Monday, April 1, 2013
UMHB Doctoral Degree Adds Nursing Track
Belton, Texas – The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor announced today the addition of a Leadership in Nursing Education track to its Doctor of Education degree program. Currently the degree program offers two separate tracks of study for students pursuing the doctoral degree—a track for educators focused on Pre-K through grade 12 education, and a track for higher education professionals. The addition of a third track in Leadership in Nursing Education will open the degree program up to nursing educators who wish to earn a terminal degree in their field of study.
UMHB’s Doctor of Education degree program has operated at full capacity since its introduction in 2007. During the first year of study, all students take classes in research, statistics, and leadership; in the second year, group members move into a specialized set of courses geared toward the track they have chosen. Currently, students may select to pursue the P-12 track or the Higher Education track. Students in the seventh cohort beginning in the summer of 2013 will be offered the option of the third track in Leadership in Nursing Education. Professors from UMHB’s Scott & White College of Nursing will teach the nursing-specific courses, but the degree program itself continues to be directed by the UMHB College of Education.
“Our EdD program has been highly successful in preparing educators to become leaders in school districts and universities across the state, and we are very excited to be extending this program to include nurse educators as well,” said UMHB President Randy O’Rear. “We know there is a serious shortage of qualified nurse educators. Our hope is the addition of this doctoral degree track will encourage more nurses to earn the credentials they need to teach the next generation of nursing students.”
According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, U.S. nursing schools turned away 75,587 qualified applicants from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2011; almost two-thirds of the nursing schools responding to the survey pointed to faculty shortages as a reason for not accepting all qualified applicants into entry-level baccalaureate programs. A survey of vacant faculty positions released by the AACN in 2012 reported a total of 1,181 faculty vacancies across the U.S., with most of the vacancies being positions that required or preferred a doctoral degree.
The application process is currently underway for the cohort that will begin in June 2013. More information about the degree program and the application process may be obtained by contacting the UMHB Director of Graduate Admissions (254-295-4020 or 800-727-8642) http://graduate.umhb.edu.