NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

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Mount Carmel College of Nursing boasts one of the largest baccalaureate programs among Ohio private college nursing programs. Our small classes, personal attention, diverse student body, and affiliation with Mount Carmel Health System, one of the largest healthcare providers in central Ohio, all contribute to a rich and diverse educational experience that prepares students to competently and confidently assume the role of a professional nurse.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

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Baccalaureate Nursing Program Outcomes
The undergraduate program prepares a graduate who:

Applies the knowledge of the relationship of the physical and social sciences and humanities as a basis for professional nursing.
Exhibits the values of dignity of persons, service to others, social justice, altruism, autonomy, and integrity in the care of clients.
Practices culturally competent caring behaviors.
Uses evidence-based practice to promote the health of clients;
Incorporates professional behaviors within one’s role as a member of the nursing profession and society;
Implements the nursing process to maximize the health outcomes of clients through the use of evidence based practice;
Implements the communication process within the professional role;NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Uses leadership skills to design, provide, coordinate, and manage health care in the achievement of safety and quality in client care;
Collaborates with interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams to provide quality care for clients through the efficient management of resources;
Implements critical thinking; and
Demonstrates clinical competence in a variety of settings with diverse populations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Four options are available that will lead to a BSN degree:
Traditional Four-Year Program
Designed for students without previous nursing experience.

Advanced Placement Program
Enables students with the right coursework to complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree in five semesters.

Second Degree Accelerated Program
An accelerated 13-month program for students who already have a baccalaureate or advanced degree.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Online RN-BSN Completion Program
A dedicated program for registered nurses who want to further their education.

View our Undergraduate Handbook for more information.

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Doctoral programs in nursing fall into two principal types: research-focused and practicefocused. Most research-focused programs grant the Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD),
while a small percentage offers the Doctor of Nursing Science degree (DNS, DSN, or
DNSc). Designed to prepare nurse scientists and scholars, these programs focus heavily
on scientific content and research methodology; and all require an original research
project and the completion and defense of a dissertation or linked research papers.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Practice-focused doctoral programs are designed to prepare experts in specialized
advanced nursing practice. They focus heavily on practice that is innovative and
evidence-based, reflecting the application of credible research findings. The two types of
doctoral programs differ in their goals and the competencies of their graduates. They
represent complementary, alternative approaches to the highest level of educational
preparation in nursing.
The concept of a practice doctorate in nursing is not new. However, this course of study
has evolved considerably over the 20 years since the first practice-focused nursing
doctorate, the Doctor of Nursing (ND), was initiated as an entry-level degree. Because
research- and practice-focused programs are distinctly different, the current position of
the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN, 2004) [detailed in the Position
Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing] is that: “The two types of doctorates,
research-focused and practice-focused, may coexist within the same education unit” and
that the practice-focused degree should be the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).
Recognizing the need for consistency in the degrees required for advanced nursing
practice, all existing ND programs have transitioned to the DNP.
Comparison Between Research-Focused and Practice-Focused Doctoral Education
Research- and practice-focused doctoral programs in nursing share rigorous and
demanding expectations: a scholarly approach to the discipline, and a commitment to the
advancement of the profession. Both are terminal degrees in the discipline, one in
practice and one in research. However, there are distinct differences between the two
degree programs. For example, practice-focused programs understandably place greater
emphasis on practice, and less emphasis on theory, meta-theory, research methodology,
and statistics than is apparent in research-focused programs. Whereas all researchfocused programs require an extensive research study that is reported in a dissertation or
through the development of linked research papers, practice-focused doctoral programs
generally include integrative practice experiences and an intense practice immersion
experience.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.  Rather than a knowledge-generating research effort, the student in a practicefocused program generally carries out a practice application-oriented “final DNP
project,” which is an integral part of the integrative practice experience.

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AACN Task Force on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing
The AACN Task Force to Revise Quality Indicators for Doctoral Education found that
the Indicators of Quality in Research-Focused Doctoral Programs in Nursing are
applicable to doctoral programs leading to a PhD or a DNS degree (AACN, 2001b, p. 1).
Therefore, practice-focused doctoral programs will need to be examined separately from
research-focused programs. This finding coupled with the growing interest in practice
doctorates prompted the establishment of the AACN Task Force on the Practice
Doctorate in Nursing in 2002. This task force was convened to examine trends in
practice-focused doctoral education and make recommendations about the need for and
nature of such programs in nursing. Task force members included representatives from
universities that already offered or were planning to offer the practice doctorate, from
universities that offered only the research doctorate in nursing, from a specialty
professional organization, and from nursing service administration. The task force was
charged to describe patterns in existing practice-focused doctoral programs; clarify the
purpose of the practice doctorate, particularly as differentiated from the research
doctorate; identify preferred goals, titles, and tracks; and identify and make
recommendations about key issues. Over a two-year period, this task force adopted an
inclusive approach that included: 1) securing information from multiple sources about
existing programs, trends and potential benefits of a practice doctorate; 2) providing
multiple opportunities for open discussion of related issues at AACN and other
professional meetings; and 3) subjecting draft recommendations to discussion and input
from multiple stakeholder groups. The final position statement was approved by the
AACN Board of Directors in March 2004 and subsequently adopted by the membership.
