A Message from the Dean

On behalf of the faculty and staff of the Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies, it is my pleasure to welcome you to our community. We recognize that you had many choices in selecting your educational path, and we are truly honored that you have chosen Fairfield.

By joining the Egan School, you are becoming part of a community defined by excellence, compassion, and a shared commitment to improving the health and well-being of others. Rooted in the Jesuit tradition, we are guided by cura personalis—care for the whole person—which shapes how we teach, learn, and engage with the world. Here, your education will extend beyond the acquisition of knowledge and skills to the development of judgment, integrity, and a deep sense of purpose.

You are entering the health professions at a pivotal time. Advances in science and technology, alongside growing awareness of health disparities and global challenges, are transforming the future of care. At Egan, you will be prepared not only to navigate this complexity, but to lead within it. Our faculty, recognized for their expertise and commitment, will challenge and support you as you develop the critical thinking, clinical judgment, and confidence essential for your future professional practice.

Your experience will be both rigorous and deeply engaging. Through early and sustained experiential learning across a wide network of clinical and community settings, you will connect what you learn in the classroom to the realities of health care. Just as important are the relationships you will build, with faculty who are invested in your growth, and with peers who will become your colleagues and collaborators.

Throughout your time here, you will be encouraged to reflect, to ask meaningful questions, and to consider the broader impact of your work. Grounded in ethics, communication, service, and global awareness, your education will prepare you to care for individuals and communities with both competence and compassion.

Thank you for choosing Fairfield University and the Egan School. We are excited to support you in this next chapter and confident that your time here will prepare you to make a meaningful difference—both within your profession and beyond.

Welcome to Egan!!

Patricia Simino Boyce, PhD, RN
Dean, Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies

Overview

The goal of the undergraduate program is to prepare students for professional practice. One of the unique features of all undergraduate programs at Fairfield is the strong liberal arts core that is integral to the curriculum. Through these courses, students develop the social awareness, historical consciousness, thinking skills, aesthetic sensibility, values orientation, and foundations in art, literature, and science that are hallmarks of undergraduate education. The program of study contributes to the development of a well-rounded person who is able to live effectively and productively in the world of today and tomorrow. Students grow personally and professionally to become committed and compassionate, capable of intervening professionally in whatever setting they encounter.

The curriculum of the Egan School provides students with educational experiences from which they gain a strong base in the humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and natural sciences as well as in professional theory and practice. Students are fully integrated into the University community and enroll in core courses with students of all majors.

Faculty members in the Egan School are exceptionally well qualified by academic and clinical preparation. The student-to-faculty relationship is an inherent component of the program, particularly as it relates to professional practice. Each student is assigned to a faculty advisor who works closely with students to monitor progression through the program. Academic counseling, individualized attention, and career mentoring are integral to the advisement process.

In the program, students participate in a variety of practicum settings. The Egan School has affiliations with more than 100 agencies, including small and large hospitals, community health agencies, in-patient and out-patient psychiatric institutions, and schools. Opportunities are available in urban and suburban settings, for students to work with people of different cultures, backgrounds, and needs.

The Egan School is housed in the Center for Nursing and Health Studies, which includes academic collaboration, state-of-the-art simulation, integrated learning classrooms, clinical learning environments, a task training laboratory space and classrooms to support our Integrated Health programs. The Center for Nursing and Health Studies reflects the interdisciplinary collaboration on campus of both faculty and students, and provides opportunities for enhanced collaboration through think-tanks, research initiatives, and shared teaching spaces.   

Mission Statement

Consistent with the mission of Fairfield University to develop individuals for others, the Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing and Health Studies inspires students to become leaders across social and healthcare environments. These students are actively engaged with faculty in practice, policy, scholarship and service. As a modern Jesuit institution, a central focus of our care is to improve health outcomes with particular attention to the needs of the underserved or vulnerable populations.

Vision Statement

Our vision is to inspire professional leaders who demonstrate excellence across environments of care. Building on a tradition of caring, our commitment is to provide evidence-based, culturally sensitive interprofessional nursing health studies education that promotes social justice and facilitates reflection and life-long learning.

Purpose Statement

To inspire students to become leaders across social and healthcare environments who improve health outcomes for all, inclusive of underserved or vulnerable populations.

Entry to the Egan School after Matriculation at Fairfield University

Fairfield University students who are currently enrolled in any major have the opportunity to change their major to a program in the Egan School.

Incoming first year students may not enter the Egan School to pursue nursing during their first year. Following their first year, students enrolled in any other major can meet with the Second Degree Program Director to discuss a transfer into nursing after their Junior year. Transfers must meet the following  academic requirements:

Students must have an overall GPA of 3.00 or above, successfully completed Fairfield University core requirements and completed prerequisite courses with a grade of B or better. Nursing classes will begin in the summer between junior and senior year. Students will join the accelerated nursing program students, maintaining their full-time undergraduate status, and graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree in August following their senior year.  Current Fairfield University students who are interested in this opportunity should reach out to the Second Degree Nursing Program Director (Fairfield campus).