New College of Professional Studies Site Now Live; Accepting Applications

Carson-Newman University’s College of Professional Studies (CPS) is now taking applications from interested students for its inaugural class, slated to start in August 2022.

Applicants can find all the information needed to take the next step in their education and professional careers on the CPS’ brand-new admissions website: achieve.cn.edu

The College of Professional Studies allows C-N to reach new markets with a student-focused, Christ-centered education and opens its digital doors this coming fall semester with eight programs, offered all online.

The CPS offers three undergraduate degrees: a Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Professional Studies, and a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership.

Five advanced degrees are also available: an MBA, a Master of Education, Education Specialist (EdS), Doctor of Nursing Practice, and Doctor of Education (PhD).

“The CPS is designed to provide working adults, as well as aspiring and emerging leaders already in the workforce, access to online Christian higher education,” says C-N Provost Jeremy J. Buckner. “These potential students have a need for education and training in either micro-credentials or degrees to make them more competitive in the market.”

Dr. Ryan Baltrip, dean of C-N’s College of Professional Studies, says he is excited about offering innovative programming to a new group of students.

“We will be serving a diverse array of adults in all stages of life,” Baltrip said. “We will be encouraging all our students to reach their full potential and equipping them to be servant-leaders who are prepared to impact their workplaces, their communities and the world.”

CPS is driven by innovation, bringing current best practices for online and hybrid education as well as distance education. It allows for future expansion into other markets and allow the University to be nimble and responsive to current demands within the workforce, meeting working professionals where they are. But what it will not do, according to the provost, is compromise the University’s commitment to its Christian mission.

“We will remain faithful and intentional to our Christian convictions with what we are doing,” Buckner said. “Ultimately, the CPS is how we want to give expression to our vision to be a Christian liberal arts-based university of choice in the Southeast for education and service.”

Though it is adding the CPS to its current educational opportunities, Buckner says that what Carson-Newman has long been noted for will remain unchanged.

“The heart of our mission is providing educational and spiritual formation through traditional, residential undergraduate programming. That is who Carson-Newman is and what we do.”

University President Charles A. Fowler went even further.

“Our faculty have built a strong traditional, liberal arts-based education. We are not moving away from this,” stressed Fowler. “In fact, the CPS is intended to strengthen and further enhance the Christ-centered, liberal arts education that is a hallmark of the Carson-Newman experience.

Founded in 1851, Carson-Newman is a Christian liberal arts-based university affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention. The University is located in Jefferson City, Tennessee, among the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. The University offers 50 undergraduate majors, as well as associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate degrees.