Nursing Schools in Southern California: Top Online and Campus Programs

Cal State Fullerton is one of several schools in the California State University system offering quality nursing degree and certificate programs at affordable public-school prices. Its School of Nursing hosts a range of undergraduate and graduate programs, starting with a Traditional BSN for direct-entry freshmen with little or no previous college education. The curriculum consists of general education and nursing coursework along with the clinical practice hours needed to qualify for the NCLEX-RN. Both four-year and five-year full-time tracks are available.

Current registered nurses interested in advancing their careers by earning their nursing bachelor’s degrees can do so through the RN to BSN program. The program features full-time and part-time tracks as well as both on-campus and online study options. Other BSN options at CSUF include a three-year Upper Division Transfer Pathway for students who’ve completed their lower-division requirements elsewhere and a two-year Accelerated BSN Pathway for students with non-nursing bachelor’s degrees. There’s also a two-year LVN to BSN Pathway for current vocational nurses seeking career advancement by becoming RNs.

Graduate-level programs at CSUF include MSNs in four specializations, a Post-Master’s DNP, and a DNP in Nurse Anesthesia.

The Patricia A. Chin School of Nursing on Cal State LA’s University Hills campus offers several undergraduate and graduate nursing credentials, including traditional and accelerated pre-licensure BSN options. The Traditional BSN accepts both transfer students and students in Cal State LA’s Pre-Nursing program who have completed substantial prerequisite coursework allowing them to earn their BSN with three years of full-time study. Admission is extremely competitive and based on GPA, TEAS exam scores, and employment or volunteer work in healthcare. Preference is given to students residing in the school’s local area.

The Accelerated BSN program is open to applicants with non-nursing bachelor’s degrees who have completed specific prerequisite courses. Students complete 53 credits of nursing didactic coursework and clinical practice hours over 15 months of full-time study.

Other undergraduate nursing programs at Cal State LA include a one-year, full-time RN to BSN and an AND to BSN Collaborative dual-enrollment program that provides seamless progression to students in ADN programs at any of 13 local community colleges. Graduate-level options include a DNP and MSNs and post-masters certificates in five specializations.

San Diego State University offers separate BSN curriculum options for incoming freshmen, transfer students, and students with non-nursing bachelor’s degrees. Students who have graduated from a nursing diploma or ADN program can earn their BSNs through the RN to BSN program.

All BSN students at SDSU must participate in an international residence of two weeks or more as part of the CHHS Undergraduate International Experience program. The program’s purpose is to create awareness of intercultural issues that include global health, economic, and social perspectives.

SDSU’s other undergraduate option, its LVN to RN 30-Unit Option program, qualifies graduates to sit for the NCLEX-RN but does not award an ADN or BSN. SDSU also offers MSNs in Advanced Practice Nursing of Adults and the Elderly and Nursing Leadership in Health Care Systems.

Azusa Pacific University is a private, Christian-affiliated university offering two BSN programs with online coursework. Students without RN licensure can earn both their ADN and BSN degrees through the ADN to BSN dual enrollment program. There are two tracks available with slightly different courses of study, one for students enrolled at APU and Pasadena City College and one for students enrolled at APU and any of several other affiliated community colleges. Along with the required coursework and clinical hours in their community college ADN programs, students complete 40 credits of APU coursework that is entirely online except for one clinical requirement. APU also offers an RN to BSN Completion program consisting of 40 credits of online nursing courses.

Online graduate programs at APU include an MSN in Nursing Education with fully-online and partially-online options. There’s also a fully-online MSN in Healthcare Administration with the option to take some classes at one of APU’s three Southern California campuses and an online DNP with periodic intensives on APU’s Monrovia location.

Cal State San Bernardino offers two hybrid online degrees for Inland Empire nursing students. The Post-Licensure RN to BSN program is for current registered nurses seeking career and academic advancement by earning their BSNs. The curriculum combines online and on-campus classes with two clinical rotations attended at local hospitals or other community healthcare facilities. The 49-credit curriculum is completed over three semesters. Admission requires proof of a current California-issued RN license before the second term of the program and completion of several science and non-science prerequisite courses.

CSUSB’s hybrid MSN program offers concentration options in Advanced/Community Public Health Nursing, Nurse Educator, and Population Health for Clinical Nurse leaders. The program is approximately 80% online and 20% face-to-face with in-person classes split between CSUSB’s San Bernardino and Palm Desert campuses. Full-time and part-time options are available.

Several online nursing programs are available from private, Catholic Mount Saint Mary’s University, including an RN to BSN featuring 100% online coursework. A hybrid format is also sometimes available. In addition to online classes, students complete in-person clinical components during their second and third semesters. Special dual-enrollment versions of the RN to BSN program are available to current ADN students at Citrus College in Glendora and Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut. Admission requires a current, unencumbered California RN license and completion of nine prerequisite courses. Program starts are available in the fall and spring.

Graduate-level online nursing programs at Mount Saint Mary’s include hybrid-formatted MSNs in three specializations and a Post-MSN Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist Certificate.