Designed for the new graduate nurse (and recently licensed Registered Nurse), this year-long program facilitates the transition from student nurse to professional nurse using a myriad of educational techniques. The length of the orientation period will vary between 12 and 20 weeks, depending on the unit and/or specialty. During this time, an RN preceptor provides support, encouagement, and expertise, and shares in the daily rewards and challenges of nursing at Penn State Hershey.

The Nursing Residency program is a twelve-month training period in a nursing clinical specialty. Residents will be hired by either Sutter Health or BloodSource (the regional Blood Bank) and paid an entry-level wage by these employers during the residency training period. The specialties to be engaged will be medical/surgical acute care, geriatric/long term care, critical care, and transfusion nursing.