The 2004 DNP position statement calls for a transformational change in the education
required for professional nurses who will practice at the most advanced level of nursing.
The recommendation that nurses practicing at the highest level should receive doctoral
level preparation emerged from multiple factors including the expansion of scientific
knowledge required for safe nursing practice and growing concerns regarding the quality
of patient care delivery and outcomes. Practice demands associated with an increasingly
complex health care system created a mandate for reassessing the education for clinical
practice for all health professionals, including nurses.
A significant component of the work by the task force that developed the 2004 position
statement was the development of a definition that described the scope of advanced
nursing practice. Advanced nursing practice is broadly defined by AACN (2004) as:
any form of nursing intervention that influences health care outcomes for
individuals or populations, including the direct care of individual patients,
management of care for individuals and populations, administration of
nursing and health care organizations, and the development and
implementation of health policy. (p. 2)
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Furthermore, the DNP position statement (AACN, 2004, p. 4) identifies the benefits of
practice focused doctoral programs as:
• development of needed advanced competencies for increasingly complex practice,
faculty, and leadership roles;
• enhanced knowledge to improve nursing practice and patient outcomes;
• enhanced leadership skills to strengthen practice and health care delivery;
• better match of program requirements and credits and time with the credential
earned;
• provision of an advanced educational credential for those who require advanced
practice knowledge but do not need or want a strong research focus (e.g., practice
faculty);
• enhanced ability to attract individuals to nursing from non-nursing backgrounds;
and
• increased supply of faculty for practice instruction.
As a result of the membership vote to adopt the recommendation that the nursing
profession establish the DNP as its highest practice degree, the AACN Board of
Directors, in January 2005, created the Task Force on the Essentials of Nursing
Education for the Doctorate of Nursing Practice and charged this task force with
development of the curricular expectations that will guide and shape DNP education.
The DNP Essentials Task Force is comprised of individuals representing multiple
constituencies in advanced nursing practice (see Appendix B). The task force conducted
regional hearings from September 2005 to January 2006 to provide opportunities for
feedback from a diverse group of stakeholders. These hearings were designed using an
iterative process to develop this document. In total, 620 participants representing 231
educational institutions and a wide variety of professional organizations participated in
the regional meetings. Additionally, a national stakeholders’ conference was held in
October 2005 in which 65 leaders from 45 professional organizations participated.
Context of Graduate Education in Nursing
Graduate education in nursing occurs within the context of societal demands and needs as
well as the interprofessional work environment. The Institute of Medicine (IOM, 2003)
and the National Research Council of the National Academies (2005, p. 74) have called
for nursing education that prepares individuals for practice with interdisciplinary,
information systems, quality improvement, and patient safety expertise.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
In hallmark reports, the IOM (1999, 2001, 2003) has focused attention on the state of
health care delivery, patient safety issues, health professions education, and leadership for
nursing practice. These reports highlight the human errors and financial burden caused
by fragmentation and system failures in health care. In addition, the IOM calls for
dramatic restructuring of all health professionals’ education. Among the
recommendations resulting from these reports are that health care organizations and
6
groups promote health care that is safe, effective, client-centered, timely, efficient, and
equitable; that health professionals should be educated to deliver patient-centered care as
members of an interdisciplinary team, emphasizing evidence-based practice, quality
improvement, and informatics; and, that the best prepared senior level nurses should be in
key leadership positions and participating in executive decisions.
Since AACN published The Essentials of Master’s Education for Advanced Practice
Nursing in 1996 and the first set of indicators for quality doctoral nursing education in
1986, several trends in health professional education and health care delivery have
emerged. Over the past two decades, graduate programs in nursing have expanded from
220 institutions offering 39 doctoral programs and 180 master’s programs in 1986 to 518
institutions offering 101 doctoral programs and 417 master’s programs in 2006.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Increasing numbers of these programs offer preparation for certification in advanced
practice specialty roles such as nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, nurse anesthetists,
and clinical nurse specialists. Specialization is also a trend in other health professional
education. During this same time period, the explosion in information, technology, and
new scientific evidence to guide practice has extended the length of educational programs
in nursing and the other health professions. In response to these trends, several other
health professions such as pharmacy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, and
audiology have moved to the professional or practice doctorate for entry into these
respective professions.
