April 9, 1997 For Immediate Release

The September 1997 admission to UNBC's Post-Diploma Nursing Program, which allows holders of a Nursing Diploma to gain a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), is expected to be the final intake. A recommendation will be presented to UNBC's Senate in September 1997 to withdraw this program. The 1997 intake will be for full-time students only. All teaching on the program, for current full-time and part-time students as well as the new students, will have concluded by the year 2002.

The decision results from the introduction of the four-year Collaborative BSN Program, taught by UNBC and the College of New Caledonia, previously announced in September 1996. At the time, UNBC recognized that it had the resources to teach only one degree program in nursing, and, faced with the choice between the two programs, the decision was to go ahead with the UNBC/CNC Collaborative BSN. An announcement was delayed at the request of the Ministry of Education, Skills and Training to give officials the opportunity to determine if other funding could be found to support the Post-Diploma Program. The answer received this week was that in the current financial circumstances, additional funding would not be available. The University appreciates the consideration the Ministry has given to the continuation of the Post-Diploma Program.

Dr Charles Jago, UNBC's President, said: "We had to make the choice between the Post- Diploma Program and the Collaborative BSN Program with considerable regret. The Post-Diploma Program has been a valuable element of UNBC's commitment both to professional upgrading and to meeting the needs of communities beyond Prince George. However, faced with the need to choose, I had no hesitation in supporting the UNBC/CNC Collaborative Program. With the withdrawal of the diploma programs in nursing at Northern Lights College and Northwest Community College, the UNBC/CNC Collaborative BSN is the only entry-level program in nursing in northern British Columbia. Important as the Post-Diploma Program is, the UNBC/CNC Collaborative BSN is of even greater importance to northerners. I am grateful to the Ministry of Education, Skills and Training for providing the necessary funding to wind down the Post-Diploma Program in an orderly way, thus allowing the September 1997 final intake."

Until September, the University will continue to explore opportunities for raising alternate funding, for instance from private foundations, to keep the Post-Diploma Program in existence. Given the substantial income needed, however - in excess of $300,000 per annum - current planning cannot be based on the expectation of a successful outcome.