Nursing Major in Pennsylvania
Our CCNE-accredited Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree program, designed to meet the rapidly changing healthcare environment, will prepare you to become a successful registered nurse (RN) as you study in a Christian environment.
Study Nursing at a Christian University
The BSN program will help you develop a broad base of scientific knowledge, excellent communication skills, critical thinking and value-based decision-making capabilities, all while integrating your faith in a Christian college environment.
As a graduate of Messiah University’s demanding, yet highly rewarding nursing degree program, you’ll meet the requirements and prepare to sit for licensure to become a registered nurse. You will also be fully prepared to enter the largest healthcare profession in the United States—one that is projected to continue to grow well into the next several decades.
The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, the master’s degree program in nursing, and the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Messiah University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).
The first-time NCLEX (National Council Licensure Examination) pass rate for Messiah's May 2024 nursing graduates is 100 percent!
As a nursing major at Messiah University, you'll be able to:
- Practice life-like clinical simulations with medium and high-fidelity human simulators in state-of-the-art labs. For example, the Maternal-Child Lab is equipped with a labor/delivery/postpartum unit, and a pediatric unit containing fully functional newborn and pediatric equipment. High fidelity simulators are used to provide realistic hands-on experiences with life-like simulators that respond to changes.
- Study in a program that has been named a “Nursing College of Distinction” by Colleges of Distinction for 2024-2025, and ranked the #1 Nursing Program in Pennsylvania by registerednursing.org.
- Integrate liberal arts and sciences with your Christian faith and stimulating nursing courses and apply what you learned in simulation labs and clinical settings.
- Pursue a career as a registered nurse in acute care or community settings or become a missionary taking your knowledge and skills abroad to those most in need.
- Go on for your advanced degree to become a nurse practitioner, clinical specialist, nurse midwife, nurse anesthetist, nurse educator, administrator or researcher.
- Join Nurses Christian Fellowship, a professional organization and weekly Bible study for nurses and nursing students that provides encouragement and support for students desiring to minister through nursing and healthcare.
- Participate in evidence-based research projects in collaboration with regional clinical institutions, and present your findings at a regional nursing research conference.
- Participate in community-based disaster drills.
- Join the Student Nurses Association (SNA) that addresses current professional interests. Students in SNA gain the opportunity to present at conferences.
- Earn a spot in Lambda Kappa, Messiah’s chapter of Sigma Honor Society of Nursing, which recognizes superior achievement and facilitates the development of leadership qualities.
- Participate in inter-professional education with students from other health disciplines.
- Travel abroad in one of our many international nursing opportunities to places like Uganda, Zambia, Spain or South America.
As a graduate of the nursing program, you will be equipped to secure jobs as registered nurses in a variety of clinical settings including:
- Acute care: medical/surgical, emergency room, intensive care, obstetrics, pediatrics, mental health and more
- Community health: hospice, school nursing, wellness centers, health clinics
- Long-term care: skilled nursing facilities, rehabilitation
For more information on career planning for the nursing program, visit the Messiah University Career and Professional Development Center.
Messiah helps place students in a variety of nursing practicums. A few examples include:
- Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
- Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center
- UPMC
- Wellspan Health
Test optional policy for undergraduates
Messiah University's test-optional policy enables first-year students to receive admission, secure scholarships and compete for the Messiah University Honors Program without submitting standardized tests. Students applying to the nursing major must refer to requirements for admission to the nursing major.
Learn more when you check out our Test Optional Policy FAQ.
Graduate Program in Nursing
Advance your nursing career at Messiah University with flexible degree programs and online coursework designed to fit the lifestyle of busy professionals. The Graduate Program in Nursing has a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, one of Pennsylvania’s only predominantly online programs in this field, with a family nurse practitioner, nurse educator or nursing leadership track; a Master of Science in Nursing degree with a nurse educator or nursing leadership track; and a Master of Science in Nursing and Master of Business Administration dual degree.
Integrative classroom learning
We emphasize the Christian aspects of commitment, compassion and patient care across the BSN degree curriculum, along with rigorous liberal arts and science courses. Throughout the nursing program you will practice life-like simulations using our state-of-the-art clinical simulation labs, including one advanced simulation lab, a maternal-child simulation lab, a psychiatric-mental health lab equipped with state-of-the-art high and medium fidelity human simulators and audio-visual equipment; and a physical assessment lab. Our program has a full-time simulation nurse educator available to oversee student learning in the simulation labs.
While working toward your BSN you will participate in a disaster drill as part of the community health course and you will complete an evidence-based practice project with nurses from regional hospitals during your nursing research course.
