State Board Rules to Limit University’s Enrollment While Nursing Shortage Persists

With the state facing a nursing shortage—and following two days of contentious, passionate discussion from board members, stakeholders, and dozens of public commenters—California’s Board of Registered Nurses decided Nov. 16 to limit the number of nursing students allowed to enroll at Irvine-based West Coast University. The school was previously allowed to enroll 1,500 students annually, split evenly at campuses in Orange County, Los Angeles, and Ontario, California—though numbers swelled to approximately 3,300 by 2023. This triggered the state board to intervene—as all enrollment increases must be approved—with members ultimately voting that the school’s campuses will have until November 2024 to come into compliance, with enrollment limited to no more than 960 students each per year, totaling 2,880 university-wide....