In 2022, the College of Nursing launched a new program to aid in addressing the nursing shortage—the Master of Science in Nursing–Entry into Practice. The program was designed to provide an accelerated path to a career in nursing for college graduates without a nursing degree. In 20 months, they can become a registered nurse.
The program has proven successful and, thanks to funding from the Iowa legislature, is rapidly growing. The first cohort of 15 students began the program in January 2023, followed by a cohort of 22 in January 2024, and an anticipated January 2025 cohort of 38.
Fourteen members of the inaugural cohort graduated in August 2024, and sat for their licensing exams in September.
Annie Reynolds and Sam Piper, two graduates from the first cohort, came to the program on different paths and at different points in their lives, but leave with a shared passion for nursing and dedication to the field.
Annie Reynolds loved her job as a paramedic but longed for more time with her patients. Looking at other career options in healthcare, she discovered the MSN–EIP program and joined the first cohort.
A resident of Tipton, Iowa, Reynolds had a bachelor’s degree and post-graduate certifications from the University of Iowa, so it seemed like the perfect place to continue her education. She found the idea of earning a master’s degree appealing, as it allowed for future leadership opportunities and pursuit of higher degrees.
She came to the program wanting to see the difference between a hospital environment and the environment she was used to as a paramedic. “Every unit I have gotten to see on the hospital, I’ve absolutely loved,” she says. “I loved the environment and the support in the hospital.”
Reynolds recently accepted a position in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at University of Iowa Health Care. She chose to work in critical care to build on her previous experience.
“I have enjoyed the more critical patients in that more intensive environment already,” she says. “I'm comfortable with the vent because I run them on my own on the ambulance, but all the drips and the titrating that they do is so much more than what I do.”
As for the program, Reynolds was pleasantly surprised at the closeness of her cohort. “We want everybody to succeed so we're always supporting each other and pushing each other to do more, and I think life experience really helps do that,” she says.
All Sam Piper wanted to be when he was young was a gymnast. That dream took him from his hometown of Iowa City, Iowa to the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he competed as a NCAA Division 1 gymnast. Graduating in 2022 with a dual major of government and biology, Piper was at a loss for what to do next. He knew he liked science and working with kids, and when he learned about the MSN–EIP program it seemed like an excellent way to combine his interests into a career.
A member of the program’s first cohort, Piper knew he was in the right place during his first clinical rotation on a cardiac step-down unit.
“That was the first time I really dug into patient pathophysiology with my instructor and saw the real impact nursing can have,” he recalls. “That was a key moment for me in thinking, ‘I want to keep going at this’.”
Piper also explored the world of health policy while in the program. He was selected to attend the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Student Policy Summit in March 2024, where he went on advocacy visits on Capitol Hill with Dean Zerwic. Piper also traveled to Des Moines for Hawkeye Caucus Day, where he spoke with state legislators about the importance of the MSN–EIP program.
In recognition of his above-and-beyond care and compassion, Piper received his cohort’s Daisy in Training Award. He will join the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at University of Iowa Health Care as a staff nurse this fall.
► Read more from the 2024 Iowa Nursing Magazine