Further, support for doctoral education for nursing practice was found in a review of
current master’s level nursing programs (AACN, 2004, p. 4). This review indicated that
many programs already have expanded significantly in response to the above concerns,
creating curricula that exceed the usual credit load and duration for a typical master’s
degree. The expansion of credit requirements in these programs beyond the norm for a
master’s degree raises additional concerns that professional nurse graduates are not
receiving the appropriate degree for a very complex and demanding academic experience.
Many of these programs, in reality, require a program of study closer to the curricular
expectations for other professional doctoral programs rather than for master’s level study.
Relationships of Master’s, Practice Doctorate, and Research Doctorate Programs
The master’s degree (MSN) historically has been the degree for specialized advanced
nursing practice. With development of DNP programs, this new degree will become the
preferred preparation for specialty nursing practice. As educational institutions transition
from the master’s to DNP degree for advanced practice specialty preparation, a variety of
program articulations and pathways are planned. One constant is true for all of these
models. The DNP is a graduate degree and is built upon the generalist foundation
acquired through a baccalaureate or advanced generalist master’s in nursing. The
Essentials of Baccalaureate Education (AACN, 1998) summarizes the core knowledge
and competencies of the baccalaureate prepared nurse. Building on this foundation, the
DNP core competencies establish a base for advanced nursing practice in an area of
specialization. Ultimately, the terminal degree options in nursing will fall into two
7
primary education pathways: professional entry degree (baccalaureate or master’s) to
DNP degree or professional entry degree (baccalaureate or master’s) to PhD degree. As
in other disciplines with practice doctorates, some individuals may choose to combine a
DNP with a PhD.
Regardless of the entry point, DNP curricula are designed so that all students attain DNP
end-of-program competencies. Because different entry points exist, the curricula must be
individualized for candidates based on their prior education and experience. For
example, early in the transition period, many students entering DNP programs will have a
master’s degree that has been built on AACN’s Master’s Essentials. Graduates of such
programs would already have attained many of the competencies defined in the DNP
Essentials. Therefore, their program will be designed to provide those DNP
competencies not previously attained. If a candidate is entering the program with a nonnursing baccalaureate degree, his/her program of study likely will be longer than a
candidate entering the program with a baccalaureate or master’s in nursing. While
specialty advanced nursing education will be provided at the doctoral level in DNP
programs, new options for advanced generalist master’s education are being developed.
DNP Graduates and Academic Roles
Nursing as a practice profession requires both practice experts and nurse scientists to
expand the scientific basis for patient care. Doctoral education in nursing is designed to
prepare nurses for the highest level of leadership in practice and scientific inquiry. The
DNP is a degree designed specifically to prepare individuals for specialized nursing
practice, and The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice
articulates the competencies for all nurses practicing at this level.
In some instances, individuals who acquire the DNP will seek to fill roles as educators
and will use their considerable practice expertise to educate the next generation of nurses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
As in other disciplines (e.g., engineering, business, law), the major focus of the
educational program must be on the area of practice specialization within the discipline,
not the process of teaching. However, individuals who desire a role as an educator,
whether that role is operationalized in a practice environment or the academy, should
have additional preparation in the science of pedagogy to augment their ability to
transmit the science of the profession they practice and teach. This additional preparation
may occur in formal course work during the DNP program.
Some teaching strategies and learning principles will be incorporated into the DNP
curriculum as it relates to patient education. However, the basic DNP curriculum does
not prepare the graduate for a faculty teaching role any more than the PhD curriculum
does. Graduates of either program planning a faculty career will need preparation in
teaching methodologies, curriculum design and development, and program evaluation.
This preparation is in addition to that required for their area of specialized nursing
practice or research in the case of the PhD graduate.

8

The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice
The following DNP Essentials outline the curricular elements and competencies that
must be present in programs conferring the Doctor of Nursing Practice degree. The DNP
is a degree title, like the PhD or MSN, and does not designate in what specialty a
graduate is prepared. DNP graduates will be prepared for a variety of nursing practice
roles. The DNP Essentials delineated here address the foundational competencies that are
core to all advanced nursing practice roles. However, the depth and focus of the core
competencies will vary based on the particular role for which the student is preparing.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
For example, students preparing for organizational leadership or administrative roles will
have increased depth in organizational and systems’ leadership; those preparing for
policy roles will have increased depth in health care policy; and those preparing for APN
roles (nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse anesthetists, and nurse
midwives) will have more specialized content in an area of advanced practice nursing.
Additionally, it is important to understand that the delineation of these competencies
should not be interpreted to mean that a separate course for each of the DNP Essentials
should be offered. Curricula will differ in emphases based on the particular specialties
for which students are being prepared.
The DNP curriculum is conceptualized as having two components:
1. DNP Essentials 1 through 8 are the foundational outcome competencies deemed
essential for all graduates of a DNP program regardless of specialty or functional
focus.
2. Specialty competencies/content prepare the DNP graduate for those practice and
didactic learning experiences for a particular specialty. Competencies, content,
and practica experiences needed for specific roles in specialty areas are
delineated by national specialty nursing organizations.
