Bridgeport Hospital School of Nursing offers a two-year hospital-based nursing program. The curriculum, based on the School's philosophy, objectives and organizing framework is comprised of forty credits in nursing and thirty credits in biological, behavioral and social sciences. Sequential introduction of core knowledge courses supports the core constructs and core behaviors of the nursing program.

The curriculum is composed of two levels and follows an academic calendar with a five week course between the first and second year. The course of study is 69 weeks in length over a two year period with graduation in May of the second year.

The program of study is offered during the day; however, BHSN offers a partial evening program. For students in the partial evening program, classes and clinical experiences are held in the evening for Level I courses. Students in this program move to the day program for Level II courses beginning in May and throughout the remainder of the program.

The School also offers an accelerated program for qualifying students who wish to graduate one semester early. Applications for this program are accepted during the spring semester of the student's first year. A limited number of students are accepted after the first level courses are successfully completed based on academic standing. Students are required to have a GPA of 3.0 or above and have completed all pre-requisite and co-requisite courses up to and including Microbiology. Students in this program continue nursing courses through the summer and graduate in December rather than the following May. The Academic Calendar includes dates for the accelerated courses. Students who have previously failed or have been dismissed from BHSN will not be eligible for enrollment in accelerated summer courses.

Level I: Level I students begin to develop the ability to view individuals as holistic beings. Courses in Anatomy and Physiology, Introduction to Psychology and Child Psychology augment students' perception of the physiological and psychosocial integrity of individuals across the lifespan. English Composition, a prerequisite to Level I, improves students' written communication and helps them develop critical reasoning skills.

Nursing courses in Level I help students focus on the fundamentals of nursing care. Students use the nursing process to practice a variety of nursing roles, with an emphasis on the teacher, advocate and caregiver. Students care for clients exhibiting needs in health preservation or common threats to physiological or psychosocial integrity. As students progress through Level I, their focus extends to caring for the childbearing family and clients with medical-surgical problems.

Level II: Level II students study Microbiology as they increase their knowledge of individuals' response to the environment. The study of Sociology enhances students' knowledge about the psychosocial nature of humans. A course in Effective Speaking improves the student's ability to communicate in groups.

Nursing courses focus on care of clients with increasingly complex alterations in physiological and psychosocial integrity. Therapeutic communication skills are refined through the experience of interacting with clients with psychopathology. The Level II student develops the ability to manage client care by delegating to and collaborating with members of the health care team in a variety of settings. Level II concludes with clinical experiences in specialized areas of practice.