Online university signs credit transfer agreement with Arizona community college

Online university signs credit transfer agreement with Arizona community college

Authorities with Grand Canyon University, a regionally accredited online education provider, have recently announced that the school has signed a transfer agreement with Arizona-based Cochise College that will provide their nursing graduates with improved access to a bachelors degree program.

GCU will accept up to 84 Cochise College credit hours, which will require graduates of their associates degree program to complete only 36 additional credits to earn a bachelors degree.

"This agreement helps students to plan to further their education beyond Cochise College, and it means better access and enhanced quality of life for our graduates," said Verlyn Fick, Cochise College vice president for instruction.

After one year, students enrolled in the program will be eligible to take the certification exam to become a licensed practical nurse.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, demand for nurses is expected to grow by 23 percent over the next seven years. The top salaries in the field already exceed $83,000 per year.

Labor Department analysts predict that by 2012, a total of 1 million nurses will be needed to care for the aging population, and some 587,000 new nursing jobs will be created nationwide.

By Mark Danson