UAlbany and Albany Med Health System Launch Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program
By Erin Frick
ALBANY, N.Y. (Nov. 12, 2025) — The University at Albany will now offer a four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in partnership with Albany Med Health System (AMHS). This collaboration will enable students to take full advantage of learning in a Research-1 university setting, while enjoying access to cutting-edge facilities, clinical placements and expert faculty at a distinguished Level I trauma center.
Students will complete the program's classroom and lab components on UAlbany’s main Uptown Campus. Clinical rotations will be conducted at Albany Med Health System facilities throughout the Capital Region, where students will be mentored by active, practicing registered nurses (RNs).
The program will launch in Spring 2026, when it will become available to current UAlbany students. External applicants seeking to enroll for the Fall 2026 semester must apply by March 1, 2026.
“As we continue to face shortages of nurses, both in New York State and nationally, UAlbany's new Bachelor of Science in Nursing program will play a critical role in developing the pipeline of highly qualified nurses prepared to undertake careers in the Capital Region and beyond,” said UAlbany Provost Carol Kim.
“This program is a testament to our efforts to forge dynamic academic offerings through strong local partnerships. Working with the Albany Med Health System, our students will engage in rigorous clinical training that will ensure they are ready for jobs in a range of specialty areas. AMHS is the ideal collaborator to make this sort of program possible, offering top tier, hands-on opportunities for our students, while bolstering the local health care workforce.”
“This partnership embodies the Albany Med Health System’s and University at Albany’s shared commitment to our communities and to the betterment of health care for all,” said Dr. Jason Mouzakes, executive vice president and hospital general director at Albany Medical Center. “We are extraordinarily grateful for this opportunity to enhance our nursing pipeline while opening doors for people in our community who want to make a very tangible difference in the lives of others.”
In this program, students will learn alongside experienced nurses and interdisciplinary healthcare teams from the first semester — the earliest clinical exposure of any nursing program offered in New York State. The program is the first and only such option for students seeking to earn their BS in Nursing at a public institution in the Capital Region.
“We are thrilled to offer this new four-year nursing program in partnership with Albany Med Health System,” said Professor Erin Bell, dean of UAlbany’s College of Integrated Health Sciences. “This collaboration highlights the power of partnerships to serve the public good — advancing both the preparation of student nurses and the wellbeing of the Capital Region. We look forward to the success of this initiative and to building on its momentum through future partnerships that strengthen our students' education, our disciplines and the communities we serve.”
“As the region’s only level one trauma center and children’s hospital, and with more than 80 specialty services, the Albany Med Health System offers the most advanced care in our region and the most opportunities for nurses to grow their careers,” said Megan Keenan, RN, DNP, vice president and chief nursing officer at Albany Medical Center. “This partnership helps ensure that we will continue to provide high quality care for years to come.”
Bedside Training From Day One
Unique to this program is the opportunity for students to step directly into the world of patient care, starting in the first semester. Whereas other programs typically introduce clinical experiences in the second or third year of the program, this design enables students to begin practicing clinical and communication skills right away, learning at the bedside under the mentorship of professional nurses.
“We are excited to launch this innovative program that redefines how we prepare the next generation of nurses,” said Cassandra Marshall, director of nursing at UAlbany. “From the very first semester, our students will be immersed in real clinical environments, learning side-by-side with expert nurses across Albany Med Health System hospitals. This early and continuous clinical exposure will build confidence, critical thinking and professional identity from day one.
“Our curriculum is designed to gradually acclimate students to the clinical environment. Rather than approaching each course as an isolated experience, students will continually apply knowledge to evolving patient scenarios that connect across disciplines using simulation and virtual reality learning modalities. This approach will help them understand the full continuum of care and prepares them to begin to ‘think like nurses’ early in their education.”
Innovating Nursing Education
In addition to rigorous coursework, labs and clinical rotations, the program will offer a “Nursing BootKamp” orientation to help incoming students strengthen essential skills, meet professional development benchmarks and prepare for the nursing licensure exam (NCLEX). Required science courses, including anatomy and physiology, microbiology and chemistry, have all been specially designed with a nursing lens, emphasizing how science can inform best practice for delivering safe, evidence-based care.
State-of-the-art technologies for nursing education including high-fidelity simulation labs, virtual reality tools, and responsive “patient” mannequins will be used to replicate real clinical environments, providing a safe and realistic setting for students to practice essential nursing skills.
Throughout the four years of the program, students will have opportunities to explore specialty pipelines in a variety of clinical settings including critical care, community health, pediatrics, emergency nursing, and maternal-newborn and mental health. They will also be able to earn advanced certifications such as Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support.
Shaping Tomorrow’s Health Care Workforce
The program culminates in a professional capstone and preceptorship, ensuring graduates are fully prepared to succeed in the RN licensure exam and achieve competitive employment within Albany Med Health System and beyond.
“This program will produce highly competent, compassionate and practice-ready nurses who will make an immediate impact on patient care and the future of healthcare in our region,” said Marshall. “We’re not just educating nurses, we’re shaping the next generation of healthcare leaders.”
This new offering builds on UAlbany’s existing nursing degree programs which include the “1+2+1” Bachelor of Science in Nursing, the Bachelor of Science in Nursing completion program, and the Master of Science in Population Health Nursing. These programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. This designation indicates that the unit meets the highest national standards for quality in nursing education as defined by the U.S. Department of Education.