Nursing school receives veteran-friendly rating

Kailey Love|Photo Editor
The School of Nursing is housed on the fifth floor of Fisher Hall. The school recently received an award from a national group for the programs it offers to DU veterans.
Kailey Love|Photo Editor
The School of Nursing is housed on the fifth floor of Fisher Hall. The school recently received an award from a national group for the programs it offers to DU veterans.

Liza Zulick | Staff Writer

02/01/18

For the second consecutive year, Duquesne’s School of Nursing earned a Gold Level ranking for being military friendly from a national veteran organization.

Only 60 colleges and universities across the United States were given this rank. This year, schools were evaluated by student surveys, public data sources and Victory Media’s proprietary survey.

“We are very proud to support veterans and military service personnel in their efforts to become nurses or advance their career. They have served all Americans by their military service,” said Mary Ellen Glasgow, dean of the nursing school.

The Military Friendly School list was first created in 2009 in order to give veterans a better opportunity through education. This list allows an easy way for veterans to choose one of the best schools and make it as easy as possible for them to return to a civilian life and career.

According to the Military Friendly website, approximately 250,000 people leave the military service each year.

Before this program was created, the government launched the Transition Assistance Program (TAP), in order to assure all military members and families an easy return to civil life, but the founders of Military Friendly did not believe this was enough.

In 2001, Chris Hale, Rich McCormack and Scott Shaw, co-founders of the organization, began creating a new resource for veterans.

This award proves Duquesne’s School of Nursing to be one of the best schools for Veterans. Out of hundreds of colleges, universities and trade schools, Duquesne has been lucky to be considered a Gold Level ranking for two years consecutively.

“To obtain Gold status is to achieve the highest level of recognition for being Military and Veteran friendly. That means we are one of 10 recognized private academic institutions of higher learning to have earned this prestigious recognition,” said retired Capt. Patricia Watts Kelley, program director for the Veterans to BSN program at Duquesne’s School of Nursing, “I am honored to continue to serve my fellow military members and Veterans.”

Duquesne’s School of Nursing offers many different programs for veterans interested in nursing. Each year, there are approximately 45 veterans who take part in these programs.

These include a four year degree Bachelors of Science in Nursing, a second degree program of 12 to 16 months allowing a veteran with a Bachelor’s degree to take the required courses and obtain a Bachelors in Nursing Science. Currently, both programs have a retention rate of 100 percent.

The school of nursing also offers a BSN completion program for RNs who want to obtain a Bachelor degree. Graduate degrees of Masters of Science in Nursing or a Post Masters Certificate with a concentration in education, forensics or Family Nurse Practitioner, as well as a Doctorate in Nursing Practice or Doctor of Philosophy are also offered through the Military Friendly program.