The DNP Essentials document outlines and defines the eight foundational Essentials and
provides some introductory comments on specialty competencies/content. The
specialized content, as defined by specialty organizations, complements the areas of core
content defined by the DNP Essentials and constitutes the major component of DNP
programs. DNP curricula should include these two components as appropriate to the
specific advanced nursing practice specialist being prepared. Additionally, the faculty of
each DNP program has the academic freedom to create innovative and integrated
curricula to meet the competencies outlined in the Essentials document.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Essential I: Scientific Underpinnings for Practice
The practice doctorate in nursing provides the terminal academic preparation for nursing
practice. The scientific underpinnings of this education reflect the complexity of practice
9
at the doctoral level and the rich heritage that is the conceptual foundation of nursing.
The discipline of nursing is focused on:
• The principles and laws that govern the life-process, well-being, and optimal
function of human beings, sick or well;
• The patterning of human behavior in interaction with the environment in normal
life events and critical life situations;
• The nursing actions or processes by which positive changes in health status are
affected; and
• The wholeness or health of human beings recognizing that they are in continuous
interaction with their environments (Donaldson & Crowley, 1978; Fawcett, 2005;
Gortner, 1980).
DNP graduates possess a wide array of knowledge gleaned from the sciences and have
the ability to translate that knowledge quickly and effectively to benefit patients in the
daily demands of practice environments (Porter-O’Grady, 2003). Preparation to address
current and future practice issues requires a strong scientific foundation for practice. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The
scientific foundation of nursing practice has expanded and includes a focus on both the
natural and social sciences. These sciences that provide a foundation for nursing practice
include human biology, genomics, the science of therapeutics, the psychosocial sciences,
as well as the science of complex organizational structures. In addition, philosophical,
ethical, and historical issues inherent in the development of science create a context for
the application of the natural and social sciences. Nursing science also has created a
significant body of knowledge to guide nursing practice and has expanded the scientific
underpinnings of the discipline. Nursing science frames the development of middle
range theories and concepts to guide nursing practice. Advances in the foundational and
nursing sciences will occur continuously and nursing curricula must remain sensitive to
emerging and new scientific findings to prepare the DNP for evolving practice realities.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Integrate nursing science with knowledge from ethics, the biophysical,
psychosocial, analytical, and organizational sciences as the basis for the highest
level of nursing practice.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
2. Use science-based theories and concepts to:
• determine the nature and significance of health and health care delivery
phenomena;
• describe the actions and advanced strategies to enhance, alleviate, and
ameliorate health and health care delivery phenomena as appropriate; and
• evaluate outcomes.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
3. Develop and evaluate new practice approaches based on nursing theories and
theories from other disciplines.
10
Essential II: Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality Improvement and
Systems Thinking
Organizational and systems leadership are critical for DNP graduates to improve patient
and healthcare outcomes. Doctoral level knowledge and skills in these areas are
consistent with nursing and health care goals to eliminate health disparities and to
promote patient safety and excellence in practice.
DNP graduates’ practice includes not only direct care but also a focus on the needs of a
panel of patients, a target population, a set of populations, or a broad community. These
graduates are distinguished by their abilities to conceptualize new care delivery models
that are based in contemporary nursing science and that are feasible within current
organizational, political, cultural, and economic perspectives.
Graduates must be skilled in working within organizational and policy arenas and in the
actual provision of patient care by themselves and/or others. For example, DNP
graduates must understand principles of practice management, including conceptual and
practical strategies for balancing productivity with quality of care. They must be able to
assess the impact of practice policies and procedures on meeting the health needs of the
patient populations with whom they practice. DNP graduates must be proficient in
quality improvement strategies and in creating and sustaining changes at the
organizational and policy levels. Improvements in practice are neither sustainable nor
measurable without corresponding changes in organizational arrangements,
organizational and professional culture, and the financial structures to support practice.
DNP graduates have the ability to evaluate the cost effectiveness of care and use
principles of economics and finance to redesign effective and realistic care delivery
strategies. In addition, DNP graduates have the ability to organize care to address
emerging practice problems and the ethical dilemmas that emerge as new diagnostic and
therapeutic technologies evolve. Accordingly, DNP graduates are able to assess risk and
collaborate with others to manage risks ethically, based on professional standards.
Thus, advanced nursing practice includes an organizational and systems leadership
component that emphasizes practice, ongoing improvement of health outcomes, and
ensuring patient safety. In each case, nurses should be prepared with sophisticated
expertise in assessing organizations, identifying systems’ issues, and facilitating
organization-wide changes in practice delivery. In addition, advanced nursing practice
requires political skills, systems thinking, and the business and financial acumen needed
for the analysis of practice quality and costs.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Develop and evaluate care delivery approaches that meet current and future needs of
patient populations based on scientific findings in nursing and other clinical sciences,
as well as organizational, political, and economic sciences.