Clinical-based learning
Outside the classroom you will apply what you’ve learned in some of south-central Pennsylvania’s most outstanding clinical settings, such as general and specialty hospitals (including several Magnet-designation hospitals); skilled nursing facilities for long-term care; schools; churches; free clinics; nurse-managed health centers; and many more. You’ll be well prepared to pass your licensure exam the first time and to find an exciting job in nursing.
In the Nursing program, you will take a selection of courses that successfully prepare you for a career in a related field. Hands-on experiences and classroom learning within the framework of Christian faith will give you the skills and knowledge to achieve your goals. Our programs offer a wide variety of courses that will not only help you excel in your future career, but challenge you to develop a deeper understanding of your field of study.
Course options for Nursing:
Nursing (B.S.N.)
Careers and outcomes
Where our grads work
Graduates of the Nursing program work in positions of leadership in their places of employment, using the tools and knowledge a Messiah University education prepared them with. Each year, eager employers and some of the nation's best graduate schools welcome Messiah graduates into their organizations.
Where they work
- UCLA Medical Center
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
- UPMC
- WellSpan York Hospital
- Penn State Health Holy Spirit Medical Center
- Hershey Medical Center
- University of Colorado Hospital
- Lehigh Valley Health Network
- Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
- University of Rochester
- Johns Hopkins Children's Center
- University of Maryland Medical Center
- Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
- Magee Women's Hospital
- Christiana Hospital
- Georgetown University Hospital
- Strong's Memorial Hospital
- University of Connecticut Health Center
- Hospital of University of Pennsylvania
- Columbia University Medical Center
- Eastern Maine Medical Center
- Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center
- Mennonite Central Committee
- Fox Chase Cancer Center
- Sinai Hospital of Baltimore
- University of California San Diego Medical Center
- UCLA Medical Center
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
- The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania
- Beth Israel Medical Center
- Children's Hospital of Atlanta
- Boston Children's Hospital
- Georgetown University Hospital
- Massachusetts General Hospital
- Hackensack University Medical Center
- TEST
What they do
- Nurse practitioner
- Nurse anesthetist
- Nurse midwife
- Clinical specialist
- Nurse education
- ER Nurse
- Labor and delivery nurse
- Registered nurse
- Med-surg nurse
- Pediatric intensive care nurse
- Trauma care nurse
- Staff nurse
- Medical intensive care unit nurse
- Cardiac nurse
- Hematology/oncology nurse
- Orthopedic nurse
- Psychiatric nurse
- Surgical nurse
- Neurosurgical nurse
- Dialysis nurse
- Pharmacy technician
- Nurse Manager
- Neonatal nurse
- Respiratory /toxicology nurse
- Clinical nurse
Graduate school
- South Alabama University
- Bridgeport Hospital Nurse Anesthesia Program
- Messiah University
- Thomas Jefferson University
- The Pennsylvania State University
- Widener University
- Mansfield University
- Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
- Fairfield University
- University of Maryland
- Salisbury University
95% of the Class of 2024 respondents were employed or in graduate school within 6-9 months of graduation.
Our Alumni
Regional and national employers seek out Messiah graduates for their academic preparation, work ethic and personal character. The transformation you experience at Messiah readies you to transform the lives of others through your chosen career path.
Messiah's unique approach to hands-on learning
Learning in the classroom is important but actually applying that knowledge in a hands-on way can make all the difference. At Messiah University, the Experiential Learning Initiative (ELI) allows Messiah to take this hands-on learning to a new level by giving students the opportunity to apply what they have learned to various real world contexts--such as an internship/practica, service learning, off-campus program, holding a student leadership position, or participating in undergraduate research.
Integrative classroom learning
We emphasize the Christian aspects of commitment, compassion and patient care across the BSN degree curriculum, along with rigorous liberal arts and science courses. Throughout the nursing program you will practice life-like simulations using our state-of-the-art clinical simulation labs, including one advanced simulation lab, a maternal-child simulation lab, a psychiatric-mental health lab equipped with state-of-the-art high and medium fidelity human simulators and audio-visual equipment; and a physical assessment lab. Our program has a full-time simulation nurse educator available to oversee student learning in the simulation labs.
While working toward your BSN you will participate in a disaster drill as part of the community health course and you will complete an evidence-based practice project with nurses from regional hospitals during your nursing research course.
Clinical-based learning
Outside the classroom you will apply what you’ve learned in some of south-central Pennsylvania’s most outstanding clinical settings, such as general and specialty hospitals (including several Magnet-designation hospitals); skilled nursing facilities for long-term care; schools; churches; free clinics; nurse-managed health centers; and many more. You’ll be well prepared to pass your licensure exam the first time and to find an exciting job in nursing.