In fewer than four years, the Bowling Green State University School of Nursing has gone from its infancy stage to being the largest Bachelor of Science in nursing program in northwestern Ohio.

In 2020, the University established its own School of Nursing within the College of Health and Human Services after providing pre-nursing education for more than 50 years as a means of addressing shortages of skilled healthcare professionals both locally and in the greater region.

The program enrolled 41 students in its first cohort a year later, but has since grown significantly in the subsequent years. The program now boasts about 200 students in its first three cohorts alone and nearly 400 more are enrolled in the pre-nursing program, which readies freshmen and sophomores for admittance into the School of Nursing as a junior.

Demand was so immediate that BGSU added an additional spring enrollment for the first time earlier in 2024. When the Spring 2025 semester begins, the program expects to have four cohorts enrolled at all times.

Dr. Shelly Bussard, the director of the School of Nursing, said current and prospective students have responded to the support system within the program, including coursework that prepares them for real-world experiences, resources that connect students directly to prospective employers, expert faculty and state-of-the-art facilities.

“We go to great lengths to ensure that students have all the support they need here, whether that’s additional help outside the classroom, a space to practice their skills or faculty members who are rooting for their success every step of the way,” Bussard said. “Healthcare certainly has its challenges, but we believe our program thoroughly prepares students for anything they might face.”

The program was designed to equip students with hands-on experience as undergraduates, which includes a 29-bed skills lab open to students at all times of day and audio/visual space in which they can practice real-world scenarios and go through debriefing sessions.

By asking students to learn skills through practicing them, not just talking about them, students with a BGSU nursing degree are ready to enter the workforce immediately as they graduate.

In a short time frame, the program has grown exponentially to serve a vital role within the footprint of the BGSU campus.

“More than ever, communities need nurses with skills to achieve desired patient outcomes, and those are the types of graduates we aspire to mold in the School of Nursing,” Bussard said. “We’re excited to fill this role in northwestern Ohio for years to come.”