Join the UVA Health Nurse Residency Program

When you begin your nursing career here, whether as an extern or in our Nurse Residency Program, you’ll find clinical colleagues, preceptors, and mentors who are dedicated to helping you reach your full potential. And you’ll work in an advanced medical system that offers unlimited career paths, resources to continue your professional growth, and lucrative compensation and extraordinary benefits designed to enhance your overall wellness.

NEW! Market Leading Compensation for New Graduates

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Inpatient: $38.00         `Ambulatory: $36.00            Main OR: $39.50

Overview of UVA Health's Nurse Residency Program (NRP) 


UVA Health’s NRP is a one-year program designed to support associate’s, bachelor’s, and master’s degree nurses thrive in their transition into their nursing careers. Our program focuses on three areas critical to the nursing practice and the success of nurses, including leadership, patient outcomes, and the professional role of a nurse. Throughout your year-long orientation, you’ll have monthly classes featuring evidence-based content essential to developing clinicians, peer discussion about transition-to-practice issues, and dialogue with UVA content experts to expand your clinical knowledge.


It's our goal to help rising nurses thrive early in their career journey. Our thoughtful and attentive orientation offers protected time to get acclimated into your role and understand your practice setting. You’ll receive extraordinary guidance with an extended preceptorship from our Magnet®-designated nurse staff. And you’ll benefit from our extensive educational and professional training resources.

Our nurse residents don’t just train for success; they contribute to it. As nurse resident in our NRP, you’ll immediately become a member of the Nursing Professional Governance Organization (NPGO). As a valued member of our professional nursing staff, you’ll be empowered to contribute your voice and make a positive difference in patient outcomes by working with other UVA Health nurses to establish professional standards of clinical practice and professional development. Like all UVA Health nurses, you will have access to innovative programs that foster camaraderie through continued education, training, and professional advancement opportunities.

UVA Health offers outstanding clinical preparation for current nursing students through our paid summer Nurse Externship program. If you’ve got a summer between now and your graduation, this externship is a great way to gain valuable experience working alongside our nationally renowned care teams.


Experience the pride that comes with working with a national leader in medical care, research, and innovation. Let us help you take the first step into a nursing career with infinite possibilities at UVA Health.
What makes UVA Health different?
UVA Health has one of the nation’s most diverse workforces. We are a close-knit, collaborative team that values the expertise, opinions and contributions of our staff. Our proven patient-first focus drives everything we do and fuels our many accomplishments — from Magnet® designation for our nurses to national recognitions as a top hospital and employer.
Exceptional benefits package
We want our employees to be happy, healthy, and have peace of mind. Our generous benefits package allows you to focus on what's important - making UVA an ideal place to study, work, and grow. View the UVA Health Benefits webpage.
Units and ratios 
Interested in the nurse-to-patient ratio, duration of New Graduate Orientation, and shift details for many UVA Health units? View the UVA Health Units document to learn more.
Nursing Professional Governance Organization
As professional nurses, we are accountable for governing our own practice. Our NPG structure is mechanism by which we engage in shared decision making related to the outcomes of our nursing professional practice environment. Learn more: UVA Health's Nursing Professional Governance Organization.
Quality & safety Delivering the highest-quality, most advanced and safest healthcare to our patients is our top priority. That’s why we never stop striving to make our best better. As a leading healthcare institution, our goal is to be the safest place in America to receive care and to work, because patient and team member safety is essential to providing the best healthcare. 

"UVA Health is heavily invested in our nurses. The level of attention we give to personal and professional satisfaction makes this such a rewarding place to begin or continue a nursing career."

Kathy Baker, PhD, RN, NE-BC
Chief Nursing Officer
"Nurses need to have the tools, the skills and knowledge to be the leaders in our healthcare system and to drive the change that we need to transform health care."
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Dr. Clareen Wiencek,
Advanced Program Director
"The Nurse Residency Program was a tremendous stepping stone for me as I began my nursing career. It really added an extra layer of education and clinical training that gave me the confidence to excel."
Former Nurse Resident

Successful Careers for New Nurses


For many graduating nurses, the first step from classroom to career can feel like it’s the steepest. But when you start your nursing career at UVA Health, you’ll have everything you need to succeed early and throughout your career.

Nurturing professional growth, molding young clinicians, and advancing medical care are all at the core of our nationally renowned academic health system. But what truly sets our nursing culture apart is how we lead with H.E.A.R.T.:

  • HIRING: We seek to attract and hire a compassionate nurse — one who is curious, engaged, and dedicated to providing expert care.
  • ENGAGEMENT: We promote positive practice environments that allow our nurses to work well together, be successful, and have fun.
  • ALIGNMENT & ACCOUNTABILITY: We set clear expectations of every nurse at every level, and each of us must strive to achieve our established goals.
  • RETENTION: By living by our core values, we foster an equitable, respectful, and learning culture that makes our nurses want to continue working with us. 
  • TEAM: Exceptional patient care requires us to prioritize interprofessional collaboration and value each team member's unique role.
The highest starting nurse salaries we’ve ever offered

$15K Incentive Bonus with $5K paid in your first paycheck

Tremendous full-time benefits, including health, dental, vision, and a superior retirement savings program

​​​​​​​Generous paid time off
Self-scheduling

Dedicated onboarding and preceptorship from our team of Magnet®-designated nurses

Opportunities to explore and discover your professional passions across our comprehensive health system
Nurse Residency Program to bridge your transition from student to practicing nurse

Clinician 1 Transition-To-Practice Mentorship Program

Clinical Career Ladder to help guide our young nurses on their career journeys
Continuing education assistance, certification pay, and tuition reimbursement

Promotion to Clinician 2 with a 5% pay raise upon completion of Nurse Residency Program

​​​​​​​And much more