The College of Nursing-Riyadh, originally “College of Nursing and Allied Medical Sciences” was founded by the Royal Decree No. 18226, dated 11-9-1424 H. corresponding to 26-11-2001 G, issued by His Royal Highness, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, at that time HRH Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Commander of the National Guard.
In 2005, the College was incorporated into the newly established King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS). In May 2007, it was given its new designation “College of Nursing, Riyadh” by HE, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, who was at that time the Chief Executive Officer of National Guard Health Affairs (NGHA), and was also the President of the University and of the College of Nursing.
The urgency for the establishment of the College arose in response to the massive shortage of Saudi nurses. Increasing the number to meet the profession’s need was one of its main objectives in the initial phase. The College started by awarding a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) to two educational streams. One stream (Stream I) has, as its intake, secondary school graduates and follows what is known as the conventional program. The other stream (Stream II) admits holders of Bachelor of Science Degrees. These students follow what is known as the Graduate Entry Accelerated Program. This program was the first of its kind in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and is designed to expedite the process of graduation by recognizing these students’ previous learning and as a venue to help increase the supply of nurses in a shorter time. This program was put on-hold since Fall 2010/2011.
Currently, the College has open its doors to postgraduate students offering a Master Degree in nurse-midwifery with the first intake started in the Spring Semester of the Academic Year 2015-2016. Admissions for additional programs are to be offered in the near future to expand the profession of Nursing with qualified and competent Saudi nurses.
The College of Nursing is located in KSAU-HS within the premises of King Abdulaziz Medical City – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.