If you already have a bachelor’s degree, a year is all you’ll need to become a nurse at the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center School of Nursing. The school is kicking off a program—already filled with 20 aspiring nurses—this fall in Abilene.

The program will make use of new technology to expedite the education. Students will learn the basics through an Internet-based curriculum with the help of laptops, PDAs, and a simulation lab. When it comes time for clinicals, students will each be paired up with a practicing nurse at Hendrick Medical Center in Abilene.

The school hopes to have at least 20 students in the program going forward, aiming to put a dent in the state’s growing nursing shortage.

Sources: Texas Tech University press release and The Daily Toreador