Penn State Behrend Introduces R.N. to B.S. in Nursing Degree
Prospective students encouraged to attend open houses on April 5, May 7
Registered nurses in northwestern Pennsylvania will now have access to the longest established registered nurse to Bachelor of Science, or R.N. to B.S., completion program in the Commonwealth—right in their backyard.
Beginning this summer, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, will offer the Penn State School of Nursing’s R.N. to B.S. in nursing, which lets registered nurses take their third and fourth years of coursework to earn a baccalaureate degree. It is the college’s 33rd bachelor’s degree program.
“The R.N. to B.S. allows us to complete the educational circle for those students enrolled in our associate degree in nursing program and reach out to current registered nurses,” Penn State Behrend Chancellor Jack Burke said. “After just one year, our associate degree program is already highly sought after—with more than 300 applications for 46 slots in the fall. We anticipate that the R.N. to B.S. will be equally attractive to prospective students.”
According to Jo Anne Carrick, nursing program coordinator at Penn State Behrend, the completion program is tailored to adult learners who are working in the field as registered nurses and allows them to earn a B.S. in nursing on a full- or part-time basis. “We will offer a blended format of in-class and online courses, with evening and weekend options available, to accommodate a range of student needs,” she said.
The R.N. to B.S. program is available to those students who complete Penn State Behrend’s associate degree in nursing and receive professional licensure, as well as to the area’s current registered nurses. The program prepares registered nurses to serve as professional practitioners in the areas of health promotion and maintenance, illness care, and rehabilitation. It is accredited by The National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission and the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.
Prospective students have two opportunities to learn more about Penn State Behrend’s R.N. to B.S. and associate degree in nursing programs, as well as tour its state-of-the-art simulation lab, at the college’s Admissions Open House on Saturday, April 5, or a Nursing Lab and Simulation Center Open House on Wednesday, May 7. For more information or to register, visit behrend.psu.edu/nursing online.
Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, is a comprehensive residential college offering 33 baccalaureate, six associate, four pre-professional and two graduate degree programs with 22 minors to more than 4,400 students. Focused on providing a student-centered environment, Penn State Behrend is the link that connects its students to a major research and land-grant institution on a campus enriched by more than 110 clubs and organizations, 21 NCAA varsity teams, 19 intramural sports and modern facilities. Penn State Behrend is named as such due to a donation by Mary Behrend, widow of Ernst Behrend, who founded the Hammermill Paper Co. in Erie in 1898. The Behrend family lived on the 400-acre Glenhill Farm, which is the core of the Penn State Behrend campus today. For more information, visit behrend.psu.edu.