Program Overview
The University of Providence’s traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program (BSN) is a 4-year, on-campus nursing program designed to prepare students for a rewarding career as a registered nurse. Sponsored by a generous gift from the Vander Werff Family, the traditional BSN program will immerse students in a didactic learning experience through a foundational education in liberal arts, curated nursing courses, and enhanced skills training.
The traditional BSN program is offered alongside the university’s existing catalog of well-established Bachelor and Master of Science in nursing programs. The traditional BSN program is taught by passionate, experienced faculty who are invested in the successful future of our students and the nursing profession. The University of Providence’s traditional BSN curriculum emphasizes a quality education centered around delivering quality care to all patients populations.
*The Traditional BSN program is currently accepting transfer students from outside colleges or universities on a case-by-case basis. Applicants interested in transferring to the University of Providence to pursue a degree in Nursing should contact the Office of Admissions.
Program Highlights
Interactive, On-Campus Learning
As a traditional BSN student, you will engage in practical clinical experiences designed to prepare you for a rewarding career in nursing. Students will have access to a state-of-the-art nursing simulation facility and will graduate ready to meet the challenges facing today’s registered nurses.
Foundational and Practical Curriculum
Woven into our traditional BSN curriculum is mission-focused, care-driven course content across the nursing and liberal arts and sciences disciplines. UP’s traditional BSN curriculum emphasizes a quality education centered around serving patients, especially those who are poor and vulnerable.
Graduates Are Career-Ready
As a graduate of the traditional BSN program, you will be a leader in healthcare who utilizes excellent communication, clinical skills, and leadership qualities. You will use your education to enhance the nursing profession by providing evidence-based nursing practice that is population centered and grounded in spiritual, ethical, and compassionate care of all those you will serve.
Exam-Preparedness
Graduates of the traditional BSN degree program are eligible to sit for national licensure through the National Council Licensure Exam (NCLEX), the exam required to become licensed to practice as a Registered Nurse (RN). The traditional BSN degree program prepares students to sit for the NCLEX exam.
Application Information
Two admissions options are available to students who wish to join the traditional BSN Program: Direct Entry Admission and Pre-Nursing Admission. All interested students will first apply for Direct Entry Admission. Applicants who do not initially meet admission criteria for the direct entry option or decide they would like to apply to the traditional BSN program after enrolling at the University of Providence in a different program will be invited to join UP as a pre-nursing student.
Direct Entry Admission
All interested students will first apply for Direct Entry Admission. Direct Entry Admission will be competitive and is designed for candidates who have demonstrated academic excellence and have a strong understanding of the Nursing Profession.
Direct Entry Admission requires NO ADDITIONAL APPLICATION once admitted to the University of Providence’s traditional BSN program as a freshman. Students are enrolled in the official BSN curriculum beginning their first semester.
*Direct Entry Admission is available to freshman applicants only.
Criteria for Direct Entry Admission
Students applying through Direct Entry Admission must meet the following criteria:
Application: Applicants must submit a completed application through NursingCAS
High School Transcripts: Applicants must submit their official high school transcript
Transcripts must be submitted to NursingCAS from your high school
Include transcripts from any dual enrollment or other pre-college programs
Include results of any AP test results
GPA Requirements: Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0
If a minimum GPA of 3.0 was not achieved in prior high school coursework, an additional admission essay/academic review may be required of the applicant.
Science Requirements: Applicants must hold two years of high school:
Chemistry
Biology
Math Requirements: Applicants must have completed high school math through:
Algebra II
Pre-Nursing Admission
The Pre-Nursing pathway will feature focused advising from Nursing faculty, opportunities to explore nursing, and a brief internal application to join the traditional BSN program once certain goals and criteria are achieved. The path to traditional BSN program admission is designed for the following students:
- Students who initially begin enrollment at UP in a NON-NURSING PROGRAM and later decide to change their academic program to nursing.
