The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program at Cizik School of Nursing at UTHealth Houston topped all other undergraduate nursing programs in Texas in the 2024 U.S. News Best Colleges publication. Nationally, our BSN program tied for 16th place in the U.S. News & World Report ranking of more than 650 nursing schools. The program’s position rose from 22nd last year.

“We are delighted that our undergraduate program has received national acclaim for excellence in educating the next generation of nurses,” said Dean Diane Santa Maria, DrPH, MSN, PHNA-BC, ACRN, FAAN. “Our clinical partners recognize the value of a BSN degree from Cizik School of Nursing. So do our students, who benefit from rigorous academics and unmatched clinicals alongside low cost and plentiful scholarship opportunities that make a high-quality nursing education attainable.”

“Part of what makes Cizik School of Nursing a top-20 school nationally is our continuous innovation to meet the needs of the nursing workforce and health care employers,” said Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies Erica Yu, PhD, RN. “For example, we are incorporating use of the Epic educational system throughout our curriculum so that students graduate ready to work with electronic health records. We also recently created an elective in rehabilitation nursing and are piloting a program with local high schools to give students from underserved areas a head start on careers in health care.”

U.S. News & World Report’s BSN programs rankings for 2024 are based on surveys of top leaders at schools and departments of nursing. All ranked schools have bachelor’s-level accreditation from either the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.

Two pathways to a BSN

New to nursing

The accelerated Pacesetter BSN track is an entry-to-practice option for students who want to become nurses. It is designed for students who have completed their first two years of prerequisite work at other accredited institutions, and for second-career students with academic degrees in other fields. During the 15-month program, students complete clinicals, skills labs, and nursing theory courses, and spend their final 16 weeks doing immersive clinical rotations. Students get to know faculty face to face in this full-time, four-semester program in which most work is in person with some online didactic content.

Advancing education

The flexible RN-BSN track is designed for working registered nurses who have earned an associate’s degree or diploma in nursing. Cizik School of Nursing’s flexible program enables RNs to complete their BSN in two, three, or five semesters. Lectures are entirely online with in-person clinical hours in community health nursing.