In November 2005, Jon and Nicole Oliveros founded Americare Institute in the northwest suburbs to serve students, waiting for a slot in the surrounding community colleges. Under their ownership and management, Americare Institute received operating approval from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). In January 2006, Americare began offering general education courses at its Hanover Park location to prepare students for the rigors of a nursing education program.

With additional approval from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), Americare began a Basic Nursing Assistant (BNA) Certificate Program in January 2006. In September 2006, Americare received approval from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) to launch a practical nursing (PN) program.

In April 2007, Americare was granted full accreditation from the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI). This enabled students to access federal student aid programs to finance their education. In the summer of that year, Americare opened a second location in Schaumburg to better serve its growing student population. Hanover Park served as the center for the PN Program, with nursing courses and labs conducted at that campus while Schaumburg served as the main campus for admissions, administration, and general education courses.

Ambria offers online completion programs for LPN, LPN-to-RN, RN . Day and evening classes are offered, as well as full-time and part-time options, for all programs.

Ambria College of Nursing is accredited by ACEN and ABHES.