GSU/PSC Nursing Pathway

GSU/PSC Connection Clears Pathway to a Model Partnership

Governors State University (GSU) and Prairie State College (PSC) announced the beginning of a model partnership that makes it easy for students to enroll at both schools while earning a nursing certificate, associate, and bachelor’s degrees.

The new GSU/PSC Nursing Pathway is a blended degree program that streamlines the administrative processes while offering students the benefits of attending two schools. Students in the Pathway program will learn from PSC and GSU nursing faculty. They can also live on GSU’s campus and have convenient access to the university’s state-of-the-art nursing laboratories.

PSC’s nursing program is highly competitive because of its excellent reputation. Nearly all nursing students who graduate from PSC pass the NCLEX boards with scores higher than the state and national average, making PSC one of the most successful pre-licensure programs in the state of Illinois. Seventy percent of PSC faculty earned a degree from GSU.

At a celebration ceremony on Friday, January 20, 2017, GSU President Elaine P. Maimon said the partnership is the result of creative connectivity, noting that PSC was one of GSU’s original Dual Degree partners. “Now GSU and PSC are cooperating on an additional pathway for nursing students, making maximum use of the resources of both institutions,” said Dr. Maimon.

Students enrolled in the GSU/PSC Nursing pathway program will begin studying full-time during the day at GSU. They are required to apply for the highly competitive AAS Nursing program, and by the fall semester of the second year they will begin taking courses at Prairie State. After earning the nursing certificate and AAS, they will return to GSU to complete the BSN.

PSC President Terri Winfree, a graduate of both PSC and GSU, said the partnership brings her joy, noting that when she attended PSC and GSU there was no pathway. “This is just the beginning and it is revolutionary,” said Dr. Winfree. “We have to be creative and find partnerships with other institutions to find ways that we can all succeed. We want as many opportunities for the students of our region to be successful. In the Chicago Southland, that’s what we do well.”

The first cohort of students enrolled in the GSU/PSC Nursing Pathway program will begin in fall 2017, and students are encouraged to apply early.