UArizona Nursing Soars in Inaugural U.S. News & World Report Best Bachelor of Science in Nursing Rankings

As part of its 2022 Best Colleges list, U.S. News & World Report for the first time ranked undergraduate nursing bachelor’s degrees on the Best Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Programs list, and the University of Arizona College of Nursing excelled in several categories.

Out of 694 schools, the UArizona College of Nursing’s BSN program ranked No. 23 overall, No. 16 among public universities and No. 1 in Arizona. The College of Nursing offers two distinct Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs: a conventional pathway in Tucson and an integrative health pathway in Gilbert, Arizona.

“It is gratifying to see the hard work of faculty and students recognized by the college’s recent U.S. News & World Report rankings,” said College of Nursing Dean Ki Moore, PhD, RN, FAAN. “Our Tucson-based BSN program was the first academic program offered by the College of Nursing and garners a long-standing record of excellence. The BSN-Integrative Health program at the Gilbert campus opened in 2019. I am so proud nursing leaders across the U.S. recognized the exceptional quality of these two programs and the faculty who are dedicated to preparing the next generation of practice-ready graduates.”

The strong ranking is the College of Nursing’s latest success with U.S. News & World Report. Earlier this year the college’s online Master of Science in Nursing in Clinical Systems Leadership tied at No. 32 on the Best Online Master’s in Nursing Programs list and tied at No. 39 on the Best Nursing Schools: Master’s list. The Doctor of Nursing Practice program tied at No. 33 in the Best Nursing Schools: Doctor of Nursing Practice rankings.

U.S. News & World Report’s Best Bachelor of Science in Nursing Programs rankings arrive as enrollment in nursing programs has been steadily increasing and amid widespread concern about nursing staff shortages.

Connie Miller, DNP, RNC-OB, CNE, chair of the General Nursing and Education Division and clinical associate professor of nursing, says nursing is a rewarding career, but the COVID-19 pandemic has added many new challenges that require enormous strength and resilience.

“We are proud of our programs that offer outstanding instruction, learning resources, clinical experiences and simulations, as well as student-centered faculty and staff to support student success and prepare them to enter the workforce resilient and ready to care for individuals, families and communities through caring and healing relationships,” Dr. Miller said. “It is wonderful to get this recognition for our BSN program – both our conventional BSN pathway in Tucson and our newest, first-of-its kind integrative health pathway in Gilbert, Arizona, which allows us to admit an additional 216 students per year to accommodate our ever-growing number of pre-nursing students and help address the nursing shortage in Arizona.”

U.S. News & World Report rankings are determined by the average of scores received from surveys of top academics and officials at nursing schools or departments. The surveys for the new rankings were conducted in the spring and summer of 2021.