Sacred Heart’s Online Nursing Program Earns High Marks
The U.S. News & World Report includes University in its Best Online Programs listing
Sacred Heart University’s online programs for bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing rank highly among hundreds of others, according to the U.S. News & World Report, which identified SHU’s online nursing education as one of the best in the nation.
In addition to U.S. News’ ranking of online nursing master’s programs, it introduced five new master’s-level rankings of online nursing specialties, including online nursing education programs. In that listing, Sacred Heart ranked in the top nine.
“Taking classes online is the best option for many working adults. Because of that, we offer many of our nursing programs online,” said Mary Alice Donius, dean of SHU’s Dr. Susan L. Davis, R.N., & Richard J. Henley College of Nursing. “I believe what sets Sacred Heart apart is that all our online programs provide students with individual attention from dedicated, full-time faculty members who are committed to student success.”
The rankings appear in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report Best Online Programs guide. The publisher rated schools on student engagement, faculty credentials and training, expert opinion, student excellence and services and technology.
Asserting that completing a four-year degree online may be the most practical way for working adults to obtain the knowledge and credentials to boost their careers, U.S. News provides its findings to help prospective students select programs that will suit them.
The University’s online bachelor’s program is for students seeking to proceed from registered nurse (RN) to earning a bachelor of science degree in nursing (BSN). It aims to help RNs who have a diploma or associate degree in nursing to develop their professional skills in health assessment, information technology, evidence-based practice and more. The curriculum also covers topics such as concepts of health care and wellness across cultures, clinical leadership development and methods of measuring care outcomes.
“One thing that really differentiates our program is the way we link our RN-to-BSN program to the core concepts of all of the University’s undergraduate programs,” Donius said. “The Human Journey arts and sciences courses that our students must complete teach them to understand their own humanity, and these courses also dovetail with the nursing concepts—caring for and healing others and the obligation to promote the common good.
Ambitious students can continue on after earning their bachelor’s degree to obtain a master’s degree in nursing. This rigorous course of online study meets the needs of working nurses who seek to develop advanced clinical, managerial and educational skills. The program offers four specializations: clinical nurse leader, nursing management and executive leadership, nursing education and family nurse practitioner.
Sacred Heart also offers an online doctor of nursing practice program that builds on students’ master-level training to prepare them for leadership roles within health-care delivery systems.