2. Ensure accountability for quality of health care and patient safety for populations with
whom they work.
11
a. Use advanced communication skills/processes to lead quality improvement
and patient safety initiatives in health care systems.
b. Employ principles of business, finance, economics, and health policy to
develop and implement effective plans for practice-level and/or system-wide
practice initiatives that will improve the quality of care delivery.
c. Develop and/or monitor budgets for practice initiatives.
d. Analyze the cost-effectiveness of practice initiatives accounting for risk and
improvement of health care outcomes.
e. Demonstrate sensitivity to diverse organizational cultures and populations,
including patients and providers.
3. Develop and/or evaluate effective strategies for managing the ethical dilemmas
inherent in patient care, the health care organization, and research.

Essential III: Clinical Scholarship and Analytical Methods for Evidence-Based
Practice
Scholarship and research are the hallmarks of doctoral education. Although basic
research has been viewed as the first and most essential form of scholarly activity, an
enlarged perspective of scholarship has emerged through alternative paradigms that
involve more than discovery of new knowledge (Boyer, 1990). These paradigms
recognize that (1) the scholarship of discovery and integration “reflects the investigative
and synthesizing traditions of academic life” (Boyer, p. 21); (2) scholars give meaning to
isolated facts and make connections across disciplines through the scholarship of
integration; and (3) the scholar applies knowledge to solve a problem via the scholarship
of application (referred to as the scholarship of practice in nursing). This application
involves the translation of research into practice and the dissemination and integration of
new knowledge, which are key activities of DNP graduates. The scholarship of
application expands the realm of knowledge beyond mere discovery and directs it toward
humane ends. Nursing practice epitomizes the scholarship of application through its
position where the sciences, human caring, and human needs meet and new
understandings emerge.
Nurses have long recognized that scholarly nursing practice is characterized by the
discovery of new phenomena and the application of new discoveries in increasingly
complex practice situations. The integration of knowledge from diverse sources and
across disciplines, and the application of knowledge to solve practice problems and
improve health outcomes are only two of the many ways new phenomena and knowledge
are generated other than through research (AACN, 1999; Diers, 1995; Palmer, 1986;
Sigma Theta Tau International, 1999). Research-focused doctoral programs in nursing
are designed to prepare graduates with the research skills necessary for discovering new
knowledge in the discipline. In contrast, DNP graduates engage in advanced nursing
practice and provide leadership for evidence-based practice. This requires competence in
knowledge application activities: the translation of research in practice, the evaluation of
practice, improvement of the reliability of health care practice and outcomes, and
participation in collaborative research (DePalma & McGuire, 2005). Therefore, DNP
12
programs focus on the translation of new science, its application and evaluation. In
addition, DNP graduates generate evidence through their practice to guide improvements
in practice and outcomes of care.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Use analytic methods to critically appraise existing literature and other evidence
to determine and implement the best evidence for practice.
2. Design and implement processes to evaluate outcomes of practice, practice
patterns, and systems of care within a practice setting, health care organization, or
community against national benchmarks to determine variances in practice
outcomes and population trends.
3. Design, direct, and evaluate quality improvement methodologies to promote safe,
timely, effective, efficient, equitable, and patient-centered care.
4. Apply relevant findings to develop practice guidelines and improve practice and
the practice environment.
5. Use information technology and research methods appropriately to:
• collect appropriate and accurate data to generate evidence for nursing
practice
• inform and guide the design of databases that generate meaningful
evidence for nursing practice
• analyze data from practice
• design evidence-based interventions
• predict and analyze outcomes
• examine patterns of behavior and outcomes
• identify gaps in evidence for practice
6. Function as a practice specialist/consultant in collaborative knowledge-generating
research.
7. Disseminate findings from evidence-based practice and research to improve
healthcare outcomes
Essential IV: Information Systems/Technology and Patient Care Technology for the
Improvement and Transformation of Health Care
DNP graduates are distinguished by their abilities to use information systems/technology
to support and improve patient care and healthcare systems, and provide leadership
within healthcare systems and/or academic settings. Knowledge and skills related to
information systems/technology and patient care technology prepare the DNP graduate to
apply new knowledge, manage individual and aggregate level information, and assess the
efficacy of patient care technology appropriate to a specialized area of practice. DNP
graduates also design, select, and use information systems/technology to evaluate
programs of care, outcomes of care, and care systems. Information systems/technology
provide a mechanism to apply budget and productivity tools, practice information
systems and decision supports, and web-based learning or intervention tools to support
and improve patient care. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
13
DNP graduates must also be proficient in the use of information systems/technology
resources to implement quality improvement initiatives and support practice and
administrative decision-making. Graduates must demonstrate knowledge of standards and
principles for selecting and evaluating information systems and patient care technology,
and related ethical, regulatory, and legal issues.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Design, select, use, and evaluate programs that evaluate and monitor outcomes
of care, care systems, and quality improvement including consumer use of
health care information systems.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
2. Analyze and communicate critical elements necessary to the selection, use
and evaluation of health care information systems and patient care technology.
