Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing

About Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing

The college traces its direct institutional history to the Richmond Memorial Hospital School of Nursing, opened in 1961 to prepare nurses for Richmond Memorial Hospital. After the successor Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center opened, the school adopted the Bon Secours name. It launched a four-year BSN in 2010 and became Bon Secours Memorial College of Nursing. The college is owned, operated, and controlled by Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center and works within the Catholic, nonprofit Bon Secours health-care tradition. This is a single-purpose institution devoted to nursing rather than a conventional university with multiple schools and majors. Its active 2026–27 academic materials cover undergraduate BSN pathways and the Direct Entry MSN. The main campus provides classroom, nursing-skills, and simulation instruction, while clinical education takes place at Bon Secours Virginia Health System hospitals and other health-care, community, and school settings. The RN-to-BSN is delivered online; the traditional BSN includes online electives and offerings, and the Direct Entry MSN uses a hybrid format. Institutional oversight is clearly documented. The college is institutionally accredited by the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools, certified to operate in Virginia by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, and approved by the Virginia Board of Nursing. Its baccalaureate nursing program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. Applicants should nevertheless verify the status and state-specific implications of professional licensure before enrolling, especially if they intend to work outside Virginia.

Applicants first choose among three distinct routes. Those without an RN license or prior bachelor’s degree generally apply to the pre-licensure BSN. Current registered nurses apply to the online RN-to-BSN. Applicants who have completed a non-nursing bachelor’s degree and do not hold a nursing license may apply to the Direct Entry MSN. The college describes admission as competitive and does not guarantee acceptance merely because an applicant meets minimum requirements. The BSN and RN-to-BSN admit students for fall and spring starts, while the Direct Entry MSN lists five entry cycles. The current Direct Entry MSN checklist requires a completed non-nursing bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, at least a 2.5 cumulative bachelor’s GPA, official transcripts from every school attended, and grades of C or better in specified prerequisites including anatomy and physiology, college mathematics, developmental psychology, and microbiology. It also carries a nonrefundable application fee. Published Direct Entry MSN deadlines vary by intended starting month, so applicants should consult the live program page for their cycle. Foreign academic records require a credential evaluation. The college states that applicants who were not U.S. citizens by birth must submit immigration or citizenship documentation and that it does not participate in SEVIS. This is a material limitation for prospective students who would need an F-1 student visa. Admission is followed by clinical-compliance onboarding, and failure to complete required screenings, certifications, background checks, or related documentation can prevent clinical participation or cause an offer to be withdrawn.

Academic options are deliberately narrow. The pre-licensure BSN is intended for students preparing for initial registered-nurse licensure. Nursing lectures begin alongside general education in the first year, and students progress through classroom, skills-laboratory, simulation, and clinical learning. General education coursework may be completed at the college, nearby Reynolds Community College, or another accredited institution, subject to the college’s transfer-credit rules. Licensed registered nurses can pursue the post-licensure RN-to-BSN entirely online. The published sample plan for students starting in fall 2026 combines advanced nursing courses with any remaining upper-level general education requirements and awards prior-learning credit after successful progression. This format may suit working nurses, but prospective students should compare their prior credits against the formal degree audit rather than assuming the sample plan will apply unchanged. The Direct Entry MSN is for applicants with a completed non-nursing bachelor’s degree who do not already hold a nursing license. It is a full-time, 24-month hybrid program leading toward eligibility for RN licensure at the master’s level. Its admissions page indicates that students are normally engaged in class, clinical work, or laboratories two to three weekdays per week. The curriculum therefore requires substantial daytime availability despite its online components. Clinical learning occurs in Bon Secours hospitals and additional community settings, while the campus simulation facilities support practice before patient care. Because nursing licensure is regulated by states, students considering online study or eventual practice outside Virginia should review the college’s professional-licensure disclosures for their intended jurisdiction.

Key Highlights

• Single-purpose college focused exclusively on nursing education
• Direct institutional history dates to a hospital nursing school opened in 1961
• Institutionally accredited by ABHES and certified to operate by SCHEV
• 2026–27 academic materials show active BSN, RN-to-BSN, and Direct Entry MSN pathways

Student Life & Environment

Student experience centers on professional preparation, clinical compliance, service, and relationships within a small specialist college. The Office of Student and Alumni Affairs coordinates student organizations, campus events, college-wide service, alumni connections, and student engagement. These opportunities are relevant to nursing students, although the range of clubs and activities is necessarily different from that of a large residential university. The Center for Student Success provides academic advising and support to traditional BSN and online RN-to-BSN students. Published services include academic-recovery guidance, study and time-management strategies, referrals to helpful resources, career advising, and access-and-accommodation support. A dedicated career counselor works alongside student-success advisers. The college also offers a confidential StudentLife assistance program with short-term counseling, coaching, and financial, legal, and work-life referrals. The institution does not provide on-campus health services or college housing. It lists outside housing resources for the Richmond area but does not endorse a particular provider. Students are advised to budget independently for accommodation, commuting, health care, uniforms, equipment, and clinical-compliance expenses. Newly admitted clinical students must complete requirements such as health screening, certifications, background checks, and drug testing, with some items requiring periodic renewal.

Location & Surroundings

The main campus is at 8550 Magellan Parkway in Richmond, with additional instructional space at 8570 Magellan Parkway. The setting is oriented toward classrooms, nursing laboratories, simulation, and professional training rather than a traditional residential campus. Entry is controlled by coded badges, and the college publishes building, parking, and security information for enrolled students. Students should distinguish the campus from their clinical sites. Didactic nursing classes and skills laboratories are held at the Magellan facilities, but practicums can require travel to Bon Secours hospitals, community health agencies, schools, and other health-care settings. A realistic plan should therefore account for transportation and potentially varying clinical schedules rather than assuming all instruction occurs at one address. Because the college provides no residence halls, students arrange housing in the Richmond area independently. This structure may work well for local commuters, employed registered nurses in the online completion program, or students who already have regional housing. Those relocating should compare rent, commute time, parking, and access to assigned clinical locations before committing.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For 2026–27, undergraduate tuition is listed at $525 per credit plus a $100-per-credit fee for both BSN pathways. The college’s full-year pre-licensure BSN budget assumes 30 credits and includes $15,750 in tuition and $3,000 in fees. Its published total cost-of-attendance estimate is $45,700 after allowances for books and equipment, living costs, personal expenses, transportation, loan fees, and professional credentialing. This is a budgeting figure, not the amount necessarily billed directly by the college. For the Direct Entry MSN, 2026–27 tuition is $670 per credit plus a $100-per-credit fee. The two-semester budget based on 24 credits lists $16,080 in tuition, $2,400 in fees, and a total estimated cost of attendance of $45,430. The RN-to-BSN full-year estimate, based on 12 credits, is $34,000 including indirect living and personal expenses. Actual totals depend on enrollment, transferred coursework, and personal circumstances. Applicants should use the financial-aid office’s individualized estimate rather than the older tuition figure stored in this database record. Career preparation is embedded in the nursing focus. The Center for Student Success includes career advising, and clinical education exposes students to hospitals and community care settings. The college reports a 90% job-placement rate for its 2024–25 graduates and a 90.43% 2025 NCLEX-RN pass rate. These are dated institutional outcomes, not guarantees of licensure or employment; students should evaluate them alongside current Virginia Board of Nursing data and their intended state’s licensing requirements.