Linfield College Announces New Curriculum for Online RN to BSN Program
McMinnville, OR (PRWEB) June 30, 2014 -- Linfield College is launching a new online RN to BSN curriculum to reflect nursing in the 21st century. The enhanced curriculum has an updated course progression and a new capstone course, the Service Learning Experience. These changes are in response to feedback from current online RN to BSN students on how to make the BSN degree more attainable.
The first curricular change is a reduction in each semester’s workload of nursing courses to better support students’ work/life balance. The new plan of nursing courses is designed to be completed in 4 semesters, achieved by taking a steady pace of 6 credits each semester. This academic plan encourages the completion of the degree in an efficient and manageable manner while accommodating students’ fulltime employment and family responsibilities.
The new curriculum progression plan also provides access to financial aid for online students each semester for those in the Adult Degree Program’s RN to BSN major. It allows for greater customization of courses, allowing students to select nursing elective courses and a wider range of non-nursing courses to fulfill graduation requirements in the BSN degree, as their schedules permit.
Finally, the curriculum has a new capstone course taken in the final semester of nursing coursework: the Service Learning Experience. This course provides academic credit for conducting a health promotion project that meets a local community need. The registered nurse and local community members will collaborate to identify a need and appropriate project.
The Service Learning Experience replaces the traditional in-patient clinical experience and supports the key role that registered nurses play in delivering healthcare in local communities. Dr. Melissa Jones, RN to BSN Faculty Coordinator at the Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, says, “The Service Learning Experiences takes into account how health care is being delivered in the 21st century, and the key role that registered nurses play as leaders in promoting health and preventing disease in the local and global community.”
The new progression plan for the RN to BSN program is designed to create optimal learning while completing the program and prepare students for their enhanced responsibilities afterwards. Dr. Mallie Kozy, Dean of Nursing at the Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing, says the updated curriculum and Service Learning Experience are “uniquely suited to the mission of our College and to the community-based philosophy of our curriculum.” The Service Learning Experience in particular is aligned with Linfield’s tradition of providing college credit for life experience.
The new RN to BSN progression plan and the Service Learning Experience are adaptable to any registered nurse who is licensed to practice nursing. Registered nurses with an interest in achieving the BSN degree through Linfield’s online RN to BSN program are encouraged to contact Linfield College Adult Degree Program for further information on applying.
Linfield-Good Samaritan School of Nursing is approved by the Oregon State Board of Nursing and is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).
About the Linfield College Adult Degree Program
Chartered in 1858, Linfield College is one of the first colleges in the Pacific Northwest and is regionally accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.
The Adult Degree Program offers adults the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree or certificate online in ten fields of study.
Online programs offered by Linfield College Adult Degree Program include an online management degree, business information systems degree, accounting degree, online marketing degree, RN to BSN degree and international business degree and certificates in human resource management, post baccalaureate accounting, computer information systems, and marketing.
Janet Gifford, Linfield College, http://www.linfield.edu, +1 (503) 413-7056, [email protected]
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