Redefining Health Sciences Education North Central’s advanced clinical practice programs are designed to be different On a Friday evening last December, the first cohort of students in North Central’s master of science in physician assistant studies (MSPAS) program walked across the stage at Wentz Concert Hall in a ceremony that marked completion of two years of continuous coursework and clinical training. It was a milestone for the 31 soon-tobe healthcare practitioners — and for North Central, as well. With the College emerging as a leader in building distinctive graduate-level health sciences programs, the MSPAS program is the latest to graduate an inaugural class. In the next two years, first cohorts of North Centraleducated nurses and doctorate-level physical and occupational therapists will also enter the healthcare workforce.
The portfolio of programs includes numerous points of entry toward completion. Students are from across the country and even the world, and they are often balancing full-time jobs and families. Some enroll as a result of being on a direct-entry pathway — an option for first- and second-year North Central undergraduates who know they will want to continue at the College for graduate school. Others are building on pre-professional undergraduate degrees in the health or life sciences from other institutions, while some are looking to make a mid-career change. No matter their journey to North Central, students can expect to be in high demand once they earn an advanced clinical practice degree from the College.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated healthcare practitioner attrition due to burnout and retirement, and the nation’s changing age demographics will further transform the healthcare landscape as the largest generation in U.S. history — the “Baby Boomers” — continues to age, creating greater demand for care and practitioners. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment across the allied health professions will grow from 2022 to 2032: physician assistants by 27 percent, physical therapists by 15 percent, and occupational therapists by 12 percent. Projected labor shortages in nursing are especially dire. In Illinois, more than half of current registered nurses are over the age of 55, and the Illinois Nursing Workforce Center reports the state will experience an estimated shortfall of nearly 15,000 nurses by 2025. At North Central, expanding into the health sciences was a natural outgrowth given the College’s long and distinguished legacy of undergraduate science education. “Our students would major in a science discipline and then go on to a professional program at another institution,” said Abiódún Gòkè-Pariolá, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We began looking at what it would take to keep them here.” The College’s successful undergraduate program in athletic training, which launched in the mid-1980s, provided a roadmap. Rooted in the liberal arts tradition, it adheres strongly to evidenceContinued on page 14.
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