Washington Nursing Schools and Programs

Washington was named after George Washington, the first President of the United States and is the only U.S. state to be named after a president. It is also known as the "Evergreen" state. Washington State is the great cultural melting pot of the Pacific Northwest. There is an eclectic mix of museums, performance halls, film festivals, and historic architecture. With two major mountain ranges, a stunning variety of parks, along with recreation areas; the outdoor activities to partake in are world renowned rock climbing, great ski resorts, hiking, Mt. biking, and deep woods camping. Washington has vast stretches of rural and often wild Pacific coastlines. There are also Native American totem-pole carving demonstrations that are interesting to experience.

Washington provides several opportunities for nursing degrees throughout the community colleges up to the university level. One noteworthy school with many specialties is the University of Washington-Seattle which provides three PhD programs and a MSN in over fifteen different specialties. Washington State does have a rising nursing shortage, however does not have enough room to educate all the nursing applicants and students. They have a plan to offer scholarships to current nurses in return for them to become nurse educators. This will reduce the waitlist for schools. Online schools have become one solution for earning your nursing degree in Washington and help eliminate some of the waitlist. After graduation, there are an abundance of job opportunities throughout the whole state. However, a factor to note is that more hospitals in Washington seek those registered nurses holding a BSN to fill their vacancies. Also Washington has shortages in some areas and hiring freezes in others. However, even with a hiring freeze there are ample job opportunities throughout the rest of the state.

Degree Programs:

Acute Care, Adult Care, Anatomy, Community Health, Family Care, Gerontology, Labor and Delivery, Licensed Practical/Vocational Nurse, Nurse Anesthesia, Pediatrics, Phlebotomy, Psychiatric/Mental Health, Registered Nurse, RN-BSN, Surgical

Largest Cities:

Auburn, Bellevue, Bellingham, Bremerton, Everett, Federal Way, Kent, Lakewood, Olympia, Redmond, Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma, Vancouver, Yakima

Additional Resources:

Washington Board of Nursing
http://www.doh.wa.gov/

Washington Nursing Association
http://www.wsna.org/

Washington Travel
http://www.experiencewa.com/

Washington Hospital Directory
http://washington.uscity.net/Hospital/

School Enrollment Type Accredited Online Program Degrees Find Scholarship
Bellevue Community College 13,700 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Clark College 8,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Columbia Basin College 5,670 Public Yes No Associate, LPN, LPN-to-RN find scholarships
Eastern Washington University 9,700 Public Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Everett Community College 7,140 Public Yes No Associate, LPN, LPN-to-RN find scholarships
Gonzaga University 6,100 Private Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN, MSN, RN-to-MSN, Nurse Educator, Nurse Anesthetist, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Grays Harbor College 2,160 Public Yes No Associate, LPN, LPN-to-RN find scholarships
Green River Community College 6,820 Public Yes No LPN find scholarships
Highline Community College 6,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Lower Columbia College 5,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Northwest College 0 Private Yes No Associate find scholarships
Olympic College 5,600 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Pacific Lutheran University 3,660 Private Yes No BS/BSN, LPN-to-BSN, RN-to-BSN, MSN, RN-to-MSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Peninsula College 4,600 Public No No Associate find scholarships
Renton Technical College - Division of Health Occupations 0 Public No No LPN find scholarships
Seattle Pacific University 2,700 Private Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Seattle University 3,700 Private Yes No BS/BSN, Accelerated BSN, MSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Shoreline Community College 7,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Skagit Valley College 6,600 Public Yes No Associate, LPN find scholarships
South Puget Sound Community College 5,500 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Spokane Community College 6,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Tacoma Community College 6,100 Public Yes No Associate, RN-to-BSN find scholarships
University of Washingon - Tacoma 0 Public Yes No RN-to-BSN find scholarships
University of Washington 26,000 Public Yes No BS/BSN, Certified Nurse Midwife, Nurse Practitioner, PhD (Doctoral) find scholarships
University of Washington - Bothell 0 Public Yes No RN-to-BSN find scholarships
Walla Walla College-School of Nursing 1,600 Private Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN find scholarships
Walla Walla Community College 6,200 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Washington State University 22,500 Public Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN, MSN, RN-to-MSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Wenatchee Valley College 3,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships
Whatcom Community College 0 Public No No Associate find scholarships
Whitworth College 2,000 Private Yes No BS/BSN, RN-to-BSN, Nurse Practitioner find scholarships
Yakima Valley College 4,000 Public Yes No Associate find scholarships