Bow Valley College Practical Nurse Diploma for international students

CALGARY · DIPLOMA

Practical Nurse
Bow Valley College

Plan for five terms of nursing study and clinical placements. The main pathway has scheduled classes and assessments at the Calgary campus. The regional blended pathway still requires in-person labs and assessments, while placements can take you beyond Calgary. Tuition is only part of the budget for attending this program.

Plan the tuition ↓
Bow Valley College buildings seen from Calgary Central Library
Uzoma Ozurumba · CC BY-SA 4.0
CredentialDiploma
Published duration5 Terms
Program credits88
International tuition estimate$34,0572026-27 rates · Additional fees apply
BEFORE YOU CHOOSE

Allow for placement travel

Placements may be anywhere in Alberta, and students arrange their own travel and accommodation. Placement sites set the shifts, which can include evenings, nights and weekends. The college also requires clinical documentation, including a police check with a vulnerable-sector search and an immunization assessment. Review the full placement checklist before making work or housing commitments. The blended pathway gives priority to residents outside Calgary who live within the college’s service region. It still has in-person labs and assessments in Calgary; the delivery format does not establish an international applicant’s eligibility.

YOUR STUDY BUDGET

Plan the tuition by term

Published 2026-27 estimates are a planning reference. They are not a price guarantee for a later intake.

International tuition

Study period Estimated tuition
Term 1 $7,639
Term 2 $7,360
Term 3 $7,997
Term 4 $6,578
Term 5 $4,483
Total of displayed terms $34,057

The table uses the college’s whole-dollar term estimates. Mandatory fees are additional. This planner also leaves books, equipment and other personal costs for you to budget separately.

Check the college's fee schedule ↗

Make a tuition plan

Selected tuition
$7,639
Application payment
$150
Your living estimate
$0
Planning subtotal
$7,789

This subtotal includes only the selected tuition, one application and your entered living estimate. It excludes mandatory fees and other unentered costs. Enter living costs in the same dollars as the college's tuition.

When applying$150

One international career-program application

After accepting an offer$1,500

Confirmation payment credited toward first-term tuition and fees

How the subtotal works

The credited confirmation payment is part of tuition and fees, so it is not added to tuition a second time.

Read the application payment guide ↗
RECORDED LABELS

International intake status

These are labels displayed by the college's source when observed, rather than a guarantee of places. Confirm availability on the official program page before applying.

Intake International label
Winter 2027 Closed
Spring 2027 Waitlist
Fall 2027 Waitlist
Recheck the official intake table ↗
ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS

Check all three academic subjects

English, math and biology are required. The alternatives within each subject do not remove either of the other subjects.

  1. English

    At least 60% in English 30-1 or 70% in English 30-2, or equivalent.

  2. Math

    Credit in Math 20-1 or at least 60% in Math 20-2, or equivalent.

  3. Biology

    At least 60% in Biology 30, or 64% in Bow Valley College's Anatomy and Physiology course ANAT1101, or equivalent.

Check English proficiency separately

Practical Nurse has its own language requirements. IELTS Academic needs Listening 7.5, Reading 6.5, Writing 7.0 and Speaking 7.0. CELBAN requires Listening 9, Reading 8, Writing 7 and Speaking 8. The table also lists TOEFL 92, CLB 8 in each strand, and BVC Academic English 2 at B.

Education alternatives

  • Canadian English courseSuccessful completion of an Alberta Education English Language Arts course, or equivalent from education in Canada, that meets the program’s academic English requirement.
  • Secondary educationTranscripts showing successful completion of three years of full-time secondary education with English as the language of instruction.
  • Post-secondary educationTranscripts showing successful completion of one year of full-time post-secondary education with English as the language of instruction.
Test validity
Two years from testing
At program start
Results must still be valid
Evidence
Official results required
Read every English-language route and condition ↗
THE COURSE SEQUENCE

Five terms with clinical learning

The course requirements below retain the college's term groups and completion rules. The program combines classroom, lab and work-integrated learning; a blended pathway does not turn the qualification into an entirely online course.

Term 121 credits

Earn a minimum grade of C in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
ANAT1101 Anatomy and Physiology 6
COMM1101 Interpersonal Relationships And Communication Skills 3
ENGL1201 English Composition 3
NURS1101 Nursing Arts 3

Earn a minimum grade of B in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS1202 Nursing Foundations 1 3

Earn a minimum grade of B+ in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS1301 Mathematical Principles of Medication Administration 3
Term 218 credits

Earn a minimum grade of C in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS1102 Applied Pharmacology 3
NURS1103 Pathophysiology 3
NURS1504 Care of the Older Adult 3

Earn a minimum grade of B in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS1201 Adult Health Assessment 3
NURS1203 Nursing Foundations II 6
Term 319 credits

Complete the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS1401 Clinical I: Foundational 4

Earn a minimum grade of B in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2204 Nursing Foundations III 6

Earn a minimum grade of C in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2501 Maternity Nursing 3
NURS2502 Pediatric Nursing 3
PSYC1201 Human Growth And Development Across The Life Span 3
Term 417 credits

Complete the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2402 Clinical II: Medical/Surgical 8

Earn a minimum grade of C in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2503 Mental Health Nursing 3
NURS2504 Community Nursing 3
SOCI1301 Sociology of Aging 3
Term 513 credits

Earn a minimum grade of C in each of the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2303 Nursing Trends and Issues 3

Complete the following courses:

Code Course Credits
NURS2403 Clinical III: Medical/ Surgical 4
NURS2995 Professional Preceptorship 6
KEEP COMPARING

More program guides

Return to the program finder ↗

Sources and planning scope

Sources checked 29 October 2026. The tuition dataset identifies 2026-27. The intake resource has conflicting freshness metadata, so its observed labels require confirmation before use as current availability. Individual admission, equivalency and immigration decisions remain with the relevant institution or authority.