LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville’s online RN-to-BSN program has been ranked No. 9 among public or private not-for-profit schools in the United States by AffordableCollegesOnline.org (AC Online) in its 2015-2016 Best Online RN to BSN Programs. The site ranks the top 40 programs and includes 321 programs in its database.
The UofL RN-to-BSN program, accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), enables a nurse with an associate’s degree or a nursing diploma to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) online. Nurses with BSN degrees benefit from the potential for improved salaries and a greater range of employment opportunities. In addition, the Institute of Medicine has recommended that 80 percent of nurses receive a bachelor’s degree by the year 2020.
“It is well documented that baccalaureate-prepared nurses have shown decreased patient deaths and have better outcomes caring for patients with complex diseases. The UofL RN-to-BSN program allows working nurses to obtain a baccalaureate degree at their own pace and with the benefit of support from the university’s excellent faculty and student services,” said Marcia J. Hern, Ed.D., C.N.S., R.N., dean of the UofL School of Nursing. “This ranking assures students that our program offers exceptional value for their education dollar.”
AC Online ranks programs based on cost, student-faculty ratio, academic and career counseling services, and Peer-Based Value (PBV), a proprietary metric that compares the cost and qualitative score of the program with other programs. The UofL program requires 31 core credits plus 30 portfolio credits. Students’ documented professional activities, such as continuing education courses and leadership efforts, create a portfolio that can earn them 30 tuition-free credit hours toward graduation requirements – saving more than $14,000 in tuition costs. In 2015, the UofL School of Nursing re-engineered its RN-to-BSN program curriculum to reflect the evolving nature of health care, resulting in more than $4,000 in savings for future students. Some courses were combined and others, such as population health and nursing leadership and health policy, were added to the curriculum.
“There are many other RN-to-BSN online programs, but UofL offered me a better education. I was able to navigate through the process easily with the help of great advisors. The professors were always responsive to my questions and extremely involved in my educational experience,” said Jennifer Ford, a May 2015 RN-to-BSN program graduate.
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