ASU nursing program named one of best in new U.S. News & World Report rankings

Arizona State University’s Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation ranked No. 36 among undergraduate nursing programs — ahead of Penn State, the UTHealth Houston and Florida State University — in the latest U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings.

This is a four-spot increase from No. 40 in 2025 and places the program in the top 6% of nursing programs nationwide and No. 27 in the U.S. among public universities. 

The ranking comes as Edson College continues to adapt its nursing programs to prepare students with both the clinical and technological skills necessary for an evolving health care landscape. 

Through flexible learning models and opportunities to work with emerging technology, the college is setting students up for success in positions across traditional, community and digital health.

“We are developing nurses who are ready to step into the workforce and deliver excellent care in any setting,” said Judith Karshmer, Edson College dean and professor. “That is on purpose. We’ve designed an educational experience that challenges students while building their confidence and preparing them for the realities of nursing today and for what’s to come.”     

This fall, 850 first-year students enrolled in Edson College, increasing enrollment within the college by 38% on the West Valley campus, 15% on the Polytechnic campus and 4% on the Downtown Phoenix campus. Since the fall of 2019, the college has more than doubled enrollment in the prelicensure Bachelor of Science in nursing program.

This growth is accompanied by an evolving approach to nursing education, which sets it apart.

Edson College’s teams model allows students to learn from one central location while gaining hands-on experience in different acute facilities and community settings. Students also learn patient care through simulations using high-fidelity manikins, virtual reality and artificial intelligence. This multifaceted approach helps students build the knowledge and confidence to care for diverse patients across Arizona, supporting broader efforts to improve equity in health care.

“Nursing education is one of those fields that is constantly changing,” said Professor Allegra Shepherd, director of Edson College’s traditional prelicensure nursing program. “We would be doing a disservice to our students, not introducing them to what they’re going to be seeing in practice.”

Edson College’s focus on comprehensive learning also extends to where students can earn their degrees. In January, the college welcomed the first cohort of students from the Parker, Payson and Tucson regions into Learn Where You Live. The 12-month accelerated program allows students across Arizona to earn their degrees and become registered nurses without moving to an ASU campus. 

The goal is to build a pipeline of nurses who can give back to their community and meet workforce needs in rural areas, said Victoria Scheer, program director and clinical assistant professor at Edson College. 

Learn Where You Live is expanding to a fourth location at Sage Memorial Hospital in Ganado, Arizona, on the Navajo Nation in spring 2027. This is the first ASU undergraduate clinical nursing program offered on tribal lands.

“With all the initiatives that happen in rural areas, the most significant piece is how well you work with the communities,” said Scheer. “The whole point is to support what they need.”

For Shepherd, all of these combined initiatives are preparing the next generation of nurses for what they will encounter at the bedside, clinic or community. And the faculty are dedicated to making that happen.

“Our faculty want to be proud of where they're working,” she said. “They want our students to be good nurses because they're going to be working side by side with them one day.”