RN-BSN and Women’s Health NP Options Suspended as of August

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing will suspend admissions into the Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN-BSN) option of the BSN program and the Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner option in the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program after August 2011.

These programmatic changes are necessary because of ongoing state budget cuts. In January, Chancellor Holden Thorp instituted campus-wide cuts equal to a 5 percent permanent state budget reduction to take effect July 1. That move anticipated expected reductions to the University’s state appropriations that could reach as high as 15 percent for fiscal 2011-2012. These anticipated cuts come on top of almost 10 percent in permanent cuts that the School of Nursing has absorbed over the last two years.

The RN-BSN option is for registered nurses with an associate’s degree or diploma. Only students that can commit to completing the four courses specific to the RN-BSN option by the end of the spring 2012 term will be admitted in May and August 2011. After spring 2012 the School will no longer offer these courses. Registered nurses with an associate’s degree or diploma can enter the School’s RN-MSN option.

For the Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner specialty in the MSN program, a cohort will be admitted in August only if at least six qualified applicants can commit to full-time study. Otherwise, no students will be admitted into this advanced practice specialty this fall. The School will continue its Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner, Health Care Systems, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner/Primary Care, Family Nurse Practitioner, and Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse Practitioner/Clinical Nurse Specialist MSN options.

“I deeply regret that we have to suspend the RN-BSN option and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner option, but the budget challenges we face have left us little alternative. Like the rest of the University, we are doing our part as the state of North Carolina copes with a challenging budget situation,” said Dr. Kristen M. Swanson, the School’s Dean and Alumni Distinguished Professor. “We remain committed to offering the high-quality, rigorous nursing programs that have led us to be consistently recognized as one of the nation’s premiere nursing schools.”

In February, the School of Nursing announced a 25 percent enrollment reduction in the undergraduate program.

UNC Budget Information: http://universityrelations.unc.edu/budget.