Citrus College has partnered with Azusa Pacific University to start an integrative nursing program, which kicked off this fall semester.
This program allows nursing pathway students, if accepted, to enroll in Citrus for their associate degree in nursing while pursuing their Bachelor’s of Science in nursing from APU at the same time.
Through this program, students accepted can graduate with a bachelor’s in about two-and-a-half years, that’s a year-and-a-half less than a normal bachelor’s program.
“Finishing both associates and our bachelors in two-and-a-half years is definitely a good deal and saves us money compared to doing another two-year bachelor course,” Integrative student Josephine Chan said.
The planning had been in the works since 2023, when departments from both schools came together to decide how they would work together in terms of the students.
Factors such as financial aid, student tracking, student records and progress monitoring all needed to be considered.
Students who apply and meet the prerequisites for the associate program and certain criteria will be considered as eligible applicants for the integrative program.
APU will honor all the prerequisites that Citrus has for the associate degree in nursing program.
Once the students complete the bachelor’s from APU through this integrative program, their bachelor degrees would be as accepted as any bachelor degrees.
“A lot of hospitals are requiring students to have BSN(the Bachelor of Science in nursing), so we want our students to get BSN as well so they could be more marketable,” the director of health sciences at Citrus College, Salima Allahbachayo said.
Allahbachayo said students who already have their ADN and want their BSN could apply for this program.
“This program saves them a lot of money, as tuition at community college is more affordable compared to any four-year institution,” Allahbachayo said.
Now, five students are participating in the Integrative ADN/BSN Pathway Program.
The concurrent enrollment students are taking nine units at Citrus and four units at APU for the first semester.
“The first few days were kind of stressful, but after, we had a meeting with Dr. Allahbachayo, where she gave us study tips, and I felt like that really relieved a lot of stress,” Integrative pathway student Joshua Puente said.
The APU classes that the students are taking for the fall semester are all online and are eight-week courses.
“We should finish our degree and attend a pinning ceremony at APU in December of 2026,” integrative pathway student Jair Mejia said.
A bachelor’s degree in nursing opens more doors in the employment industry than an associate degree in nursing would, as more hospitals require bachelor’s degrees to achieve Magnet status.
Magnet status is a recognition program for healthcare facilities who prioritize nurses and provide excellent care. These hospitals set the standard for ideal health care working environments and motivate hospitals to hire qualified staff.
“We want to make sure that when our students graduate they are not limited anywhere they choose to seek employment,” Allahbachayo said.
