The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and Duke University in Durham, N.C., tied for the top spot in U.S. News and World Report's Best Bachelor of Science in Nursing programs rankings.
The rankings, released Sept. 18, are based on the average of scores received from surveys of top academics and officials at nursing schools or departments.
The surveys were administered in the spring and summer of 2023, and officials rated undergraduate BSN programs at schools they were familiar with on a scale of 1 to 5, U.S. News said.
To be considered in the rankings, schools must have bachelor's-level accreditation by either the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. Additionally, the regionally accredited institutions must have recently awarded at least 40 BSN degrees. Rankings data from another source, such as the National Center for Education Statistics, are used for schools that declined to fill out the U.S. News main statistical survey in 2023.
The BSN programs rankings are part of U.S. News' 2024 Best Colleges rankings, which examine 1,500 colleges and universities using up to 19 measures of academic quality. U.S. News said this year's rankings include an increased emphasis on social mobility and outcomes for graduating college students. More information about the Best Colleges methodology is available here.
The 22 best BSN programs for 2023-24, per U.S. News:
Note: The list includes ties.
1. Duke University (Durham, N.C.)
1. University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)
3. Emory University (Atlanta)
4. The Ohio State University (Columbus)
4. University of Iowa (Iowa City)
4. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
7. University of Alabama at Birmingham
7. University of Michigan (Ann Arbor)
7. University of Washington (Seattle)
10. Boston College (Chestnut Hill, Mass.)
10. Case Western Reserve University (Cleveland)
10. New York University (New York City)
10. Oregon Health and Science University (Portland)
10. University of Maryland, Baltimore
10. University of Pittsburgh
16. University of California, Los Angeles
16. University of Illinois-Chicago
16. University of Kentucky (Lexington)
16. University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (Minneapolis)
16. The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
16. University of Virginia (Charlottesville)
16. University of Wisconsin-Madison