The purposes of this study were to explore the relationships between critical thinking ability and learning strategies among students in diverse types of nursing programs. The study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey. Structured questionnaires, including the Critical Thinking Inventory and Inventory of Learning Process, were employed. Data were collected from a quota sample consisting of 602 nursing students recruited from various types of nursing programs (two-year on-job class, two- year regular class, four-year regular class and five-year college) at two institutes of technology in central Taiwan. The findings revealed that the two-year regular students have a significantly higher total score on critical thinking, inference and evaluation of argument than five-year college students. Two-year on job students have significantly higher scores on recognition of assumption than four-year regular class and five-year college students. Both the two-year regular students and the two-year on-job students have higher scores on deep processing than four-year regular and five-year college students. The subscales of critical thinking are positively associated with both deep processing and elaborative processing, and negatively associated with methodical study. The variables of deep processing, methodical study, clinical experience, elaborative processing and means of admission together explain the total variation of 10.5% in scores for critical thinking as indicated by the findings of stepwise regression analysis. These findings may be used in curriculum development and teaching planning in order to promote the active fostering of critical thinking skill among students in the nursing and vocational and technological education systems.