Our local university just recently added a BSN program. It’s very new - the first graduating class will be May of 2018, so no one has taken the nursing exam yet.
What are the pros and cons of attending a brand-new nursing program? My daughter doesn’t want to go there for other reasons but is willing to go look to get her feet wet. What kinds of questions would you ask of a brand-new program that is in the process of getting accredited?
What year is your daughter in? (If there’s a few more years then you can see if they progress)
Where is the program located/ is there access to good medical facilities?
This is important because as a nursing student, you want food clinical locations.
Ask how big the program is?
Also find out how competitive admissions is (how many apply vs how many are accepted)
Also, is it a direct entry nursing program? (Preferred for most)
Or, if it is a 2+2 program, how competitive will applying for junior year be.
Just a starting point 
I’d ask some hard questions about the accreditation process. What happens if the program does not earn full accreditation?
I’d also be concerned about the clinical spots. It may be possible that nearby hospitals and other organizations that are willing to provide clinicals have already promised those spots to other nursing programs, and it may be hard to get nearby clinicals. If there are no other nursing programs in your area, that might not be an issue.
In any case, you want to know where most of the clinicals are located and how far away they are.
I’d also be a little concerned about whether the program has been able to quickly attract quality instructors. There is a nationwide shortage of nurse educators.
Some new programs involve a close partnership between an existing well-established associates degree nursing program and a 4 year college. I would feel much more comfortable with that arrangement than a nursing program that is starting from scratch.
Also, what quality of fellow students will the program be able to attract? If they can’t attract quality students who will do well on the RN Exam over a few years, the accreditation can go on probation and can eventually be taken away.
My daughter is a junior, but realistically this time next year she could (hopefully!) have a few acceptances in hand from long-established programs. It is a 3,700-student college in a 40,000-something smaller city. I do wonder where they are sending their students for practicals, so that is definitely something to look into. They say they are direct admit program with, of course, criteria that must be met to stay there. She more than meets the direct admit criteria. Here is an excerpt of an email, which was from an administrative assistant not a prof
“… You are absolutely correct in your understanding of our Direct Admission process. As long as they keep their GPA at 3.0 or above and have completed the prerequisite courses they are guaranteed a spot in the program their sophomore year. We are a new program and are very excited. We are presently in the process of getting our accreditation which we expect to have in place early summer next year. Our first graduating class will be May 2018. We have a Nursing Lab that has to be seen to be appreciated. It has been designed as 6 hospital rooms. With the equipment we have and high-fidelity manikins the students get to practice what they will experience in clinical before they have to take care of a real person …”
So I haven’t asked any hard questions. I figure this is worth at least touring, to get the juices flowing. But then I wonder if it will have the opposite effect, and turn her off to looking into any programs. Sigh.
There’s no harm in applying, in addition to applying to established programs. You might use it as a safety. Also, sometimes a college will offer extra financial aid to attract students to a new program. I know that happened when a new law school opened a few years ago that was not yet accredited - many of the first students attended for free.