WesternU Oregon receives approval for new Master of Science in Nursing-Entry program
The future of nursing demands compassionate, practice-ready clinicians who can lead, collaborate, and respond to the evolving needs of diverse patient populations. Meeting this moment requires innovative pathways into nursing education that are designed for today’s realities. Western University of Health Sciences’ new Master of Science in Nursing-Entry (MSN-E) program on the Oregon campus will meet this need by preparing students from non-nursing backgrounds to enter the profession with a strong foundation in clinical excellence, collaborative leadership, and humanistic care.
While this will be the College of Graduate Nursing’s (CGN) first program on the Oregon campus, it is grounded in the University’s established history of delivering high-quality nursing education through eight programs on the Pomona campus and a network of more than 1,000 alumni nationwide.
“The launch of our MSN-E program in Oregon reflects WesternU’s deep commitment to preparing compassionate, practice-ready health professionals who are equipped to meet the evolving needs of patients and communities,” said WesternU Provost Paula Crone, DO ‘92. “This milestone represents an important expansion of the College of Graduate Nursing’s presence in the Pacific Northwest and reinforces our long-standing partnership with Oregon. Most importantly, this program strengthens the health care workforce pathways, particularly for rural and medically underserved communities, by educating nurses who are trained to lead, collaborate, and serve where they are needed most.”
CGN will seat its inaugural MSN-E Oregon class in Fall 2027. The program will prepare future nurses to lead at the bedside and beyond, excelling in the coordination of compassionate patient care while advancing systemic improvements in health care delivery. The curriculum is designed to equip students with the skills and adaptability to meet the evolving demands of today’s complex health care system.
“We have met with chief nursing officers throughout the Willamette Valley and asked them what they want in a future nurse, and we’re revising our curriculum to meet their needs,” said CGN Dean Mary Lopez, PhD, MSN, RN.
While Oregon faces a statewide nursing shortage, reports from the Oregon Health Authority and Oregon Health Policy Board show that rural and remote communities consistently experience an even greater burden of unmet health care needs (Oregon’s Health Care Workforce Needs Assessment 2025).
“Meeting the needs of our community is one of the priorities in our program,” said CGN Assistant Professor and MSN-E Program Director Michael Marinello DNP, RN, FNP. “One of the things that we’ve found in Oregon is that they’re asking for, what I’m calling, the ‘rural nurse.’ A nurse that, if they’re in the ER, can meet the needs of multiple types of populations based on the fact that they are at a critical care access hospital. There are ER patients we have who may be in the process of giving birth, so we need an ER nurse that can not only do the ER things but can also do labor and delivery care.”
For more information about the Oregon-based MSN-E program, please contact Program Director Dr. Michael Marinello at mmarinello@westernu.edu.
