About Us
History
Since our founding in 1914, we have evolved into the largest multi-purpose nursing school in the country. We offer a full range of academic degrees in addition to postdoctoral research training and extensive continuing education offerings:
- Bachelor of Science in Nursing
- Statewide RN to BSN Degree Completion Program
- Master of Science in Nursing
- Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing Science
- Doctor of Nursing Practice
Over the last few decades, we have also evolved into a multicampus school, as evidenced by our vital presence on eight Indiana University campuses throughout the state:
- IU Bloomington
- IU East (Richmond)
- IU Kokomo
- IU Northwest (Gary)
- IU South Bend
- IU Southeast (New Albany)
- IUPU Columbus
- IUPUI Indianapolis
The school reflects Indiana University’s charge to deliver quality educational programs, which serve a variety of populations around the state. As such, we are continually striving to balance excellence and access.
In 1922, we founded the Alpha Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International, which has evolved into a quarter-million member nursing honor society that includes practicing nurses, instructors, researchers, policy makers, executives, entrepreneurs, and others. In 1945, our first master’s level nursing courses were offered, with the MSN program becoming fully accredited in 1957. In 1965, nursing was formally recognized as Indiana University’s tenth school and IU Northwest became the first regional campus to offer nursing courses. The Doctor of Nursing Science (DNS) program was approved in 1976, with the first doctoral students admitted in 1978 and the first DNS degree awarded in 1981. Distance education courses were first offered in 1985. The transition from a DNS program to the current PhD program was approved in 1995, with the first PhD students enrolling in 1996. In December 2009, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education approved the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program. This 37-hour post-masters clinical doctorate admitedt its first cohort in fall 2010.
Since our beginnings, we have undergone various stages of growth and development. Moving from the first stage, focused on extending undergraduate nursing education throughout the state, the school entered a second stage of building nursing’s presence on each Indiana University campus. We are currently in a third evolutionary stage of development and are forging multisite partnerships dedicated to the shared commitment of teaching excellence and interactive learning.
