The new Columbia International University nursing program is off to a solid start this school year with 41 students.

As the first semester begins to draw to a close, the students in the traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program are testifying as to how God led them into the program and why they are pursing a nursing career.

Jeremy See, who is originally from Ohio, served over two decades in the Air Force as an active-duty intelligence analyst, but wanted a change in career.

“I was actually targeting people and sending guys to go take care of them — to kill or capture,” See said about his role in the military. “But I decided when I retired I wanted to spend the next 20 years instead of taking life, giving life — healing — my next appropriate step.”

Megan Pifer appreciates that at CIU, she is learning nursing from a biblical worldview at a university that also has World Evangelization as a core value.

“Having these tools to train people go into places as the hands and feet of Christ, and to really serve, love and care in a truly tangible way — it’s really neat to learn from that worldview, and to put that into practice in a real way,” Pifer said.

CIU’s online RN to BSN program is also well underway. Among the students is Annabelle Clinton. Learn more from her:  “A really great feeling” — Columbia nurse discusses her CIU online RN to BSN experience.”

The director of CIU Nursing, Dr. Jill McElheny, says CIU’s program is especially needed because of a critical nursing shortage in South Carolina and around the nation.

See more on CIU Nursing and Biomedical Science in this news feature: "Columbia International University helping to combat hospital staffing shortages." 

CIU consistently ranks among the Top Regional Universities in the South by U.S. News & World Report, as well as a Best Value Regional University in the South. Apply now or request information on enrollment by contacting Admissions at (803) 807-5024 or admissions@ciu.edu.