- Any student who is not selected for Direct Entry admission but decides to enroll at UP with the goal of enrolling in the Traditional BSN program later on.
Internal applications for pre-nursing students will be open EVERY SPRING TERM for possible admission/entry into the Nursing program each fall.
Criteria for Pre-Nursing Admission
Students applying through Pre-Nursing admission must meet the following criteria:
Enrollment Status: Applicant must be currently enrolled at the University of Providence as a degree-seeking undergraduate student in pre-nursing or any other declared major.
Course Requirement: Applicants must successfully complete the following courses at UP:
COD 100: Corps of Discovery
CHM 101: Introduction to Chemistry
ENG 117: Writing Essays
TRL 201: Introduction to Theology
GPA Requirements: Applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0
If a minimum 3.0 GPA was not achieved in prior high school or college coursework, an additional admission essay/academic review may be required of the applicant.
Withdrawn Courses: Applicants must have no more than TWO repeated or withdrawn prerequisite courses listed as part of the Traditional BSN nursing program curriculum.
Academic Standing: Applicants must be in good academic standing with the University of Providence, including no conduct violations during their time of enrollment.
Application Deadlines
Applications for the Traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing program are accepted for the fall and spring semesters. All applications must be submitted through the NursingCAS Application on the Undergraduate Admissions Page:
- NursingCAS Fall 2025 Admissions Deadline: August 13, 2025
- NursingCAS Spring 2026 Admissions Deadline: December 18, 2025
Program Vision
At the University of Providence Great Falls Nursing Program, our vision is to set the standard for nursing excellence through transformative education, innovation, and compassionate care. We aspire to empower our students with the knowledge, skills, and ethical grounding necessary to lead in the dynamic field of healthcare. Our commitment extends beyond academic excellence to nurturing a community of professionals who are dedicated to improving health outcomes, advocating for vulnerable populations, and contributing to the global health landscape with integrity and respect. We envision our graduates as pioneers of change, equipped to address the complexities of modern healthcare with confidence, empathy, and unwavering dedication to the well-being of all individuals.
Program Mission
The program’s mission is “to prepare graduates for accountable and professional nursing practice that is relationship-based, vigilant, theory-guided, and grounded in the best possible evidence.”
A graduate of the program will be a leader in healthcare. Graduates will be excellent communicators, clinicians, and leaders of change. A graduate is a lifelong learner and will enhance the nursing profession by providing nursing evidence-based practice that is population-centered, as well as grounded in spiritual, ethical, and compassionate care.
Conceptual Framework
The program’s mission is supported by a conceptual framework consisting of the following constructs:
Relationship-Based Care
The University of Providence’s Traditional BSN Degree Completion Program honors the patient and family as the center of the care delivery team. In relationship-based practice, excellent patient care outcomes are achieved through collaborative and sacred relationships among the patient, his or her family, and the healthcare team.
Vigilance
Nursing vigilance is reflected in unwavering attention to both the patient and the care delivery environment. This vigilance protects patients from harm and ensures their safe passage as they journey through the continuum of their care experience.
Professional Accountability
The professional nurse is accountable for nursing outcomes of care delivery by ensuring vigilant care processes, maintaining expertise in practice, and creating healing care environments. The professional nurse is answerable for practice that consistently meets established standards. This accountability includes the steadfast pursuit of opportunities to coach and mentor other members of the inter-professional healthcare team. Nurses are at all times responsible for their own self-care, professional development, and proactive career management.
Change
Constant, complex change is the expected norm and sets the context for contemporary life in health care delivery. Professional nurses thrive in–and are prepared to lead and manage positive change in improving health, with patients, colleagues, and communities.
