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Liberal arts college evolves as health industry grows

By Denise Allabaugh

With health sciences becoming the fastest-growing job market in the country, Misericordia University has evolved to meet students' demands, said President Michael MacDowell.

Misericordia University continues to offer liberal arts education and has expanded its offerings in health sciences.

A reason for the expansion, Mr. MacDowell said, is that many believe a college education should provide practical and employable skills and the health sciences offer those skills.

"The current employment rate and rising college debt are enhancing the argument for a practical college education," Mr. MacDowell said. "Finding a good first job is of great concern to those graduating college."

The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows industries and occupations related to health care are projected to have the fastest job growth between 2010 and 2020. The health care and social assistance industry is projected to create about 28 percent of all new jobs created in the U.S. economy.

Misericordia University has a long tradition in offering health sciences, which began with the nursing education it has offered since 1944. That tradition was expanded in 1973 with the introduction of one of the country's only medical imaging programs at a four-year college.

Misericordia's commitment to the health sciences increased with the introduction of undergraduate-plus-master's five-year programs in occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech language pathology.

Last year, the university added another Master of Science program for physician assistants, a career now considered a booming job with rapidly growing employment prospects.

Employment for physician assistants is expected to grow by 39 percent in 2018 from 2008, much faster than the average for all occupations, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

According to Misericordia officials, entry-level annual salaries for physician assistants is about $84,000 for new graduates and the national average salary is more than $100,000. Physician assistants are in hot demand because of the need to cut health care expenses. Although physician assistants don't demand the same salaries or need the same education levels as physicians, they can still treat patients and make diagnoses.

"There are certainly more job openings in health sciences," Mr. MacDowell said. "There are a good number of positions and they have pretty good salaries so we are driven by what students want to major in and they, in turn, are driven by what fields they can do well in and what fields there are jobs."

Driven significantly by its graduate success in the health and medical science fields, Misericordia's enrollment has grown in the last 14 years from about 1,000 students to more than 1,900 full-time students and 1,200 part-time students.

The growth occurred despite declining enrollment trends at similar institutions, said Mr. MacDowell, who is retiring this year as president after more than 15 years in the position.

Last year, when many institutions saw enrollment decline, Misericordia's freshman class increased from 370 students to 510, he said. Forty-five percent of students at Misericordia University are enrolled in health sciences, he said.

"We already had a positive reputation in the field of health sciences. We simply grew that program in conjunction with the demand that students have for the health sciences," Mr. MacDowell said. "We grew into the health sciences. We didn't just invent it. It was natural progress. It was evolution, not revolution."

In the physical therapy and occupational therapy fields, graduates have 100 percent placement in jobs and nursing majors are close to that, Mr. MacDowell said. Many have jobs before they graduate. Medical imaging has a 90 percent job placement within six months, he said.

Despite its expansion in health sciences, Misericordia was founded as and continues to be a liberal arts institution, Mr. MacDowell said. At Misericordia, liberal arts education is effectively combined with practical career orientation and there has not been a trade-off between liberal arts and health sciences, he said.

All Misericordia students are required to complete a core curriculum, which includes courses in philosophy, history, religion, science, mathematics, English and other traditional objects.

"The result of this mixture of liberal arts and professionally focused curriculum is a graduate who is not only employable, but flexible," Mr. MacDowell said. "Misericordia graduates often assume well-paying jobs as practitioners in the health sciences and many other fields. Because of their strong liberal arts background, they are rapidly elevated to management positions in hospitals, rehabilitation facilities and related for-profit and nonprofit businesses."

Contact the writer: dallabaugh@citizensvoice.com


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