Nursing Enrollment Rises at Many Levels; More Men Entering Field

Enrollment in nursing programs from baccalaureate level to advanced practice is growing and more men are entering the field, according to a survey by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing.

Here are other key findings of the survey, which covered nursing enrollments in 2010.

More baccalaureate students. Enrollment in entry-level baccalaureate programs in nursing increased by 5.7 percent in 2010, rising from 214,533 in 2009 to 238,799 in 2010.

More PhD-level students. Enrollment in PhD nursing programs increased by 10.4 percent, up 434 students from 2009. In programs for advanced practice nurses, 21,730 students graduated with master's degrees, 533 with research-focused doctorates, and 1,282 with practice-focused doctorates.

More men entering nursing. While only 6.6 percent of all nurses are men, men represent 11.4 percent of baccalaureate enrollment, 9.5 percent of master's enrollment and 9.0 percent of practice-focused PhD enrollment.

Accelerated programs growing.
Currently, 13,605 students are enrolled in the nation’s 233 accelerated baccalaureate programs, up from 11,960 in 2009.

More in degree-completion programs. Enrollment in RN-to-Baccalaureate programs increased by 21.6 percent from 2009-2010, marking the eighth year of enrollment increases. Eighteen new RN-to-Baccalaureate and 32 new RN-to-Master’s programs are under development.

More clinical nurse leaders. Seven new clinical nurse leader programs opened in 2010, bringing the total to 88. Currently, 2,465 students are enrolled in these programs, a 24.7 percent increase.

More baccalaureate-to-PhD programs. Seventy-three research-focused baccalaureate-to-doctoral programs are now available and 13 more programs are under development.

More rejected applicants. The survey found that 67,563 qualified applications were rejected last year, due primarily to a shortage of faculty and resource constraints.

Read the American Association of Colleges of Nursing release on nursing.

Read more coverage of advanced practice nursing:

- The Case for Shifting More Services to Midlevel Providers

- 14 Thoughts on the Road Ahead for Hospitals With AHA Trustee Ron Anderson

- Healthcare Hiring Focused on Technology, Team Care


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