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Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)

John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio offers a four-year Bachelor’s in Nursing (BSN). You will graduate with well-rounded core knowledge and critical thinking skills, along with state of the art clinical training across the region’s three major healthcare systems. 

Mission

Innovate. Inspire. Transform.

Our patient-centered education prepares compassionate nurses who drive positive change. Guided by Jesuit values of excellence, professionalism, and service, we advance the field and improve healthcare systems and communities.

Vision

Our vision is to inspire and empower the next generation of nursing leaders who will transform healthcare through innovation, compassion, service, and excellence. We strive to produce highly skilled and resilient nurses who improve patient outcomes and advance the field through visionary leadership and patient-centered care.

Melissa Cole
Inspiring Ohio’s Nursing Future
Learn More

What Makes John Carroll Nurses Different

  • Future Focused: Our aim is to create the nurse of tomorrow with curricula centered around future healthcare settings; new facilities with advanced technology, informatics, and practices; and programs built with DEIB in mind through faculty hiring and an equitable healthcare mission.
  • Inspires Resiliency: Our future nurses will be trained in self-care practices to avoid burnout, remain healthy, and manage their stress effectively so that they can not only take care of themselves in a stressful environment, but also relate to and help their patients too.
  • Transforming Healthcare: The pandemic revealed disparities in the healthcare system, so our future nurses will receive critical thinking, professional development, innovation, entrepreneurial and early experiential learning to rise into positions where they can make a positive difference in the industry.

Three Learning Paths to Become a Nurse

You will grow into your skills and confidence as a nurse with the help of seasoned faculty and alongside peers. The journey follows three learning paths: lectures, labs and clinical experiences.

  • Nursing Lecture
    You'll claim your foundational critical thinking and nursing practice knowledge in lectures. You’ll then learn how to translate new nursing knowledge into practice to improve patient health.
  • Nursing Lab
    John Carroll has made a significant investment in the building of low and high fidelity nursing simulation labs on campus. In these spaces, you will learn to practice basic and vital skills that coincide with your classroom lectures and clinical experiences. 
  • Nursing Clinical
    Our program is partnered with major regional hospitals such as Cleveland Clinic, Metro Health, and University Hospitals to bring you hands-on instruction and experiences in Acute and Chronic Care Management, Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies, Obstetrics, Immediate Newborn Care, Pediatrics, and more. The clinical curriculum offers a mix of hands-on instruction and simulated experiences focusing on a wide range of healthcare subjects.
Nursing
Nursing
Nursing

$75,643

Average annual pay for a BSN Nurse in Ohio (Source: Zip Recruiter, September, 2022).

4,500

Open positions in healthcare, with the nursing shortage particularly
Acute, as reported by regional hospitals in Northeast Ohio.

85%

of Hospitals looking to hire new nurses with a BSN.

Why John Carroll University for Your BSN?

Cleveland enjoys a global reputation for clinical excellence, game changing research and successful patient outcomes. You will gain unmatched clinical experience across the region’s three major healthcare systems (Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals, and MetroHealth). 

Fact: Cleveland ranks third among US Cities for patient satisfaction (Source: Medbelle’s Best Hospital Cities Rankings)

As a BSN student, you will benefit from core, integrative and experiential learning. JCU’s liberal arts foundation will give you a firm grasp of bioethics and decision-making in a fast-changing clinical world. Beyond your first placement, the BSN shapes your ongoing professional and lifelong nursing practice. Early exposure to bioethics, and data-driven clinical decision-making practices will shape your habits and thinking as future-minded clinicians.


Fact: More than 500 JCU alumni from 32 academic areas help to advance medical research, practice and care at the world-renowned Cleveland Clinic.

Your BSN degree from John Carroll will give you a number of distinctions and advantages including higher pay, improved job security and premium placements in the nation’s best hospitals. The BSN allows you to specialize in areas like pediatrics, geriatric care, oncology, hospice nursing, and other higher-paid bachelor of science in nursing careers.


Fact: The Institute of Medicine has set a goal of increasing the ratio of nurses earning their Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) to 80% percent.

With a BSN degree from John Carroll, you can pursue careers at American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet-designated hospitals, the gold standard for nursing practice. Magnet hospitals look to hire BSN nurses trained to not only take the lead on patient care but to drive institutional health care change and innovation.


Fact: The percentage of nurses holding the BSN at America’s Magnet-designated hospitals stands at 59% compared to 34% of nurses holding the BSN at other hospitals. (Source: American Nurses Credentialing Center.)

Studies find higher resilience and job satisfaction among BSN credentialed nurses, especially those trained at faith-based colleges and universities. As a Jesuit institution, John Carroll will support your total well being: academic, emotional, and social. From that solid beginning, you will be empowered to address larger challenges, such as discrepancies in health outcomes across patient segments and help ensure better health for all. 


