News

U.S. News & World Report ranked Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s School of Nursing (SON) among the top 50 in its 2021 Best Online Graduate Nursing Programs list released Tuesday, Jan. 26. The School is ranked 49^th among 194 schools nationally and among the top four in Illinois.

The School of Nursing’s online graduate degree programs include a family nurse practitioner doctor of nursing practice (DNP), post-master’s DNP, and master’s degrees in health care nursing administration (HCNA) and nurse educator (NE).

SON Dean Laura Bernaix, PhD, said the U.S. News rankings reflect the School’s continued commitment to providing excellent academic experiences that prepare a nursing workforce for today’s ever-evolving healthcare field.

“It is an honor to be nationally recognized and truly rewarding to see our programs continue to move up in the rankings each year,” Bernaix said. “Our faculty and administrators work hard to provide students with a high-quality education through small class sizes, strong faculty mentoring and support, and program content that is both contemporary and robust.”

The SON saw record enrollment for the second consecutive year in fall 2020 with a 5% increase (1,877 students) from fall 2019. With the new Health Sciences Building on the horizon for the SIUE campus, the foundation is in place for continued growth.

According to U.S. News, highly ranked programs have strong traditional academic foundations based on student-instructor access, graduation rates and instructor credentials. They also excel at educating distance learners, while offering robust career and financial support.

The full rankings are available at usnews.com.

Photo: Laura Bernaix, dean of the SIUE School of Nursing.