UC Irvine - Sue and Bill Gross School of Nursing

At the Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing, we are dedicated to preparing the next generation of nurses and nurse leaders. To us, that means providing a quality education built upon scholarly research and evidence-based practice, as well as an environment that nurtures the desire to continually drive improvement. We train our students to be compassionate, competent nurses by instilling in them the passion to care for the most vulnerable, by bringing planetary health and justice to the fore of our curriculum, and by educating them to be leaders in the next generation of the healthcare workforce. We are confident that our students will go forth and advance the science of nursing and truly champion access to quality healthcare for all.

As a nursing community, we are unified and guided by a deep sense of purpose to reduce human vulnerabilities. These are our intentions for the coming years.

• Lessening human vulnerability through social, racial, and environmental justice
• Making the invisible visible, shining a light on hidden, vulnerable populations
• Advancing the world’s health as human health through national and international participation
• Increasing our capacity by educating more nurse leaders and increasing the scope of funding sources

Our faculty, staff, students, alumni, partners, and friends are unified in our deep sense of purpose in seeking to reduce the vulnerability that is inherent in the human condition, but, because of structural racism and social and environmental injustices, is worse for some.

We can be confident that through nursing leadership, advocacy, education, collaboration, innovation, and research, our school has the power and determination to amplify the impact of nursing on health – especially for those who experience inequities.

Our Mission

At the UCI Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing, we dedicate ourselves to the education of nursing professionals who will improve patient care and promote population health, locally and globally. We strive to produce leaders in research, education, and clinical practice who will champion collaborative, compassionate, and interdisciplinary evidence-based practice.

A Vision with Humanity in Mind

Our vision is to transform the nursing profession by preparing pioneers in research, education, and practice to build innovative, interprofessional models of compassionate community-based healthcare.

• In 2024, the UC Irvine Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing’s undergraduate bachelor’s in nursing science program advanced from #52 to #26 in the U.S. News and World Report’s national rankings.
• In the U.S. News & World Report’s 2026 national rankings, the UC Irvine Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing’s undergraduate bachelor’s in nursing science program ranked #28.
• US News and World Report Ranks UC Irvine Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing’s Bachelor’s Program in the top 4% in the Nation and the #3 Bachelor’s in Nursing Program in Californi

Nurses fill an indispensable role in society. Yet the U.S. healthcare system faces a critical shortage of skilled nurses to fill the need.

The UC Irvine Sue and Bill Gross School is committed to training more nurse leaders who are grounded in research and equipped to drive innovation and lasting improvements in healthcare. We provide a comprehensive nursing science education anchored by our strategic pillars: lessening human vulnerability, making the invisible visible, advancing the world’s health as human health, and increasing our capacity. These values ensure that our graduates are trained to provide care with compassion and competence and that they are well-rounded and ready to fill the need and serve society’s most vulnerable populations.

With our tripartite focus on research, education, and clinical practice, UC Irvine’s Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing is powerfully positioned to supply more nurse-leaders, drive breakthroughs, and advocate for person-centered care. Nurses are already the nation’s most trusted professionals. We’ll prepare nurses who deliver on that trust — and elevate it further.

UCI nurses are trained not just for frontline nursing — direct patient care — but also for research and leadership.

• Every BS student takes a research and a nursing leadership course.
• Every MS student proposes a research project designed to improve patient outcomes.
• Every DNP student designs, implements, and evaluates a project designed to improve outcomes.
• Summer nursing camps for pre-college students generate excitement about nursing careers — and about studying nursing at UC Irvine.

As the research-intensive nursing school within a research-intensive university, we advance both knowledge and clinical innovation.

• UC Irvine nurses benefit from — and advance — exceptional research expertise.
• As part of UC Irvine’s College of Health Sciences. The school leans into cross-disciplinary, collaborative education.
• Our PhD program drives breakthroughs in nursing research and clinical practice—and trains the next generation of nurse-researchers.

As part of the UCI Health System — Orange County’s only academic health system — it creates extraordinary clinical training opportunities for students.

• UC Irvine Health is Orange County’s only academic health system, so clinical training familiarizes our students with complex cases.
• With five hospitals (soon to be six) and 1,500+ beds, UCI Health serves a remarkable diversity of patients, including some of our community’s most vulnerable.
• These clinical experiences make our graduates ready to hit the ground running.
• Their clinical training quality fast-tracks our graduates’ careers.

Located in Beautiful Southern California

UC Irvine is located in the heart of beautiful Orange County, nestled between Los Angeles and San Diego counties and just five miles from SoCal’s sunny shores. A cornerstone of Irvine, one of the safest cities in the U.S.and home to Southern California’s burgeoning tech coast, UC Irvine is the perfect place to study, work, live, and play. Our close proximity to shopping, amusement parks, premier arts and cultural centers, and industry leaders makes UC Irvine a destination unlike any other. Discover how Irvine combines the best of a college town community with the vibrant opportunities of a bustling city.