Jacksonville University and Mayo Clinic launch direct-entry master’s nursing track for fall 2026 cohorts

A new graduate-level route into registered nursing

Jacksonville University’s Keigwin School of Nursing and Mayo Clinic in Florida announced Feb. 3, 2026, that they will launch a Direct Entry Master of Science in Nursing program, with the first cohort expected to begin in fall 2026. The program is structured for applicants who already hold a bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing field and want to transition into nursing through a master’s-level pathway.

Program graduates are expected to be eligible to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN), the national licensing exam required to become a registered nurse in the United States. The stated academic focus includes leadership preparation, evidence-based practice and clinical decision-making as part of the master’s curriculum.

Clinical training model centered at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville

A central element of the new track is its clinical education design. Instead of moving students through multiple clinical sites, the program is planned around an immersion approach at Mayo Clinic’s Jacksonville campus. Students are expected to rotate through the same unit and work with designated nurse mentors, a structure intended to provide continuity in day-to-day clinical learning.

The university also described the model as a pipeline approach aimed at strengthening connections between the academic program and the health system, including relationship-building and integration into the clinical environment where students train.

How the partnership fits into regional nursing education

Jacksonville University and Mayo Clinic have collaborated previously on nursing education initiatives. In January 2023, the university announced an expansion of its 12-month Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) track with Mayo Clinic as a clinical partner, using a Dedicated Education Unit model for clinical training at Mayo’s Jacksonville campus. Separately, Mayo Clinic lists Jacksonville University among affiliated schools eligible for nursing clinical education rotations in Florida.

The new direct-entry master’s program adds a graduate-level option to that ecosystem, alongside existing accelerated and traditional routes into nursing offered in the region. The announcement positions the initiative within broader efforts to expand entry points for career changers into the nursing workforce.

Statewide context and enrollment baseline

Nursing education capacity and pathways have become a recurring policy and workforce topic in Florida. Data cited in connection with the new program indicate that, in the 2023–24 period, enrollment in direct-entry master’s nursing programs statewide numbered in the hundreds, compared with enrollment in the tens of thousands for traditional Bachelor of Science in Nursing students.

The new Jacksonville-based option is expected to target a niche audience—college graduates seeking an accelerated transition into registered nursing while pursuing a master’s credential—while emphasizing a clinical training structure designed around sustained placement and mentorship at a single major health system campus.

The first cohort is expected to begin in fall 2026, following the Feb. 3, 2026, announcement by the university and Mayo Clinic in Florida.

• Program: Direct Entry Master of Science in Nursing (registered-nurse pathway for non-nursing bachelor’s degree holders)

• Launch timing: First cohort expected fall 2026

• Clinical setting: Mayo Clinic campus in Jacksonville, with unit-based immersion and designated nurse mentors

• Licensure pathway: Graduates expected to be eligible to sit for the NCLEX-RN