Great graduate education

Graduate programs in health and business disciplines at James Madison University are ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools 2016” guidebook, according to information released by the magazine March 10.

In the magazine’s first expanded Best Nursing Schools rankings, JMU’s master’s program ranks No. 122, tying with East Tennessee State University, La Salle University, Northern Arizona University and Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville.

U.S. News chose to rank master’s programs in nursing because they account for the largest graduate enrollment in nursing, with about 500 accredited programs. “Nurses with master’s degrees play a vital role in administration, education and management,” according to the magazine’s rankings statement.

Among Best Part-Time MBA Programs, JMU tied at No. 81 with four other schools – Elon University, Gonzaga University, University of Portland and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Among Best Online Programs, JMU’s business program tied for 12th place with Arkansas State University-Jonesboro, Lehigh University and University of Massachusetts-Amherst in 2015 rankings. That information is included in the new guide.

JMU’s doctoral program in audiology, which was ranked in 2012, is also included in the 2016 guidebook. In that analysis, JMU tied for 17th place with Arizona State University, Indiana University-Bloomington and the University of Buffalo-SUNY.

U.S. News annually ranks professional school programs in business, education, engineering, law and medicine. The magazine also periodically ranks programs in the sciences, social sciences and humanities.

The 2016 U.S. News guidebook, with full rankings and data, will be available on newsstands April 7.

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