Compare the best BSN, MSN, ADN, and RN programs in Pennsylvania. Tuition costs, NCLEX pass rates, accreditation, and unique program highlights for prospective nursing students.
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Nursing Programs in Pennsylvania
Penn's School of Nursing is consistently ranked #1 among private nursing schools and in the top 3 nationally overall. Students train at Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.
Jefferson's nursing program is embedded within Thomas Jefferson University's major health sciences campus. Clinical placements at Jefferson Health — one of the Mid-Atlantic's largest health systems.
Ivy League elite nursing at Penn Medicine; consistently #1 nationally
Top public research university BSN with UPMC clinical network
Urban Philadelphia ADN serving diverse student population with Temple and Jefferson clinicals
Central Pennsylvania ADN with Penn State Health and UPMC Pinnacle partnerships
Health sciences university BSN fully integrated with Jefferson Health system
Pennsylvania pairs a strong healthcare economy with a wide range of affordable nursing programs, making it a popular state to train and practice. Major systems including UPMC in Pittsburgh and Penn Medicine, Jefferson, and Temple in Philadelphia anchor large urban markets, while steady demand across community hospitals, long-term care, and rural health keeps opportunities open statewide.
Students can choose from hospital-based diploma programs (Pennsylvania is one of the few states that still maintains a number of these), community-college ADN programs, and BSN degrees at public and private universities, along with accelerated and RN-to-BSN options and graduate programs for nurse practitioners and leaders. The mix of diploma, associate, and bachelor's routes gives Pennsylvania students unusually flexible entry points into the profession.
Licensure runs through the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing. Pennsylvania is a member of the Nurse Licensure Compact, so an RN or LPN license issued to a Pennsylvania resident is a multistate license — letting you practice across all compact states without separate applications, a meaningful advantage given Pennsylvania's borders with several other compact states.
Licensing authority: Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing.