Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Honours) Pathway for Practical Nursing

Chart your path forward with our accelerated nursing degree.
  • Enjoy a more personalized learning environment with our small classes
  • Benefit from supportive and experienced faculty who are active in their industry
  • Gain the latest and best industry-specific knowledge and skills to be career-ready upon graduation

Program Availability and Schedule

Availability

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Schedule

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Program Summary

Credential

Honours Degree (4 Years)

Program Delivery

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Program Code

6616A01FWO

Area of Interest

Health Sciences

School

School of Health Studies

Campus

Ottawa

Other Campuses

Eligible for Post-Graduation
Work Permit?

No

The four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Honours) (BScN) program, offered in an accelerated delivery format over three years and four months, prepares the next generation of nurses to offer high quality nursing care and assume leadership roles within the health care system. It provides a solid theoretical foundation to enable you to engage with clients in activities that promote health, prevent illness and injury and foster optimal recovery from or adaptation to illness or injury. By leveraging evidence-based teaching strategies, interprofessional education and innovative simulation technology, the program prepares graduates to meet the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) entry-to-practice competencies while addressing the growing demand for nurses across diverse healthcare settings.

Overview

Chart your path forward with our accelerated nursing degree.

The four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Honours) (BScN) program, offered in an accelerated delivery format over three years and four months, prepares the next generation of nurses to offer high quality nursing care and assume leadership roles within the health care system. It provides a solid theoretical foundation to enable you to engage with clients in activities that promote health, prevent illness and injury and foster optimal recovery from or adaptation to illness or injury. By leveraging evidence-based teaching strategies, interprofessional education and innovative simulation technology, the program prepares graduates to meet the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) entry-to-practice competencies while addressing the growing demand for nurses across diverse healthcare settings.

In this program, you form foundational to complex knowledge and experience in preparation for entry into the nursing profession. You learn in academic classrooms, applied nursing skills laboratories and simulation laboratories and you also engage with patients/clients/residents in a range of clinical settings from hospital and long-term care to home and community. The focus of care may be with individual patients/clients/residents and may include families, communities and partners; clients may also be a community or a population. The program integrates multiple ways of knowing, including Indigenous Knowledge systems, evidence-informed practice and intra/interprofessional collaboration. You strengthen your knowledge, skills and confidence related to cultural humility and the impact of person-centered care.

Graduates are eligible to write the National Council Licensure Examination - Registered Nurses (NCLEX) and CNO's Jurisprudence exam to become a Registered Nurse in Canada. As a graduate, you contribute to the development of nursing as an art and a science which can open doors to career opportunities in a variety of healthcare facilities and settings. Your practice may include advocacy, policy making and leadership in health care design and/or service delivery. This program promotes personal and professional growth, intellectual development and the chance to make a positive impact on the world.

BScN graduates are in high demand and may work in hospitals, community health agencies, long-term care facilities, private practice and a variety of other settings across Canada and around the world.

Courses

Programs at Algonquin College are delivered using a variety of instruction modes. Courses may be offered in the classroom or lab, entirely online, or in a hybrid mode which combines classroom sessions with virtual learning activities. Upon registration, each full-time student is provided an Algonquin email account which is used to communicate important information about program or course events.
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Careers & Pathways

Careers

Graduates may find employment as Registered Nurses in a variety of settings.

Graduates are eligible to write the National Council Licensure Examination - Registered Nurses (NCLEX) and College of Nurses of Ontario Jurisprudence exam, which are required to practice nursing in Ontario. A detailed list of requirements can be found at the College of Nursing of Ontario
www.cno.org/become-a-nurse/registration-guides/ontario/registration-requirements

Pathways

Please use our Pathways tool to search for pathway options.

Learning Outcomes

The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:

  1. Provide safe, competent, ethical, compassionate and evidence informed care across the lifespan in response to client needs and diverse populations.
  2. Uphold professional practice standards and code of ethics to maintain accountability to the public and the profession.
  3. Use a variety of strategies and relevant technologies to create and maintain professional relationships, share information and foster therapeutic environments.
  4. Engage in collaborative practices with intra and interprofessional healthcare teams to achieve shared goals and outcomes.
  5. Coordinate health service delivery in collaboration with clients and the interprofessional team, across a variety of health care sectors to ensure continuous, safe care.
  6. Provide leadership to drive positive change that promotes optimal health and wellness for clients, families, workplaces and communities.
  7. Advocate for health equity and social justice to improve health outcomes for the client, family and the local and global community.
  8. Apply a broad range of teaching and learning strategies to empower clients in achieving optimal health outcomes.
  9. Contribute to scholarship and life-long learning to promote personal and professional growth and excellence in practice.
  10. Identify and apply discipline-specific practices that contribute to the local and global community through social responsibility, economic commitment and environmental stewardship.

Tuition & Fees

Get an idea of how much each semester will cost with our Tuition and Fee Estimator.

2025/2026 Academic Year

Tuition and related ancillary fees for this program can be viewed by using the Tuition and Fees Estimator tool at www.algonquincollege.com/fee-estimator  

Further information on fees can be found by visiting the Registrar's Office website at www.algonquincollege.com/ro  

Fees are subject to change.

Additional program related expenses include:

  • books approximately $1000 per year
  • stethoscope, shoes, uniform approximately $600
  • lab supplies (years 2, 3 and 4) approximately $350 per year
  • Crisis Management and De-Escalation Training Techniques approximately $200
  • CPR - Health Care Provider certification approximately $100
  • annual Police Records Check approximately $100
  • PARAMED Placement Pass $65

Admissions Requirements

All applicants must satisfy both College Eligibility and Program Eligibility requirements.

Program Eligibility

  • Graduates fom the Practical Nursing Ontario College Diploma with a Grade Point Average of 3.0 are eligible to enter Year 2, Level 3 of this degree program.

Application Information

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN NURSING (HONOURS)
Program Code 6616A01FWO

Applications to full-time day programs must be submitted with official transcripts showing completion of the academic admission requirements through:

ontariocolleges.ca
60 Corporate Court
Guelph, Ontario
N1G 5J3
1-888-892-2228

Students currently enrolled in an Ontario secondary school should notify their Guidance Office prior to their online application at www.ontariocolleges.ca  

Applications for Fall Term and Winter Term admission received by February 1 will be given equal consideration. Applications received after February 1 will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis as long as places are available.

International applicants please visit this link for application process information: https://algonquincollege.my.site.com/myac360/s/  

For further information on the admissions process, please visit:
Admissions - Registrar's Office https://algonquincollege.com/ro/admissions/

Additional Information

Program Resources

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) RequirementsArchived Program Information Academic CalendarProgram Overview PDF

Algonquin College has been granted consent by the Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security to offer this applied degree for a seven-year term starting December 2, 2025. The College shall ensure that all students admitted to the above-named program during the period of consent have the opportunity to complete the program within a reasonable timeframe.

This full-time program is offered on the Ottawa and Pembroke Campuses.

Requisite Skills and Abilities for Nursing:

The program highly recommends all prospective students review the Fact Sheet Requisite Skills and Abilities for Nursing Practice in Ontario available at the College of Nurses of Ontario website at www.cno.org. The document describes reasonable skill and ability requirements for entry level practice in Ontario.

Documentation: Upon admission to the program, students are required to submit documentation of an entry immunization record, Level 3 Vulnerable Sector Check and Healthcare Provider CPR. In subsequent years, clinical requirements including N95 mask fit testing, TB test, seasonal influenza vaccine, repeat police record check and CPR re-certification must be verified. During the program, completion of additional requirements (mandated by the College, clinical agencies, external government regulations) may be necessary (e.g. WHMIS, OWHSA). Please note that some of these may require a cost to the student.

Clinical Placements: Clinical placements may occur during days, evenings, weekends or during college breaks. Clinical placements may be located outside the general geographical area, students are responsible for travel to clinical placements.

Vulnerable Sector Check: To meet the suitability to practice requirements of the College of Nurses of Ontario, an applicant must provide a clear original Level 3 Vulnerable Sector Check that has been completed in the last six months. If a student does not meet this requirement the application may be reviewed for further consideration, with no guarantee that it will be approved.

For more information on the requirements to become a practicing RN/RPN, go to the College of Nurses of Ontario website at
https://cno.org/become-a-nurse/become-a-nurse .


BScN PROGRAM STRUCTURE:

Year Fall Term Winter Term Summer Term
One Semester One Semester Two Break
Two Semester Three Semester Four Semester Five
Three Break Semester Six Semester Seven
Four Semester Eight

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