Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing

The academic offering is singularly focused: nursing. The most popular and central program is the Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), described as a "demanding baccalaureate curriculum." It consists of 124 semester hours of coursework and is distinguished by providing "more than 700 hours of direct clinical experience in a variety of acute care" and other settings. These clinical experiences are mostly conducted on-campus, leveraging the college's integration with the Saint Francis Medical Center. The college also offers master's and doctorate-level degrees in nursing. Outcomes are a key selling point; the BSN program boasts that its graduates "regularly earn an NCLEX pass rate that's higher than the national average—typically running from 90 to 100 percent." For 2023, the NCLEX pass rate was reported as 94%, outperforming both the state (85%) and national (89%) averages.

This is a commuter-heavy, professionally oriented campus. Only 15% of students live in college-owned, -operated, or -affiliated housing, while 85% live off-campus. The college acknowledges that its own organized social activities may be limited, noting that "additional opportunities for recreational, cultural and social activities are available through community groups and local colleges and universities." The institutional culture is described as providing "a supportive" environment and "a values-based Catholic education, exemplified by mutual respect between faculty, students and staff." The student body is a mix of full-time (233 students) and part-time (372 students), reflecting a population that often balances studies with work or other commitments.

The primary outcome metric is licensure success, and the college delivers: its 2023 NCLEX-RN pass rate of 94% solidly beats both state and national averages. Financially, graduates see strong returns. According to the canonical figures supplied, the median earnings ten years after entry are $72,850. Other sources report a median salary of $69,519 six years after graduation, indicating a steep and early career trajectory for nursing graduates.

The published tuition is $10,088 for full-time study, or $402 per semester hour for part-time study; another source lists an in-state tuition of $22,008. The net price—the average cost after aid and scholarships—is reported as $30,396. Financial aid is available through "a variety of scholarships, grants and loans." Need-based gift aid is a significant component: data shows that 62.9% of aid recipients (66 students) received an average need-based gift of $13,733, while 18.1% of aid recipients (19 students) received an average amount of $4,949 from other gift aid sources. Students are encouraged to use the Net Price Calculator provided by the college.

Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing stands out for its utter lack of pretense as a traditional undergraduate college. It is a direct pipeline into the nursing profession, built inside a working hospital. The standout figure isn't an acceptance rate or a dormitory rating—it's the 700+ hours of direct clinical experience woven into the BSN curriculum, a level of hands-on training that far exceeds many university-based programs. This immersion is reflected in the results: a 94% NCLEX pass rate that consistently tops national averages. The environment is less about campus life and more about adopting the identity and discipline of a healthcare professional from day one. It’s a place for students who are unequivocally certain of their career path and want to learn their craft at the elbow of practicing clinicians in a major medical center, with a values-based approach rooted in its Catholic affiliation.