tau. Nursing students also enjoy sponsored international nursing experiences in Romania, Dominican Republic, Thailand and Nicaragua.

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University of Massachusetts-Amherst

651 North Pleasant St, Amherst MA 01003

 

The traditional track for the BS in nursing is one of the 3 undergraduate nursing tracks at UMass-Amherst. UMass admits students for the pre-licensure BSN through a direct-admit policy which is very selective, competitive and depends on spaces available. Students must have earned a high school GPA of 3.5, a SAT score of 1200 and be in the top 10% of their high school graduating class. This track starts with a 2-year pre-clinical portion of pre-nursing and prerequisite science courses. Students need not take these courses in any particular order but must have them finished by the end of sophomore year with an average GPA of 2.5. Transfer students are only admitted if there are spaces left after the freshman selection but this opportunity is very rare. After starting on nursing and clinical major courses in the senior and junior years, students are usually grouped to live in together through the Residential Academic Programs policy.

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University of Massachusetts-Boston

100 Morrissey Blvd, Boston MA 02125

The nursing traditional Bachelor of Science at UMass-Boston for pre-licensure students are open to both freshman and transfer students. Candidates must first gain general admission in the university and complete the required general education courses before applying to the nursing major. The university has two admission cycles for fall and spring start dates. Freshmen start with prerequisites courses in the first two years. Both transfer and freshman students must earn at least a GPA of 3.0 to be eligible for selection to progress to the major. However, average GPAs of 3.2 and 3.4 for freshman and transfer students respectively is usually observed for admitted students. A waiting list is available in case some selected students do not show-up for the major. Beyond the classroom, students can take part in community outreach programs or international nursing experiences in Kenya, Glasgow, China and Korea. Other student opportunities include the National Student Nurses Association in addition to the Theta Alpha chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International. The program takes 4 years of 8 academic semesters to complete and become eligible for the NLCEX-registered nurses exam.

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University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth

250 Old Westport Rd, North Dartmouth MA 02747

The BS in Nursing program at UMass Dartmouth offers a seamless progression from the classroom into nursing practice. The 4-year curriculum is designed in such a way that students get to shadow a registered nurse before leaving campus. In the first year, students take foundational science courses. In the sophomore and junior years, students concentrate in nursing courses and practice at selected clinical facilities and state of the art simulation labs. In the senior year, students are paired with one registered nurse from one of the affiliated clinical facilities to give students the opportunity of practicing nursing before they graduate. What’s more, students interested in joining the army can apply to be inducted in the Army Nurse ROTC program and enjoy the huge benefits of Army Medicine programs. All nursing students excluding seniors are welcome to apply for any of the 15 college of nursing scholarships. UMass-Dartmouth also runs chapters of National Nurses Association and the Sigma Theta Tau International.

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University of Massachusetts-Lowell

1 University Ave, Lowell MA 01854

UMass Lowell offers a CCNE-accredited 4-year bachelor of nursing degree. The track admits new students every fall and spring semesters to prepare them in taking the NLCEX-RN exam. The course of study include four semesters of pre-requisite science courses and general education courses followed by four semesters of nursing and clinical work in junior and senior years. Besides the usual class work, academically endowed students can join the Eta Tau chapter of sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society for Nurses. Interested students can also sponsor themselves for the Nursing Students without Borders program in order to participate in various international nursing projects.

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Westfield State University

577 Western Ave, Westfield MA 01086

The bachelor degree in nursing program at Westfield state University is relatively new and kicked-off in the fall of 2010. However, admission into the program is very competitive and is a two tier process. First, students need to meet the general university admission requirements before being selected again for the nursing program. High school graduates are the ideal candidates for the program and as such, a minimum high school GPA of 3.3, SAT scores of 1150 are required from applicants. Students who meet these requirements may be requested by the nursing department to submit a personalized essay and attend an interview from which selections are made. Currently, the university is not offering transfer students an opportunity to take nursing. Nursing students may also be invited to join the university honors program.

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Worchester State University

486 Chandler St, Worcester MA 01602

The university has a 4-year curriculum leading to the bachelor of nursing degree. The track for pre-licensure students consists of two phases of the pre-nursing segment. The first is the prerequisites phase reserved for the freshman year. The second phase is for co-requisites courses that must be completed by the spring of the sophomore year. In both preparatory phases, students must earn grades of 2.0 or better to be considered for the professional phase of the program. Transfer students are only accepted if they meet all freshman courses and apply for the sophomore year courses. However, priority is given to Worcester university students and transfer students are only admitted if space availability permits. Besides the nursing curriculum, top academic performers can take extra courses from the university honors program. The university also runs the Iota Phi Chapter of sigma Theta Tau International and a chapter of the National Nurses students Association.