Program Themes
Nursing students at the University of Providence will learn these themes and more:
- Compassion, ethics, and spirituality
- Patient and family-centered care
- Leadership and effective advocacy
- Evidence-based practice
- Population and Community Health
- Transforming healthcare
- Safety and quality outcomes
- Professional accountability
- Collaboration and inter-professional teams
- Reflective practice and lifelong development
Program Information
There is a lot to discover about the traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree program. Explore program foundations, skills, mission, themes, and more below:
Program Foundations
The traditional BSN degree program will begin accepting applications in the spring of 2023, sponsored by a generous gift from the Vander Werff family. The traditional BSN program will be administered over a 4-year duration through an on-campus, in-person learning experience. Students will have access to a state-of-the-art nursing facility where they can practice and build core competencies and skills in nursing practice.
Skills You'll Learn
Traditional BSN students at the University of Providence will learn these skills and more:
- Person-centered Care
- Communication
- Leadership
- Teamwork and collaboration
- Care coordination
- Evidence-based practice
- Research and scholarship
- Quality improvement
- Safety
- Informatics
- Legal and ethical reasoning
- Clinical reasoning
Learning Outcomes
Traditional BSN students at the University of Providence graduate able to:
- Integrate a compassionate and ethical understanding of the human experience into nursing practice using the foundations of a liberal arts education.
- Apply leadership concepts, skills, and decision-making to engage healthcare teams in creating, promoting, and managing safety and quality outcomes.
- Apply nursing practices that are informed by research, evidence-based practice, and innovation to optimize health.
- Utilize information technology to communicate, mitigate errors, and make improved clinical decisions related to the care of diverse populations.
- Advocate to influence change in legal, political, social, and economic factors that transform healthcare delivery.
- Collaborate with the inter-professional team to improve patient/family outcomes and the work environment.
- Provide compassionate, spiritual, ethical, and culturally appropriate care across the lifespan and the continuum of care.
- Practice preventive care, health promotion, and disease intervention across care settings for self, individuals, families, the community, and populations.
- Assume professional accountability to uphold the standards of nursing practice as defined by the Nurse Practice Act (in the state in which the nurse practices) and the ANA Code of Ethics.
- Demonstrate reflective nursing practice.
Program Curriculum
UP’s traditional BSN students will take courses in the liberal arts and sciences and nursing curriculum. Over the course of enrollment, students will take a total of 120 credit hours over four years – with the first two years focusing on liberal arts and sciences and the second year building foundational and clinical skills in nursing.
Students will take 60 credit hours of liberal arts and science courses, including biology, chemistry, and math prerequisites. Students will then transition into the nursing program, where the curriculum will include courses in ethics, nursing fundamentals, pharmacology, and population health. Students will learn these skills through in-person learning, interactive, skill labs, and clinical experiences.
Learn More: Traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing Curriculum.
Traditional BSN Liberal Arts & Science Courses
- COD 100: Corps of Discovery (3 Semester Credits)
- PHL 101: What Does It Mean to Be Human (3 Semester Credits)
- ENG 117: Writing Essays (3 Semester Credits)
- TRL 201: Introduction to Theology (3 Semester Credits)
- PSY 212: Developmental Psychology (3 Semester Credits)
- CPS 215: Information Literacy (1 Semester Credit)
- ENG 215: Introduction to Literary Studies (3 Semester Credits)
- ILC 330: What Is Truth (4 Semester Credits)
- ILC 350: What Is The Common Good (4 Semester Credits)
- Fine Arts | History Array (6 Semester Credits)
- Computer Programs Array (1 Semester Credit)
- Upper Division English/WIC Array (3 Semester Credits)
Traditional BSN Pre-Requisite Courses
- CHM 101: Essentials of Inorganic Chemistry (4 Semester Credits)
- MTH 108: Elementary Statistics (3 Semester Credits)
- BIO 208L: Microbiology For Health Science With Lab (4 Semester Credits)
- BIO 251: Human Anatomy & Physiology I (4 Semester Credits)
- BIO 251L: Human Anatomy & Physiology I Lab (4 Semester Credits)
- BIO 252: Human Anatomy & Physiology II (4 Semester Credits)
- BIO 252L: Human Anatomy & Physiology II Lab (0 Semester Credits)
- BIO 271: Basic & Clinical Nutrition (3 Semester Credits)
Traditional BSN Nursing Courses
- NRS 313: Nursing Practice Fundamentals (4 Semester Credits)
