CMU Partners with Mid Michigan College to Offer Complete Nursing Program
Central Michigan University has partnered with Mid Michigan College to expand its degree options and offer a complete undergraduate Bachelor of Science in nursing education.
The Joint Nursing Education Pathway allows students to pursue an in-demand career and improve the lives of those they treat, all while living like a traditional CMU student.
Before implementing the program, students could obtain their Bachelor of Nursing degree at CMU but not a registered nurse associate degree. Registered nursing degrees are usually gained at a community college and allow the students to work in the medical field, before getting their BSN degree.
However, the new JNEP partnership allows students to obtain the RN and BSN degree within one program. Students interested in healthcare can enter an in-demand field while getting the CMU experience of living and participating on campus.
Referring to students who go into the program with no nursing education, Kechinyere Iheduru-Anderson, director of nursing for CMU Health Professions said, “The new program is actually for regular people who are not nurses but want to be.”
The program aims to save students time and money by creating a course outline that results in a Bachelor of Nursing degree at the end of four to five years. The years are split into phases combining the resources of CMU and MID.
The first phase allows students to complete their pre-required classes at CMU. The second phase takes place at MID, where students will spend four semesters earning their RN degree. Finally, the third phase will bring students online with CMU to complete a program resulting in their Bachelor of Science in nursing.
Along with benefiting from the traditional CMU campus experience, those in the nursing program also get to have the privilege of working with MID’s long-standing nursing program.
“99 percent of our clinicals are through MidMichigan health affiliates,” said Barbara Wieszcieicnski, director of nursing at MID. “The [locations] are all over the place, and each of them have different experiences,” she said.
Beyond the benefits for the students, Iheduru-Andereson said the new program addresses a larger problem.
“We want people to come here and get a really great education from both colleges and fill in the need for nurses in this country,” Iheduru-Andereson said. Referring to the need for nurses across the country as Intensive Care Units and Emergency Rooms begin to fill up once again due to increasing COVID-19 cases.
Iheduru-Anderson suggests speaking with an advisor or visiting the CMU website to learn more about the program.
