University of Southern Mississippi Online Nursing and MBA Programs Highly Ranked by U.S. News & World Report
Mon, 02/05/2018 - 11:26am | By: Tara Burcham
U.S. News & World Report has ranked the nation's best online higher education programs and The University of Southern Mississippi's online Nursing and Master of Business Administration (MBA) programs have received high praise.
“Our faculty are dedicated to excellence in our online degree programs,” said Dr. Tom Hutchinson, director of the Office of Online Learning at Southern Miss. “They provide online students interaction with their instructors and classmates and are accessible and responsive to their students, whether they are in Mississippi or across the nation.”
U.S. News & World Report ranks online degree programs according to five categories,
- student engagement,
- admissions selectivity,
- peer reputation,
- faculty credentials and training, and
- student services and technology.
The online nursing program has been ranked #58 in Best Online Graduate Nursing Programs.
Dr. Lachel Story, interim associate dean and director of the School of Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice in the College of Nursing, says the recognition from U.S. News & World Report is one the nursing faculty have worked hard to achieve. “The ranking is truly the result of the exemplary work of our faculty and their commitment to offer exceptional programs that graduate advanced practice nurse who provide superior healthcare in our state and region.”
Following the success of increased enrollment and continuous faculty efforts to improve the program, the online MBA from The University of Southern Mississippi was included in the rankings for the first time.
Dr. Faye Gilbert, dean of the College of Business, says they are constantly working to improve the technology with which business education is delivered to Southern Miss students, including having a distance learning lecture hall. “Faculty in business excel in creating learning experiences that are relevant. It is great to see U.S. News acknowledge this relatively new online MBA as it reinforces the genuine value of our program for our students and their organizations.”
The University is committed to development of high-quality online programs to reach new student populations, according to Dr. Amy Chasteen Miller, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs.
“We are proud of the hard work our faculty members do to provide access to quality degree programs for a broader range of the public than we can serve on our physical campuses,” Miller said. “Many people want or need to complete an undergraduate or graduate degree, but are unable to attend traditional face-to-face classes. We are meeting the needs of those students with exceptionally strong, fully online courses and programs.”
The University of Southern Mississippi offers 14 undergraduate degrees and 27 graduate programs fully online. To learn more about the online programs at Southern Miss, visit https://online.usm.edu/