Fact: All John Carroll nursing students will be invited to lift up human dignity through service-based learning experiences close to campus, and through such opportunities as our annual Honduras medical immersion trip.

As a Jesuit-inspired, liberal arts university, John Carroll welcomes students of all faiths and emphasizes personal formation (academic, emotional, spiritual) based on critical inquiry and character building.

Our whole-person approach equips JCU nursing graduates with qualities and inner resources that carry you far beyond vocational training. We inspire you to have an outsized impact at the bedside — improving patient outcomes/safety. We prepare you for leadership roles in hospital management, clinical innovation and health policy.

John Carroll University Bachelor’s in Nursing (BSN) has received approvals from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) and the Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE). Provision approval/accreditation from the Ohio Board of Nursing begins a formal process to full accreditation. Accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) will follow upon graduation of our first cohort. 

The Nader Family Foundation Nursing Simulation Center is available for room and equipment rentals. More details about rates can be found here.

Woman with john carroll nursing logo patch on blue blazer with yellow pants.

Melissa Cole

Melissa D. Cole, DNP, RN, ANP-BC, CENP is currently the Dean of the College of Health at John Carroll University (JCU). She is also Associate Faculty at JCU and will oversee the recently announced Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program and the expansion of John Carroll’s academic healthcare portfolio.

Prior to coming to JCU, Dr. Cole served in a variety of leadership capacities at University Hospitals Health System (UHHS). Dr. Cole has been a registered nurse for 20 years and has practiced as an Adult Nurse Practitioner in Emergency Medicine since 2012.

She earned a BSN (Ursuline College, 2003), an MSN (University of Tampa, 2012), and a DNP (Case Western Reserve University, 2022) and is a certified adult nurse practitioner and certified in executive nursing practice. 

Dr. Cole is passionate about the community she serves and is committed to breaking down barriers for women in leadership roles and the stigmas that exist for the mental health and addiction population. She is currently on the board of directors at New Directions and Crossroads Health, which serves as the local mental health and drug rehabilitation centers throughout Northeast Ohio. Dr. Cole is a role model for others and enhances the patient services in her communities she serves.

BSN

Shanna Botos

Our first faculty hire for our Bachelor of Science Nursing program, Dr. Botos has been a nurse for 21 years. She joins us from Cleveland Clinic where for the last 7 years she has been practicing as an acute care pediatric nurse practitioner in pediatric hospitalist medicine. Some of her leadership roles include serving as chair of the Cleveland Clinic Enterprise APRN Council and as a fellow for the Johnson & Johnson Nursing Leadership program at Duke University. Dr. Botos received her Doctor in Nursing Practice from The Ohio State University in 2020. She is passionate about advocating for the profession of nursing and pioneering programs that improve the work environment of nurses and patients. Prior to coming to John Carroll University, Dr. Botos was part-time faculty at Case Western Reserve University, Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing where she improved the Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Program, increasing the pass rate for the national certification exam to >80% per year. Please help us in welcoming Dr. Shanna Botos ‘00 back to John Carroll University.

Shanna was just named the Medical Mutual Assistant Professor at JCU, read more about Medical Mutual's investment in JCU here.

Lisa Sugar

Lisa Sugar

Lisa recently joined the Department of Nursing in a pivotal role where she will be responsible for overseeing clinical placements, assisting with program accreditation, and providing other administrative and operational support to the department. She comes to the department with over a decade of experience in higher education.

Lisa began her academic journey at Michigan State University followed by Kent State University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Education.  She went on to pursue a Master’s degree in Education, specializing in reading, and became a literacy specialist.  Lisa channeled her passion for education by teaching in Perry Local Schools before transitioning into high education.

In 2009, Lisa joined John Carroll University as the Field Placement Coordinator where she managed student placements and worked to build a robust network of clinical affiliations.  With her strong work ethic and tenure as a Field Placement Coordinator, Lisa was promoted to Coordinator of Student Records and Field Placements in 2019.

Lisa has joined the Department of Nursing with experience and knowledge of the education landscape.  Her knowledge and passion for education make her a valuable asset to the department. 

Alumni Across The Region Map

Nursing Program Alumni Across the Region

John Carroll University alumni live, work, teach and support communities throughout the region from Northeast Ohio to Chicago, Indianapolis, Detroit, Columbus, Buffalo, Rochester, Pittsburgh, New York City, Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

The (baccalaureate degree program in nursing/master's degree program in nursing/Doctor of Nursing Practice program and/or post-graduate APRN certificate program) at John Carroll University is pursuing initial accreditation by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org). Applying for accreditation does not guarantee that accreditation will be granted.