- NRS 370: Introduction to Professional Nursing (1 Semester Credits)
- NRS 372: Nursing Concepts I (4 Semester Credits)
- NRS 374: Nursing Concepts II (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 376: Pathophysiology & Pharmacology Concepts I (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 410: Evidence-Based Nursing Practice (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 412: Nursing Ethics & Spirituality (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 414: Population Health (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 417: Perspectives In Global Healthcare (2 Semester Credits)
- NRS 421: Nursing Leadership: Fostering Quality & Safety In Organizations (4 Semester Credits)
- NRS 423: Introduction to Nursing Informatics (2 Credits)
- NRS 425: Health Promotion In Nursing (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 430: Clinical Concepts I (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 440: Clinical Concepts II (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 450: Transition to Nursing Practice (6 Semester Credits)
- NRS 474: Nursing Concepts III (3 Semester Credits)
- NRS 495: Senior Seminar (1 Semester Credits)
Additional Links & Resources
University of Providence Quick Links
- Tuition & Fees at the University of Providence
- How to Apply to the University of Providence
- University of Providence Mission & Catholic Identity
- School of Health Professions News & Announcements
- University of Providence Accreditation Information
Traditional BSN Quick Links
Careers with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Registered Nurses are the largest group of professionals within the healthcare system, holding over 3.1 million jobs in 2021. Due to staffing shortages spurred by increased retirements and the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for registered nurses Is high. It is projected that registered nursing jobs will grow at a rate of 6% between 2021 and 2031, adding 195,400 jobs in the same period, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Registered nurses work across the healthcare continuum – including hospitals, clinics, physician offices, long-term care facilities, and specialty care facilities. In addition to different locations, registered nurses with a BSN can work in various roles within nursing – including acute care, critical care, home health, geriatric care, and more.
Program Costs
The University of Providence is committed to affordability and providing pricing transparency for all School of Health Professions programs. Pricing transparency at UP includes:
- Accessible and up-to-date information on tuition costs, university fees, application and admission fees, deposit amounts, and additional program costs.
- Cost of attendance worksheets outlining specific tuition layouts by program and semester.
- Information about scholarship opportunities and tuition discounts for specific groups.
- Information about the financial aid process.
Visit our Tuition and Fees page to access the latest pricing information. Access the Traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing Estimated Cost Breakdown sheet to view pricing information for this degree program, including a cost breakdown by semester and associated program costs. Visit our Financial Aid page to learn more about the financial aid process.
Boost UP for Nurses Program
The Boost UP for Nurses Program is a partnership between Benefis Health System and the University of Providence. The program provides eligible students enrolling in our four-year Vander Werff Nursing Program up to $30,000 toward the completion of their BSN degree. Applicants accepted into the program will receive funds distributed over the last two years of the Vander Werff Program. Recipients of the program will receive employment opportunities as registered nurses following graduation.
Accreditation
The University of Providence’s Bachelor and Masters of Science in Nursing programs are fully accredited through regional and national accrediting boards.
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
The University of Providence is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. Information can be found on the NWCCU website, and Comments can be directed to the NWCCU staff at the following address:
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities
8060 165th Avenue NE, Suite 100
Redmond, WA 98052
(425) 558-4224
Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education
The baccalaureate degree programs (RN-BSN and ABSN) in nursing and master’s degree programs in nursing at the University of Providence are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20001, 202-887-6791
Montana Board of Nursing
The University of Providence is accredited by the Montana Board of Nursing. Information can be found on the Montana Nursing Board website, and Comments can be directed to the Montana Nursing Board staff at the following address:
Montana Board of Nursing
PO Box 200513
Helena, MT 59620-0513
(406) 841-2380
