Greenville Technical College (GTC) and Lander University's William Preston Turner School of Nursing have agreed to offer a collaborative program through which students earn an associate degree in Nursing at GTC and then seamlessly transition to Lander to complete a fully online bachelor's degree in Nursing with the option of earning a master's degree in Nursing as well.
The agreement addresses a recommendation from the Institution of Medicine's report, The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, that nurses achieve higher levels of education and training through improved educational systems that promote seamless academic progression. The partnership will assist South Carolina in achieving an ongoing goal of increasing the number of bachelor's degree prepared nurses.
GTC's Nursing program is completed in two years. Lander's BSN can be completed in one additional year and the MSN coursework can be completed in two years.
"This partnership with Lander University gives our Nursing students a strong foundation at Greenville Technical College along with the ability to build on that base and complete the associate, bachelor's, and graduate degrees in a total of five years," said Dr. Keith Miller, president of Greenville Technical College. "Our Nursing program and Lander's William Preston Turner School of Nursing are both recognized by healthcare providers as excellent preparation for the profession. By coming together, we ensure the state has an increased supply of bachelor's and master's degree educated nurses to provide safe, high quality patient care."
"I am excited for two historically exceptional nursing education programs to join," said Dr. Holisa Wharton, dean of the Lander University William Preston Turner School of Nursing. "This articulation program is unique in that it creates a seamless pathway for nurses to attain not only a four-year degree but a graduate degree as well."
GTC's Nursing program is known for its emphasis on clinical proficiency in a variety of health care settings. Licensure examination pass rates for graduates are consistently at or above national and state averages. In fact, 99% of Nursing graduates passed the NCLEX licensing exam in 2016, the most recent data available. The GTC Nursing program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.
Accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), Lander University's online nursing programs are designed to help working RNs take their career to the next level with a B.S. in Nursing or M. S. in Nursing degree. The RN-BSN program offers convenient scheduling for working RNs with online courses offered in seven-week sessions that can be completed in as few as two semesters.
The MSN program is designed for baccalaureate-prepared nurses to advance their knowledge of nursing care, safety and quality, and outcomes management. Students completing the graduate program earn a Master of Science Degree in Nursing and are qualified to sit for the national Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) Certification Exam.
"We are extremely proud of the May 2019 MSN graduates," said Dr. Wharton, "100 percent of those who took the CNL certification exam passed on their first attempt, and 10 of the graduates were promoted to an advanced role as Clinical Nurse Leaders."