Best Nursing Schools in Pennsylvania

The School of Nursing at the University of Pittsburgh offers one of the best nursing programs in Pennsylvania and the nation.

The school’s Victoria Hall houses computer labs, an anatomy lab, classrooms, and a state-of-the-art simulation laboratory where nursing students practice basic bedside skills using geriatric, adult, and pediatric manikins.

Students are given the opportunity to participate in supervised learning situations in some of Pittsburgh’s finest healthcare facilities, including a Level 1 trauma center, a children’s hospital, a cancer center, community hospitals, outpatient clinics, long-term care facilities, and rehabilitation centers.

The University of Pittsburg offers several scholarship opportunities to undergraduate and graduate nursing students.

2. Villanova University, Villanova

Villanova University’s College of Nursing is located in Driscoll Hall on the main campus, the building boasts seminar rooms, classrooms, computer laboratories reading rooms, and high-tech simulation centers.

Villanova University admits students from all religious backgrounds but its nursing school reflects the values of the Augustinian friars who were the founders of the university. Students are taught to offer care from a point of compassion, love, and mindfulness.

The school has affiliations with a number of community health initiatives like the MacDonald Center for Obesity Prevention and Education and the Center for Global & Public Health.

Once students attain competence in nursing fundamentals, they go on to participate in clinical rotations at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical Center, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and other prestigious healthcare providers throughout Philadelphia.

Villanova offers six scholarships specifically designed for graduate nursing students. Undergraduate nursing students may also take advantage of the IBC Nurse Scholars Program or one of Villanova’s other numerous scholarships and awards.

3. Duquesne University, Pittsburgh

The school was founded in the 1920s by the Catholic Hospital Association of Pittsburgh, the members of these associations believed that nurses needed to be educated beyond what existing hospital-based diploma schools could provide.

This university’s College of Nursing building boasts a simulation center that has been designed to help students learn experientially. The simulation center is equipped with computerized manikins that exhibit a range of human physiologic responses, including lung sounds, heart sounds, bowel sounds, and pupil dilation.

After students attain proficiency in the fundamentals, they go on to clinical placements at behavioral health facilities, community clinics throughout Pittsburgh, and acute care hospitals. These facilities include the Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, Allegheny General Hospital, the Allegheny County Health Department, and UPMC Mercy Hospital.

The founders of Duquesne believed that education should be available to all worthy students regardless of their ability to pay, and to this effect, offers 18 scholarships to nursing students.

4. University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

The school also offers a few master’s programs for students who want to earn a degree in bioethics, business administration, and law in addition to a nursing degree.

The school offers quite a number of scholarships and financial aid for nursing students and eligibility for institutional scholarships and grants is determined by the information contained in FAFSA forms. Students may also qualify for federal and state financial aid.

5. Drexel University, PhiladelphiaDrexel University’s College of Nursing and Health Professions offers experiential training which gives students ample opportunities to put theory into practice at the many clinics and wellness centers the college administers.

The school is the parent organization behind the Bayada Award, an annual event that honors technological innovation in nursing education and practice.

The school provides nursing students with 10 simulation laboratories, these student nurses learn clinical skills side by side with college colleagues who are studying to become physical therapists, behavioral health therapists, or physician assistants.

After nursing students have mastered the fundamentals, Drexel’s nursing students complete clinical rotations at emergency clinics, hospitals, community agencies, intensive care settings, and other healthcare sites throughout Philadelphia.

Drexel University donors endow about 13 scholarships specifically designed to aid nursing students.