St. John’s University announced the approval from the New York State Education Department of a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Program on the Queens campus on Monday April 11, 2022. Applications for the four-year pre-licensure program are currently being accepted for the first cohort of students to begin in the Fall 2022 semester.
Creating a nursing program is part of the multi-million dollar creation of a Health Sciences building which is scheduled to open Fall 2024. The project, funded by New York’s Fifth Congressional District thanks to federal leaders Representative Gregory W. Meeks and Senator Charles E. Schumer, will include a state-of-the-art Skills and Simulation Center for students to “learn and benefit from simulation training opportunities before their required experiential education and clinical rotations,” University President Brian J. Shanley said in a statement.
“Service is a core value of our University, and the nursing program aims to provide a stellar education within the context of our Catholic and Vincentian mission,” said Shanley.
Freshman chemistry major Metka Kunstelj looks forward to the University’s upcoming projects, and how this upgrade benefits more than just nursing students. “I look forward to all the new laboratories that will be at our disposal, as their new advancements will allow faculty and students to conduct a greater variety of experiments and explore more complex theories in all fields of science.”
“I think this is a very interesting major, which will attract many students who previously may not have thought of applying. Although this is true, I believe that the timing of this announcement is slightly off,” Kunstelj questioned, “as the application process for Fall 2022 is already coming to a close. However, this will give them time to fine tune the program.”
Provost Simon G. Møller, Ph.D. aims to partner the University with local health-care facilities to provide students with direct clinical rotations, he said in a statement. New York City Health + Hospitals, New York-Presbyterian Queens and Catholic Health are among the few in partnership.
The new Health Sciences center will provide students not only with current technology but with new and improved opportunities in the health science field.
