A descriptive study identified the differences in educational content between four college diploma nursing programs in British Columbia and the University of British Columbia's (UBC) generic baccalaureate proqram in nursing. Findings indicated differences among the five programs in all aspects of the nursing programs that were compared: philosophies of the educational institutions, philosophies of the nursing programs, admission criteria, behavioral objectives, evaluation of learning, learning experiences, and learning resources and teaching/learning resources. UBC's program prepared graduates to work independently in acute care, long-term care, and community settings, while the college diploma programs prepared graduates to work primarily in acute care settings under supervision of a registered nurse. Admission criteria for the baccalaureate program were primarily academic, while colleges' nursing programs had fewer academic requirements but more diversified criteria. UBC's objectives encompassed a greater ranqe of expected behaviors. UBC had the lonqest program duration. UBC's program had almost twice the amount of theory compared to practice; colleges had a closer balance. UBC's program had proportionally more community practice experience. (Support materials and appendixes, amounting to over two-thirds of the report, include survey instruments, evaluation tools, data and statistics, and correspondence.) (YLB)