3. Demonstrate the conceptual ability and technical skills to develop and execute
an evaluation plan involving data extraction from practice information
systems and databases.
4. Provide leadership in the evaluation and resolution of ethical and legal issues
within healthcare systems relating to the use of information, information
technology, communication networks, and patient care technology.
5. Evaluate consumer health information sources for accuracy, timeliness, and
appropriateness.
Essential V: Health Care Policy for Advocacy in Health Care
Health care policy–whether it is created through governmental actions, institutional
decision making, or organizational standards–creates a framework that can facilitate or
impede the delivery of health care services or the ability of the provider to engage in
practice to address health care needs. Thus, engagement in the process of policy
development is central to creating a health care system that meets the needs of its
constituents. Political activism and a commitment to policy development are central
elements of professional nursing practice, and the DNP graduate has the ability to assume
a broad leadership role on behalf of the public as well as the nursing profession
(Ehrenreich, 2002). Health policy influences multiple care delivery issues, including
health disparities, cultural sensitivity, ethics, the internationalization of health care
concerns, access to care, quality of care, health care financing, and issues of equity and
social justice in the delivery of health care.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
DNP graduates are prepared to design, influence, and implement health care policies that
frame health care financing, practice regulation, access, safety, quality, and efficacy
(IOM, 2001). Moreover, the DNP graduate is able to design, implement and advocate for
health care policy that addresses issues of social justice and equity in health care. The
powerful practice experiences of the DNP graduate can become potent influencers in
policy formation. Additionally, the DNP graduate integrates these practice experiences
with two additional skill sets: the ability to analyze the policy process and the ability to
engage in politically competent action (O’Grady, 2004).
14
The DNP graduate has the capacity to engage proactively in the development and
implementation of health policy at all levels, including institutional, local, state, regional,
federal, and international levels. DNP graduates as leaders in the practice arena provide a
critical interface between practice, research, and policy. Preparing graduates with the
essential competencies to assume a leadership role in the development of health policy
requires that students have opportunities to contrast the major contextual factors and
policy triggers that influence health policy-making at the various levels.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Critically analyze health policy proposals, health policies, and related issues from
the perspective of consumers, nursing, other health professions, and other
stakeholders in policy and public forums.
2. Demonstrate leadership in the development and implementation of institutional,
local, state, federal, and/or international health policy.
3. Influence policy makers through active participation on committees, boards, or
task forces at the institutional, local, state, regional, national, and/or international
levels to improve health care delivery and outcomes.
4. Educate others, including policy makers at all levels, regarding nursing, health
policy, and patient care outcomes.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
5. Advocate for the nursing profession within the policy and healthcare
communities.
6. Develop, evaluate, and provide leadership for health care policy that shapes health
care financing, regulation, and delivery.
7. Advocate for social justice, equity, and ethical policies within all healthcare
arenas.
Essential VI: Interprofessional Collaboration for Improving Patient and Population
Health Outcomes1
Today’s complex, multi-tiered health care environment depends on the contributions of
highly skilled and knowledgeable individuals from multiple professions. In order to
accomplish the IOM mandate for safe, timely, effective, efficient, equitable, and patientcentered care in a complex environment, healthcare professionals must function as highly
collaborative teams (AACN, 2004; IOM, 2003; O’Neil, 1998). DNP members of these
teams have advanced preparation in the interprofessional dimension of health care that
enable them to facilitate collaborative team functioning and overcome impediments to
interprofessional practice. Because effective interprofessional teams function in a highly
collaborative fashion and are fluid depending upon the patients’ needs, leadership of high
performance teams changes. Therefore, DNP graduates have preparation in methods of
effective team leadership and are prepared to play a central role in establishing
interprofessional teams, participating in the work of the team, and assuming leadership of
the team when appropriate.

1
The use of the term “collaboration” is not meant to imply any legal or regulatory requirements or
implications.
15
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Employ effective communication and collaborative skills in the development and
implementation of practice models, peer review, practice guidelines, health
policy, standards of care, and/or other scholarly products.
2. Lead interprofessional teams in the analysis of complex practice and
organizational issues.
3. Employ consultative and leadership skills with intraprofessional and
interprofessional teams to create change in health care and complex healthcare
delivery systems.
Essential VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health for Improving the Nation’s
Health
Clinical prevention is defined as health promotion and risk reduction/illness prevention
for individuals and families. Population health is defined to include aggregate,
community, environmental/occupational, and cultural/socioeconomic dimensions of
health. Aggregates are groups of individuals defined by a shared characteristic such as
gender, diagnosis, or age. These framing definitions are endorsed by representatives of
multiple disciplines including nursing (Allan et al., 2004).
