The partnership will work to address the growing nursing crisis in the United States by helping connect international students interested in nursing to U.S.-based schools and employers

Leawood, KS – Today, ATI Nursing Education, a leading provider of education technology and support to more than 60% of the nation’s undergraduate nursing programs, and inSpring, a groundbreaking minority-owned talent mobility company, are proud to announce a new partnership to help tackle the U.S. nursing shortage. The partnership will support the academic success of  international students  who hope to enter the U.S. healthcare workforce upon earning a degree in nursing. By academically preparing students, connecting candidates to nursing employers, providing vital assistance throughout the hiring process, and fostering the professional growth of international nursing students throughout their educational and professional journeys, this partnership supports the growth and diversification of the professional nursing workforce within the United States.  

The United States faces a severe nursing crisis as hundreds of thousands of qualified nurses retire or leave the profession. Additionally, the pipeline of new nurses entering the field is weakened as nursing schools struggle with their capacity and many students lack the academic preparedness for rigorous nursing education programs. Experts expect this shortage to accelerate in the coming years, pushing hospitals and healthcare providers to the brink as they try to deliver care for an aging population. This challenge will only snowball unless the U.S. quickly lays the foundation to enroll more nursing students nationwide.

Through the partnership, inSpring will identify and screen highly qualified international candidates seeking to become nurses in the United States. These candidates will already have earned a Bachelor’s degree in a health sciences field in their home countries. After inSpring ensures the candidates meet accelerated nursing program requirements, ATI will utilize their educational technology tools to help strengthen students’ skills and help prepare them for the standardized entrance exam used for students applying to be nurses, known as the ATI Test of Essential Academic Skills (TEAS).

The most cited reason for delaying or forgoing applying to nursing school among prospective students was a lack of academic preparedness, according to an ATI Nursing Education survey. ATI’s academic preparation support tools will be vital in helping these students succeed in a U.S.-based nursing program. Upon receiving an acceptable TEAS score, inSpring will work to place students in an Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program at a partnering university in the U.S., enabling students to complete the required intensive education to become a practicing nurse in twelve to sixteen months, as opposed to the typical four-year track. The inaugural cohort of students will begin in summer 2024.

“As the demand for nursing care grows, it will be critical for the United States to support more students—across the country and the world—to enter and thrive in American nursing programs,” said Dr. Patty Knecht, Chief Nursing Officer of Ascend Learning, the parent company of ATI Nursing Education. “ATI looks forward to supporting and preparing these students in their journey to become a registered nurse and bolster the pipeline of new nurses entering and staying in the field.”

“We’re thrilled to be partnering with ATI Nursing Education to support international students who want to become nurses through every step of their journey,” said inSpring co-founder and CEO Chris Hoehn-Saric."  We know that international students can not only do the work, but they want to do the work. These students are historically underutilized, and we’re ready to help facilitate their onboarding into the U.S. nursing workforce."

According to estimates from McKinsey, the U.S. needs to double the number of new nurses entering the workforce every year for three years. However, many employers overlook international job seekers due to their unfamiliarity with the immigration process, creating a missed opportunity for international students eager to help alleviate the nursing shortage. International students seeking further education in the U.S., many of whom want to build on the high-quality healthcare training they received in their home countries, are a proven solution to help narrow the gap between open positions and skilled workers and improve equity in the delivery of care. After graduation, international students on student visas can legally work in the United States for one to three years, depending on their field of study. However, they typically require employer sponsorship to extend their stay. Failure to secure a job and sponsorship promptly can lead to students returning to their home countries, making it difficult for them to pursue employment in the U.S.

The partnership announced today will support international nursing students, their future employers, and the U.S. healthcare system as a whole.

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About ATI Nursing Education

ATI helps create competent, practice-ready nurses who are dedicated to maintaining public safety and ensuring the future of healthcare. As a leading provider of online learning programs for nursing, ATI supports and helps educate future nurses from admissions, throughout undergraduate and graduate nursing school, and via continuing education over the course of their careers. ATI began in 1998 with the aid of a nurse, and ATI’s team of doctorate- and master’s-prepared nurse educators continue to lead the development of ATI’s psychometrically designed and data-driven solutions. These solutions improve faculty effectiveness, fuel student progress, and advance program outcomes in three distinct areas: assessing performance, remediating problem areas, and predicting future student and program success. For nursing school administrators and nurse educators, ATI is the trusted advisor that consistently drives nursing success.

To learn more about ATI, visit www.atitesting.com

About inSpring

With job openings in tech and nursing outpacing an available workforce, inSpring curates a pipeline of high-quality, culturally diverse candidates with advanced degrees and workforce readiness training aligned with the hiring needs of a wide network of employers. inSpring also manages the entirety of the international worker visa process – eliminating a major burden in the hiring process of this underleveraged talent pool – and continues to partner with employers and the candidate long after job placement to ensure a smooth, sustainable transition in their new career.