A selection of community colleges in New Jersey offer two year associate degrees in nursing or practical nurse programs. These are often entry-level programs for students with no prior nursing experience. Courses prepare students to take the National Council Licensure Examination before they can move on to work as a nurse. Community Colleges in New Jersey that offer nursing education include Atlantic Cape, Bergen, Brookdale, Burlington, Morris, Cumberland, Essex, Gloucester, Mercer, Passaic, Ocean, Raritan Valley, Union and Warren.
Private or public colleges in New Jersey that offer nursing degrees often offer four-year programs in which students can earn degrees at the bachelor level. Some colleges offer students the opportunity to earn advanced degrees at the master's and doctorate levels. Colleges that offer nursing programs include Bloomfield College, College of New Jersey, College of St. Elizabeth, Felician College, Helene Fuld School of Nursing, Ramapo College of New Jersey, Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Saint Peter's College and Thomas Edison State College. For example, The College of New Jersey, located in Ewing, New Jersey, offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing or a Master of Science in Nursing.
Universities with nursing programs in New Jersey include Fairleigh Dickinson University, Kean University, New Jersey City University, Rutgers State University, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and William Paterson University of New Jersey. Many of these schools offer the option of receiving a bachelor's and/or master's and doctorate degree. For example, Seton Hall University offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, a registered nurse program, an online registered nurse program and a variety of specialized nursing programs at the graduate level. U.S. News and World Report ranks Rutgers, located in New Brunswick, New Jersey, as one of the top 100 nursing graduate schools in the country.
You can also find nursing schools at some of New Jersey's hospitals. These hospital schools include Bayonne Medical Center, Capital Health System, Holy Name Hospital, Christ Hospital, Merit LLC-Mountainside Hospital, Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center, Raritan Bay Medical Center, Saint Francis Medical Center and Solaris Health System. Many hospital schools are affiliated in some way with community, private and public colleges in the state. These schools often offer two-year nursing programs and sometimes include sign-on bonuses and tuition reimbursement benefits for students who decide to work at the hospital during and after graduation.