Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a 8-week compound exercise and a home-based walking exercise on body composition, perceived health status, and stress of nursing students. Methods: A non-equivalent control group design with pre-post test was employed. Participants, having BMI below 23 and Percent Body Fat above 26%, were assigned to three groups; 21 for the compound exercise(A), 26 for the walking exercise(B), and 23 for the control group. For data analysis, ANOVA in SPSS was used. Results: Body Fat Mass(kg), Visceral Fat Area(cm2), and Percent Body Fat(%) of both group A and B were significantly decreased. Lean Body Mass(kg) and Fitness Score of both group A and B were significantly increased in comparing with the control group. Especially the score of PBF(%) in group A was significantly decreased than the group B. The perceived physical health status in both group A and B was significantly increased. Conclusion: Both 8-week compound exercise and walking exercise were effective in enhancing BFM(kg), VFA($cm^2$), PBF(%), LBM(kg), Fitness Score and perceived physical health status. Especially the Compound exercise program was much more effective in decreasing PBF(%) than the walking exercise program.