BOTHELL, Washington — U.S. News & World Report has once again ranked the University of Washington Bothell’s Master of Nursing program No. 1 among public schools that offer a master’s degree. The program moved up to the No. 5 position in the nation on the 2023 Best Nursing Schools: Master’s list that also includes private schools.
“The coronavirus pandemic has brought into sharp focus the critical importance of the nursing workforce,” said Dr. Shari Dworkin, dean of the School of Nursing & Health Studies. “It has also illuminated the urgent need for strong leadership in health care organizations.”
Launched in 1992, the MN program in UW Bothell’s School of Nursing & Health Studies now has three curriculum options: a general track, a nurse education track and an administrative-leadership track, which started in 2016. The latter is in partnership with UW Bothell’s School of Business and provides nurses with policy-related, analytical and organizational acumen “so they can shift from clinical work at the bedside into administrative and leadership positions,” said Dworkin.
“When students graduate, they report to us that they can speak the language of the boardroom,” she said. “They take the lead in improving patient care, transforming quality and safety, enhancing the work culture of health care institutions, and promoting positive health outcomes for individuals and communities.”
The education track addresses the urgent need for nurse educators in academic settings, health care institutions, community services and schools, while the general track looks to impact the ongoing shortage for nurses.
“Nurses are at the forefront of leading institutional change in health care,” Dworkin said. “Our world-class faculty in the MN program, in collaboration with our health care partners, is well-positioned to lead them in that transformation.”
The MN ranking is the second year in a row that the School of NHS has been in the top spot for public schools that offer a master’s in nursing, advancing from No. 2 in 2021 and No. 4 in 2020. In the list that also includes private universities, the school moved from No. 12 in 2020 to No. 6 in 2021 and 2022. The ranking is based on data from all three UW campuses, including indicators of excellence in the programs at UW Bothell’s School of Nursing & Health Studies and UW Tacoma’s School of Nursing & Healthcare Leadership.
Read a recent story about the $1.5 million allocation from Congress to support the School of NHS and School of Educational Studies Behavioral Health Initiative that is designed to increase behavioral health knowledge and skills and to address the social-emotional development, well-being and success trajectories of students.
