University’s School of Nursing ranked
15th in Eastern U.S.
MURFREESBORO — Middle Tennessee State
University’s School of Nursing is listed among the top nursing programs in the
region, according to recently released rankings by a nursing advocacy website.
NurseJournal.org,
a social community website that targets nurses and health care professionals,
listed MTSU at No. 15 among almost 1,200 schools of nursing in the eastern
United States evaluated by the website in its “America’s Best Nursing Schools”
rankings. MTSU was ranked highest among Tennessee nursing programs and the only
state program ranked in the Top 30.
Earning
a nursing degree could be a pathway to a promising career, as employment for
registered nurses alone is projected to grow by more than 20 percent by 2022, according
to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with average salaries of $60,000 and higher.
“MTSU
always knew it had a high quality and nationally competitive School of
Nursing,” MTSU Provost Brad Bartel said. “These rankings affirm the quality and
value of the program. It is a major achievement.”
The
next highest ranked Tennessee program was the University of Tennessee-Martin’s,
which was ranked 31st, followed by Austin Peay State University at
32 and the University of Memphis at 35. Other large four-year Tennessee
universities in the ranking included UT-Chattanooga (76), Vanderbilt (389), University
of Tennessee-Knoxville (401) and Tennessee Tech (465). To see the full list of
rankings, go to http://ow.ly/QkQah.
In
evaluating the nursing programs, the website assigned scores in five
categories: quality, affordability, convenience, satisfaction and value. Those scores
were totaled to get an overall score that formed the basis for the rankings.
MTSU
receiving its highest category score for affordability. To determine a category
score, the website awarded points in various subcategories. For example, for
affordability, the website not only considered the overall cost for a student
to enroll in the program, but also factors such as financial aid percentages,
student loan debt and cost of living.
The
MTSU School of Nursing undergraduate program is accredited by the Commission on
Collegiate Nursing Education and approved by the Tennessee Board of Nursing.
The graduate program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for
Education in Nursing.
The
School of Nursing offers a traditional four-year nursing program; an R.N. to
B.S.N. program for currently licensed RNs with a diploma or associate's degree
in nursing; and a master’s degree through a consortium program with three
tracks: nursing education, nursing administration, and family practice nursing.
For the 2014 calendar year, the MTSU School of Nursing reported a
retention rate of 97 percent and a graduation rate of 91 percent. A survey of
2014 graduates showed a 94.5 percent job placement.
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