Practical Nursing Program (PN) (S121)

Program Description

Leadership Claims

Preparing graduates to work as registered practical nurses for over 30 years.

Program Overview

The Practical Nursing program teaches students the foundational skills required to work as a registered practical nurse in Ontario. Following successful completion of this program, graduates will be eligible to write the Registered Practical Nurse (RPN) Registration Examinations—two qualifying examinations required by the Ontario College of Nurses.

Full Description

If you apply to the May 2024/25 intake for this program, you will start in May 2025. To begin your studies in May 2024, apply to the 2023/24 academic year.

The Practical Nursing (S121) program teaches students the knowledge and skills required to enter the profession of practical nursing. This two-year diploma program has been designed to meet the new entry-to-practice requirements adopted by the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) and program standards set by the Ministry of Colleges and Universities.

Classes and labs are held at the Daphne Cockwell Centre for Health Sciences located at our Waterfront Campus and are scheduled between 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday to Friday. Clinical placement experiences are conducted under direct faculty supervision within varied patient care settings across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Students may participate in placements requiring extended shifts that include evening and weekend hours.

The Practical Nursing program at George Brown College is approved by the College of Nurses of Ontario (www.cno.org). Graduates who meet the CNO requirements after passing the qualifying examinations are eligible to apply for registration as a Registered Practical Nurse (RPN) in Ontario.

What you'll study in George Brown's Practical Nursing program:

  • nursing
  • health assessment
  • human anatomy
  • physiology
  • pharmacology
  • pathology
  • the humanities

PLEASE NOTE: Public Health continues to recommend that people working with vulnerable communities be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Clinical agency partners continue to require students to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to be approved to complete clinical placements within their facilities. Agencies have the right to decline the placement of students who are not fully vaccinated, and students who are not vaccinated are at risk of not being able to complete their clinical placement course requirements. 

Hands-On Learning

The role of a practical nurse often means providing hands-on care to patients. To properly prepare you, you'll learn and practise your skills at our accredited Simulation Centre. This on-site facility spans nearly 24,000 square feet and has been thoughtfully designed to look and feel like the hospitals and other health-care environments where you could end up working.

You'll also get off-site clinical experience with one of our valued partners.

For more information on the required skills and abilities for the practical nursing profession, please review the fact sheet of Requisite Skills and Abilities on the College of Nurses of Ontario website: College of Nurses of Ontario – Requisite Skills and Abilities Fact Sheet.

George Brown College Practical Nursing program graduates who wrote the regulatory exam have scored near or above the provincial average for the past four years**.

Placement test: Based upon mandatory placement testing, some students may be required to enroll in courses aimed at enhancing profession-based written and verbal English language skills.

*College of Nurses of Ontario – Approved (Category 1)​

**College of Nurses of Ontario, Nursing Registration Exams Report 2023 (cno.org)

Your Field Education Options

Hands-On Learning in George Brown's Practical Nursing Program

The role of a registered practical nurse can vary, but it often means providing direct hands-on care to patients. To properly prepare you, you'll practise your skills at our on-site nearly 24,000 square foot Simulation Centre—a facility designed to look and feel like the hospitals and other environments where you could end up working.

You'll also get off-site clinical experience with one of our valued partners.

Clinical placement experiences are conducted under direct faculty supervision within varied patient care settings across the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Students may participate in placements requiring extended shifts, including evening and weekend hours.

Typical settings include:

  • acute care hospitals
  • rehabilitation centres
  • long-term care facilities

The clinical practicum experience in the final semester of the program is completed with a preceptor, whereby the student works with their preceptor across all shifts and days of the week.

Career & Postgraduate Study Opportunities

Career Options

Graduates of the Practical Nursing program have employment opportunities in practice settings such as:

  • acute and community care hospitals
  • long-term care
  • rehabilitation
  • other health-care facilities
  • organizations and agencies that require nursing knowledge and expertise

Educational Pathways

Students who successfully complete the George Brown Practical Nursing (PN) program or a two-year community college PN program in Ontario with a minimum cumulative average of 75 per cent and not less than 70 per cent in any element of the PN program, may be eligible to study the R.P.N. Bridge to B.Sc.N. Pathway (S442).

Upon successful completion of this bridge, students will be eligible to apply to Trent University's Nursing degree program offered on-site at George Brown College.

Graduates of a health sciences program who have an interest in working in long-term care facilities should consider applying to our Interprofessional Complex and Long-Term Care (S417) postgraduate certificate.

(S417) Program Details:

  • two-semester program
  • you will learn to co-ordinate and manage an interprofessional health-care team of complex and long-term care professionals
  • delivered online and on-demand to accommodate working professionals
  • includes a clinical field placement component

Alumni Impact

We are immensely proud of the contributions of our alumni in Toronto and around the globe.

From Michelin-starred restaurants to major construction, entertainment, community and financial organizations, our graduates are truly making an impact across a range of industries.

Latest Alumni Stories

Nursing alumnus Rehan Ahmed

The Simulation Centre at George Brown College really helped with those real-life experiences. The scenarios played out are very realistic, and they help to get you to do some critical thinking. I found that very helpful.” 

-Learn more about Rehan's success after graduation.

Rehan Ahmed
Ontario College Diploma

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