History
The College of Nursing at the University of Illinois has a vibrant history full of many memorable achievements. Although formal nursing education can be traced back to 1873, it was nearly seventy years before the University of Illinois began establishing a school of nursing. Until then, Illinois nurses were trained at hospital schools where they focused on hands-on experience. As the demands of the profession grew, so did the need for higher
education.
Nursing courses were offered at the University of Illinois at the request of hospitals in the early 1940s. In 1949, the Affiliate Collegiate program was established between the University of Illinois and four area hospital schools of nursing. The program allowed hospital students to earn their bachelor’s degrees and inaugurated the RN-BSN program. In 1951, the Board of Trustees for U. of Illinois authorized the organization of the School of Nursing as an autonomous unit of the university. The Affiliate Collegiate program was discontinued and UIC became the first public institution in Illinois to offer a curriculum leading to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. The result attracted bright and energetic students that might have otherwise forgone nursing.
Departments
Maternal Child Nursing
Medical Surgical Nursing
Public Health, Mental Health, and Administrative Nursing
Regional Campuses
Peoria
Quad Cities
Rockford
Urbana-Champaign
Programs of Study
BSN
RN-BSN (BSN for nurses with an associate degree)
MS (Master of Science)
Nurse Practitioner Options: acute care*, adult*, adult/geriatrics*, family, geriatrics*, mental health, occupational health, pediatrics, school nurse, women’s health
Clinical Nurse Specialist Options: acute care*, geriatrics*, mental health, occupational health, pediatrics*, perinatal*, school nurse
Health Systems Leadership Options: administrative nursing (can be combined with MBA or health informatics), advanced community health specialist (can be combined with MPH)
Nurse midwifery
*Optional Advanced Practice Palliative Care Nurse Certificate Program
Graduate Entry Program (GEP - Master’s
level study for individuals with a bachelor’s degree in another field.
Refer to the specialty areas listed above in the MS program.)
BSN-PhD (expedited program for preparing faculty)
PhD
Certificates
Advanced Nursing Leadership
Advanced Practice Palliative Care Nurse
Health Informatics
School Nurse Certification (Type 73)
Teaching
Students
Undergraduate: 350
Graduate: 500 (100 doctoral)
Faculty170 (including part-time)
Alumni
9,400
Points of Pride
Ranked 1st locally for nursing schools in Illinois
Ranked 8th nationally for graduate schools of nursing by reputation
Ranked 3rd nationally for certified nurse midwifery MS program
Ranked 5th nationally for community/public health nursing MS progran
Ranked 3rd in NIH funding for nursing
1st U.S. World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborative Centre for Nursing and Midwifery - International Nursing Development in Primary Health Care
*Rankings come from U.S. News & World Report and are based on faculty excellence and productivity, quality of graduates, and school leadership
University of Illinois at Chicago - College of Nursing
