Marquette University Nursing celebrates 90 years in 2026. Explore how the college grew from Wisconsin's first four-year Bachelor of Science in nursing program into a leader in graduate nursing education, then learn how today's Direct Entry MSN helps non-nurses join that continuing legacy.
In September 1936, 23 students enrolled in a new four-year nursing program at Marquette University. The program was the first of its kind in Wisconsin. Ninety years later, Marquette University has educated thousands of nurses who have carried the university's values into health care settings in Milwaukee and across the country.
Marquette’s college of nursing continues to create new paths into the profession, including its Direct Entry Master of Science in Nursing (DE-MSN) program, which allows qualified students with a non-nursing bachelor's degree to build on their previous education and prepare for a career in nursing.
A 90-Year Story of Nursing Education and Service
The formal Marquette College of Nursing began in 1936, but the university's connection to nursing reaches back further. In 1912, Marquette acquired the Trinity Hospital Training School for Nursing and began offering a three-year nursing certificate. More than two decades later, the university established Wisconsin's first four-year Bachelor of Science in nursing program.
In 1939, Marquette became the first nursing school in Wisconsin to offer a master's-level nursing education. That early commitment to graduate study would become one of the defining threads in the college's history.
The nursing profession has evolved over the past 90 years, adding specialties, incorporating new technologies, and enabling nurses to take on broader roles in leadership, research, education and policy. Marquette Nursing has grown with it and continues to emphasize thoughtful leadership, ethical care and service to others.
Expanding What Nursing Education Could Become
Throughout its history, Marquette’s nursing school has responded to changing community needs. During World War II, for example, the college developed an accelerated program for cadet nurses as the country faced an urgent demand for trained professionals. In later decades, Marquette expanded continuing education and graduate opportunities as nursing roles became more specialized.
Several developments helped broaden the college's reach. Nurse practitioner and nurse-midwifery programs were established in 1993. The Institute for Natural Family Planning followed in 1998. In 2003, Marquette established a doctoral program, further strengthening its role in preparing nurses to contribute to research, scholarship and leadership.
In the university's 90th anniversary announcement, College of Nursing Dean Dr. Jill Guttormson described the college as "a cornerstone of health care both in Milwaukee and across the country." She also emphasized the qualities associated with Marquette nurses, including critical thinking, whole-person care and advocacy for people who are vulnerable.
Those qualities connect the college's earliest years with its work today. They also reflect Marquette's Catholic, Jesuit tradition, which calls students to consider not only what they know, but how they will use that knowledge in service to others.
Building for the Next Generation of Marquette Nurses
As nursing education has become more technologically advanced and collaborative, students need places where they can practice clinical skills and judgment, work in teams and learn from realistic patient care scenarios.
In 2023, the Direct Entry MSN program site in Pleasant Prairie moved into a larger facility. The expanded space includes simulation and skills labs, classrooms, enhanced technology and areas designed to help students and faculty connect.
The College of Nursing moved into David A. Straz, Jr., Hall on Marquette's Milwaukee campus. The renovated 103,000-square-foot building opened in 2024 and brought undergraduate nursing education, faculty offices, study areas and advanced simulation resources into a new home.
Together, the Pleasant Prairie facility and Straz Hall reflect the college's investment in how future nurses learn. The scale of the college has changed along with its physical spaces. In 2026, Marquette reported nearly 900 undergraduate nursing students and nearly 600 graduate students across its Milwaukee campus and Pleasant Prairie program site.
Learn what helps new nurses transition to professional practice.
Continuing the Legacy Through the Direct Entry MSN
The Direct Entry MSN program is designed for people who already hold a non-nursing bachelor's degree. Instead of earning a second bachelor's degree, qualified students can use their previous education as the starting point for a master's-level nursing curriculum. In spring 2026, the Pleasant Prairie site welcomed its 20th cohort, marking 10 years of helping career changers move toward nursing at the location.
Students may choose a five-semester option or an eight-semester extended option. Both follow a curriculum that combines three main components:
- Nursing theory coursework
- On-site skills and simulation labs
- Clinical rotations at health care facilities
The two locations offer different learning formats. Nursing theory courses are predominately online for Pleasant Prairie cohorts and predominately in person for Milwaukee cohorts.
Students learn to bring together evidence, clinical skills, ethical judgment and an understanding of the whole person. They also study subjects such as leadership, health care advocacy, quality and patient safety, informatics and population health.
For career changers, joining a college with a long nursing history can provide meaningful context. The program they enter today is part of an institution that has adapted to the profession for nine decades. Its graduates have worked at the bedside and beyond.
Admission to the program requires a conferred non-nursing bachelor's degree, completion of any necessary prerequisites and a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 in the bachelor's degree. Completing the program prepares graduates to sit for the NCLEX-RN licensure exam.
Become Part of Marquette Nursing's Next Chapter
Marquette Nursing's 90th anniversary honors the people who built the college and the nurses who have carried its mission forward. It also invites future students to consider the role they may play in the years ahead.
If you have a non-nursing bachelor's degree and are considering a career change, the Direct Entry MSN offers a path to build nursing knowledge and clinical skills and launch your nursing career. Request information to connect with an admissions adviser and learn more about program options, prerequisites and the application process.