Rutgers School of Nursing
As one of the nation's largest, most comprehensive nursing schools, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, School of Nursing is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in education, research, evidence-based health care delivery, and promotion of community health. The School of Nursing includes more than 100 full-time faculty, 85 staff, and 1,563 students (approximately 64% are undergraduate and 36% are graduate students), more than 12,000 alumni with campus locations in Newark, New Brunswick, and Blackwood, New Jersey. According to U.S. News & World Report's 2024 Best Nursing Schools Rankings, our undergraduate program is ranked #31 in the nation (#1 in New Jersey) and our Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) programs are ranked #5 and #14, respectively, in the nation. Furthermore, Rutgers School of Nursing is one of the more diverse nursing schools in the country: A total 67% of the School of Nursing's student body across degree programs, are students of color.
Rutgers School of Nursing, as we know it today, was formed as the result of the 2014 integration of Rutgers University's College of Nursing and the former University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey's (UMDNJ) School of Nursing.
Merger of the College of Nursing and School of Nursing
On June 28, 2012, the New Jersey state legislature passed a bill that dissolved UMDNJ and merged most of its schools with Rutgers University, effective July 1, 2013. As a result of the merger, in 2013 there were three nursing programs within Rutgers University operating in four geographic locations (Newark, New Brunswick, Camden, and Stratford). University and nursing leadership evaluated nursing education and decided that the most effective way forward for current and future students, as well as nursing in the state of New Jersey, was the formation of two distinct and separate nursing schools: one of which is the Rutgers School of Nursing the other is the School of Nursing-Camden. The new Rutgers School of Nursing, created on July 1, 2014, as a merger of the former Rutgers College of Nursing with the Newark campus of the former UMDNJ School of Nursing, started admitting students in the fall of 2014.
While the Rutgers School of Nursing is considered a new school, the merger of the former Rutgers College of Nursing and the former UMDNJ School of Nursing brought together two programs that have over 100 years of collective experience and history in offering nursing education in the state of New Jersey.
Former Rutgers College of Nursing
Rutgers had been involved in the education of nurses since the early 1940s, when the Newark and Camden campuses offered courses in public health nursing. The nursing program at the Rutgers University-Newark was established in 1952 with funds allocated by the governor. In 1955, the School of Nursing received accreditation by the National League for Nursing and on March 6, 1956, became the College of Nursing. Key milestones included:
- Establishment of the nation's first clinical nurse specialist graduate program in psychiatric nursing in 1956.
- Establishment of three graduate clinical programs in community health nursing, parent/child nursing, and medical/surgical nursing in 1974.
- Establishment of the registered nurse to bachelor of science in nursing program in 1980.
- Establishment of the undergraduate nursing program on the Rutgers University-New Brunswick campus in 1983.
- Approval of the first Ph.D. program in nursing by the New Jersey Board of Higher Education in 1989; the doctorate of nursing practice (D.N.P.) was implemented in 2007.
Former University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) School of Nursing
The School of Nursing of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey began as an academic program in 1990 and was established on December 10, 1992. The School of Nursing offered a comprehensive program of education, research, and clinical practice grounded in the ideals of excellence, innovation, and service. By 2012 the school had an enrollment of 1635 students and was the state's largest program of graduate nursing education. Its commitment to leadership resulted in many "firsts":
- Establishment of New Jersey's first D.N.P. program.
- Establishment of one of the nation's first clinical nurse leader master's degree programs.
- Establishment of the state's only nurse-managed, interdisciplinary mobile health program, which later grew into a federally-funded Community Health Center.
The School of Nursing also housed, and brought to the merger, the François-Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Center. Grounded in their history as leaders in family-centered HIV health care, the FXB Center at the Rutgers School of Nursing serves communities that are at greatest risk for health inequities. The FXB Center works to achieve this mission through translation of findings to practice and policy, education, and research.
About the School of Nursing 
