"The nursing faculty provide students with real world knowledge and experience that is key to career preparation. They make striving for excellence and class involvmement a fun and rewarding priority."
- Marissa Ellis,
Nursing Student
"Nurses require in-depth knowledge from all areas of health care to be able to practice in today's health care system. The Nursing Program at UMA provides students with up-to-date clinical and laboratory practice and interactive classroom experience to prepare graduates for today's world of Nursing."
- Terry Colby,
Professor of Nursing
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Degree Offered: A.S. and B.S. Completion degree
Offered on the Augusta campus
Approved by the Maine State Board of Nursing and fully accredited by the National League for Nursing, our Nursing program will provide you with outstanding preparation for practice in structured health care settings such as hospitals, nursing care facilities, and community-based agencies. And if you’re already an RN with an Associate's degree, our Bachelor’s completion program is the perfect way for you to advance in your career.
UMA takes great pride in its Nursing Program, which has graduated more than 1,600 RNs over the past 35 years. In virtually every health care facility in central Maine and even around the state, you’ll find UMA-educated nurses filling critically important roles in the delivery of care to patients.
A constant in our 35-year tradition of expertly preparing nursing students is a superb faculty who combine nursing experience and teaching excellence. Like the care they show to patients in the health care setting, our faculty display the same care in the classroom, providing each and every nursing student with the attention and understanding they need to succeed.
Along with its outstanding faculty, UMA boasts a new Nursing Center with expanded classrooms and labs equipped with state of the art equipment. This excellent nurse education center provides an ideal setting for learning, while our relationship with MaineGeneral Hospital and numerous other healthcare facilities provides our students with invaluable hands-on clinical experience.
Our nursing majors graduate well prepared to take the N-CLEX-RN examination for licensure as a registered nurse. Once licensed, they can often choose from among a wide array of rewarding and well compensated options.
UMA’s nursing curriculum’s additional courses in the physical sciences, social sciences, and arts and humanities also prepare our students who may be interested in pursuing a baccalaureate degree. Recently, UMA has introduced its own Bachelor’s Completion program. Designed for RNs with an Associate’s Degree, the program is perfect for nurses who are looking to expand their career opportunities, earn a better salary, explore management positions, prepare for graduate school, and improve patient care.
UMA’s Bachelor’s Completion program increases general knowledge in the physical and social sciences, and also enhances the student’s skills in assessment, patient advocacy, and care management. RNs can enroll in the program as full-time or part-time students.
SKILLS YOU'LL ACQUIRE
UMA’s Nursing program produces caring, competent, knowledgeable professionals who provide an invaluable service to their communities. Clinical, critical thinking and writing skills, along with an understanding of various systems (health care, biological, family, and sociological) are just some of the skills that our nursing students acquire. Additional skills and abilities they possess are listed below.
| Communication | Human Development |
|---|---|
| Facilitating the nurse-patient relationship Teaching Advocating Counseling & interviewing Public speaking Active listening Assessing individual needs | Managing patients throughout lifespan Understanding basic human needs Clarifying values Working with families Sensitivity to diversity Working as a team player |
| Technical | Critical Thinking |
| Critical observations Understanding medical terminology Psychomotor skill development Physical stamina Accuracy with details Planning and organizing | Utilizing the nursing process Working under pressure Setting priorities Applying theory to clinical practice Implementing and evaluating plans Making decisions Identifying ethical dilemmas |
Careers You Can Seek
The selected list below indicates a range of career possibilities. For some occupations listed below, a Bachelor’s degree or graduate level of study may be required.
| Health Care (Traditional Settings) | Health Care (Non-Traditional Settings) |
|---|---|
| Staff Nurse (all areas of care) Clinical Coordinator Supervisor* Charge Nurse Advanced Practitioner* Nurse Practioner, CNS, Midwife* Home Health Care Nurse Office Nurse Infection Control Nurse Enterostomal Therapist* School Nurse Public Health Nurse | Case Manager Biofeedback Therapist* Flight Nurse Day Care Nurse Health Care/Nursing Research* Camp Nurse Parish Nurse Forensic Nurse |
| Education | |
| Nurse Educator Staff Development School Health Coordinator Patient Education Coordinator |
*Baccalaureate or Graduate level study is generally required for these occupations.