The implementation of clinical prevention and population health activities is central to
achieving the national goal of improving the health status of the population of the United
States. Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors account for over 50 percent of preventable deaths in
the U.S., yet prevention interventions are underutilized in health care settings. In an
effort to address this national goal, Healthy People 2010 supported the transformation of
clinical education by creating an objective to increase the proportion of schools of
medicine, nursing, and other health professionals that have a basic curriculum that
includes the core competencies in health promotion and disease prevention (Allan et al.,
2004; USHHS, 2000). DNP graduates engage in leadership to integrate and
institutionalize evidence-based clinical prevention and population health services for
individuals, aggregates, and populations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Consistent with these national calls for action and with the longstanding focus on health
promotion and disease prevention in nursing curricula and roles, the DNP graduate has a
foundation in clinical prevention and population health. This foundation will enable
DNP graduates to analyze epidemiological, biostatistical, occupational, and
environmental data in the development, implementation, and evaluation of clinical
prevention and population health. Current concepts of public health, health promotion,
evidence-based recommendations, determinants of health, environmental/occupational
health, and cultural diversity and sensitivity guide the practice of DNP graduates. In
addition emerging knowledge regarding infectious diseases, emergency/disaster
preparedness, and intervention frame DNP graduates’ knowledge of clinical prevention
and population health. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
16
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Analyze epidemiological, biostatistical, environmental, and other appropriate
scientific data related to individual, aggregate, and population health.
2. Synthesize concepts, including psychosocial dimensions and cultural diversity,
related to clinical prevention and population health in developing, implementing,
and evaluating interventions to address health promotion/disease prevention
efforts, improve health status/access patterns, and/or address gaps in care of
individuals, aggregates, or populations.
3. Evaluate care delivery models and/or strategies using concepts related to
community, environmental and occupational health, and cultural and
socioeconomic dimensions of health.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Essential VIII: Advanced Nursing Practice
The increased knowledge and sophistication of healthcare has resulted in the growth of
specialization in nursing in order to ensure competence in these highly complex areas of
practice. The reality of the growth of specialization in nursing practice is that no
individual can master all advanced roles and the requisite knowledge for enacting these
roles. DNP programs provide preparation within distinct specialties that require expertise,
advanced knowledge, and mastery in one area of nursing practice. A DNP graduate is
prepared to practice in an area of specialization within the larger domain of nursing.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Indeed, this distinctive specialization is a hallmark of the DNP.
Essential VIII specifies the foundational practice competencies that cut across specialties
and are seen as requisite for DNP practice. All DNP graduates are expected to
demonstrate refined assessment skills and base practice on the application of biophysical,
psychosocial, behavioral, sociopolitical, cultural, economic, and nursing science as
appropriate in their area of specialization.
DNP programs provide learning experiences that are based in a variety of patient care
settings, such as hospitals, long-term care settings, home health, and/or community
settings. These learning experiences should be integrated throughout the DNP program
of study, to provide additional practice experiences beyond those acquired in a
baccalaureate nursing program. These experiential opportunities should be sufficient to
inform practice decisions and understand the patient care consequences of decisions.
Because a variety of differentiated roles and positions may be held by the DNP graduate,
role preparation for specialty nursing practice, including legal and regulatory issues, is
part of every DNP program’s curricula.
The DNP program prepares the graduate to:
1. Conduct a comprehensive and systematic assessment of health and illness
parameters in complex situations, incorporating diverse and culturally sensitive
approaches.
2. Design, implement, and evaluate therapeutic interventions based on nursing
science and other sciences.
17
3. Develop and sustain therapeutic relationships and partnerships with patients
(individual, family or group) and other professionals to facilitate optimal care
and patient outcomes.
4. Demonstrate advanced levels of clinical judgment, systems thinking, and
accountability in designing, delivering, and evaluating evidence-based care to
improve patient outcomes.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
5. Guide, mentor, and support other nurses to achieve excellence in nursing
practice.
6. Educate and guide individuals and groups through complex health and
situational transitions.
7. Use conceptual and analytical skills in evaluating the links among practice,
organizational, population, fiscal, and policy issues.

Incorporation of Specialty-Focused Competencies into DNP Curricula
DNP education is by definition specialized, and DNP graduates assume a variety of
differing roles upon graduation. Consequently, a major component of DNP curricula
focuses on providing the requisite specialty knowledge for graduates to enact particular
roles in the larger healthcare system. While all graduates demonstrate the competencies
delineated in DNP Essentials 1 through 8, further DNP preparation falls into two general
categories: roles that specialize as an advanced practice nurse (APN) with a focus on
care of individuals, and roles that specialize in practice at an aggregate, systems, or
organizational level. This distinction is important as APNs face different licensure,
regulatory, credentialing, liability, and reimbursement issues than those who practice at
an aggregate, systems, or organizational level. As a result, the specialty content preparing
DNP graduates for various practices will differ substantially.
