Description/Overview: According to AACN (2015), expected outcomes for graduates of baccalaureate nursing programs include scholarship for evidence-based practice, inter professional communication and collaboration for improving patient health outcomes, and health promotion and disease prevention at the individual and population levels. Baccalaureate nurses must be prepared to be an active member of an interdisciplinary team and communicate within this team. A challenge for nurse educators is to Identify instructional methods to promote success of these outcomes and to prepare graduates with the necessary communication skills. Collaborative learning strategies have been successful in improving these student outcomes. Clarion University of PA affords students an opportunity to earn a baccalaureate degree in an RN BSN online program or a traditional face-to-face four-year BSN program. Program outcomes for these programs are identical although students' demographics and the delivery methods of the two programs are quite different. A challenge for the programs pertained to instructions on research and using evidence to guide practice. Hands-on undergraduate research integrated throughout the curriculum has been found to improve both critical thinking skills and student success (CUR, 2015). A major curriculum revision in the programs created an opportunity to provide students with an undergraduate research experience initiated in early courses and completed in a capstone course. This symposium is designed to provide information on promoting a culture of undergraduate research by applying the principles of collaborative learning in an online or face-to-face classroom . Information on implementing collaborative learning in nursing education courses using both learning modalities will be presented. Participants will be provided with hands-on examples of collaborative learning and research across the curriculum. A culminating capstone project, included in both BSN programs, will demonstrate the application of collaborative learning within these programs. Challenges to implementing the curriculum and evaluating program outcomes will be discussed. Four presenters will be available