Black Hawk College nursing students may have an easier time earning their bachelor’s degree thanks to a new agreement with the University of Illinois Chicago.
The board of trustees of the University of Illinois, on behalf of the UIC College of Nursing and UIC Extended Campus, has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Black Hawk College to create a dual-admissions pathway from the Black Hawk College Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program to UIC’s fully online RN to BSN degree completion program.
“With six campuses throughout Illinois, the UIC College of Nursing has long been dedicated to educating nurse leaders for the entire state,” said Terri Weaver, dean of the UIC College of Nursing. “Now, through this partnership, we can make a meaningful and almost immediate difference for western Illinois communities facing critical nursing shortages.”
“While the partnership with UIC has existed for some time, this new comprehensive agreement further streamlines the student’s opportunity for seamless movement from Black Hawk College’s ADN degree to UIC’s BSN and beyond,” said Dr. Amy Maxeiner, Vice President for Instruction. “It is a wonderful opportunity for our students and our community.”
Under the agreement, the dual-admissions pathway will allow nursing students to earn an associate degree in nursing at Black Hawk, while at the same time, enrolling in identified courses which are part of the fully online UIC RN to BSN degree completion program.
Given that high school students are able to take dual credit courses at Black Hawk College toward their nursing degree, and that the UIC College of Nursing offers graduate education through a campus based in Moline, the agreement effectively creates a pathway from high school to grad school all in the Quad Cities.
“With this agreement, we can provide a new level of convenience for students at Black Hawk,” said Kate Tredway, director of the UIC College of Nursing RN to BSN degree completion program. “I am a graduate of Black Hawk’s ADN program myself, so, personally, I can’t wait to welcome Black Hawk pre-nursing and nursing students to our UIC program.”
In January 2020, U.S. News & World Report ranked UIC’s online baccalaureate degrees No. 3 in the nation.
Upon successful completion of Black Hawk’s ADN program, students will be awarded their associate degree and continue their progress in the UIC online RN to BSN program. UIC will confer the bachelor’s degree in nursing after graduation requirements are met.
In 2020, Black Hawk had approximately 41 nursing graduates.
“The ADN faculty at Black Hawk have always encouraged our graduates to complete their BSN and this partnership with UIC is the seamless pathway to that goal,” said Trudy Starr, Department Chair of Nursing at Black Hawk College. “We tell students that the Associate Degree in Nursing is not the end, it is the beginning of their lifelong learning.”
According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the U.S. is projected to experience a shortage of registered nurses that is expected to intensify as Baby Boomers age and the need for health care grows.
The association also says “baccalaureate nursing programs encompass all of the course work taught in associate degree and diploma programs, plus a more in-depth treatment of the physical and social sciences, nursing research, public and community health, nursing management, and the humanities.”
Get more information on the ADN BSN Dual Admission Pathway.