It is noteworthy that specialties evolve over time, and new specialties may emerge. It is
further recognized that APN and aggregate/systems/organizational foci are not rigid
demarcations. For example, the specialty of community health may have DNP graduates
who practice in APN roles providing direct care to individuals in communities; or,
community health DNP graduates may focus solely on programmatic development with
roles fitting more clearly into the aggregate focus.
The specialized competencies, defined by the specialty organizations, are a required and
major component of the DNP curriculum. Specialty organizations develop competency
expectations that build upon and complement DNP Essentials 1 though 8. All DNP
graduates, prepared as APNs, must be prepared to sit for national specialty APN
certification. However, all advanced nursing practice graduates of a DNP program
should be prepared and eligible for national, advanced specialty certification, when
available. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
18
Advanced Practice Nursing Focus
The DNP graduate prepared for an APN role must demonstrate practice expertise,
specialized knowledge, and expanded responsibility and accountability in the care and
management of individuals and families. By virtue of this direct care focus, APNs
develop additional competencies in direct practice and in the guidance and coaching of
individuals and families through developmental, health-illness, and situational transitions
(Spross, 2005). The direct practice of APNs is characterized by the use of a holistic
perspective; the formation of therapeutic partnerships to facilitate informed decisionmaking, positive lifestyle change, and appropriate self-care; advanced practice thinking,
judgment, and skillful performance; and use of diverse, evidence-based interventions in
health and illness management (Brown, 2005).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
APNs assess, manage, and evaluate patients at the most independent level of clinical
nursing practice. They are expected to use advanced, highly refined assessment skills
and employ a thorough understanding of pathophysiology and pharmacotherapeutics in
making diagnostic and practice management decisions. To ensure sufficient depth and
focus, it is mandatory that a separate course be required for each of these three
content areas: advanced health/physical assessment, advanced physiology/
pathophysiology, and advanced pharmacology (see Appendix A). In addition to
direct care, DNP graduates emphasizing care of individuals should be able to use their
understanding of the practice context to document practice trends, identify potential
systemic changes, and make improvements in the care of their particular patient
populations in the systems within which they practice.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Aggregate/Systems/Organizational Focus

DNP graduates in administrative, healthcare policy, informatics, and population-based
specialties focus their practice on aggregates: populations, systems (including
information systems), organizations, and state or national policies. These specialties
generally do not have direct patient care responsibilities. However, DNP graduates
practicing at the aggregate/systems/organization level are still called upon to define
actual and emerging problems and design aggregate level health interventions. These
activities require that DNP graduates be competent in advanced organizational, systems,
or community assessment techniques, in combination with expert level understanding of
nursing and related biological and behavioral sciences. The DNP graduate preparing for
advanced specialty practice at the population/organizational/policy level demonstrates
competencies in conducting comprehensive organizational, systems, and/or community
assessments to identify aggregate health or system needs; working with diverse
stakeholders for inter- or intra-organizational achievement of health-related
organizational or public policy goals; and, designing patient-centered care delivery
systems or policy level delivery models. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
19
Curricular Elements and Structure
Program Length
Institutional, state, and various accrediting bodies often have policies that dictate
minimum or maximum length and/or credit hours that accompany the awarding of
specific academic degrees. Recognizing these constraints, it is recommended that
programs, designed for individuals who have already acquired the competencies in The
Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (AACN, 1998),
be three calendar years, or 36 months of full-time study including summers or four years
on a traditional academic calendar.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Post-master’s programs should be designed based on the DNP candidate’s prior
education, experience, and choice of specialization. Even though competencies for the
DNP build and expand upon those attained through master’s study, post-master’s and
post-baccalaureate students must achieve the same end-of-program competencies.
Therefore, it is anticipated that a minimum of 12 months of full-time, post-master’s study
will be necessary to acquire the additional doctoral level competencies. The task force
recommends that accrediting bodies should ensure that post-master’s DNP programs have
mechanisms in place to validate that students acquire all DNP end-of-program
competencies. DNP programs, particularly post-master’s options, should be efficient and
manageable with regard to the number of credit hours required, and avoid the
development of unnecessarily long, duplicative, and/or protracted programs of study.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Practice Experiences in the Curriculum
DNP programs provide rich and varied opportunities for practice experiences aimed at
helping graduates achieve the essential and specialty competencies upon completion of
the program. In order to achieve the DNP competencies, programs should provide a
minimum of 1,000 hours of practice post-baccalaureate as part of a supervised academic
program. Practice experiences should be designed to help students achieve specific
learning objectives related to the DNP Essentials and specialty competencies. These
experiences should be designed to provide systematic opportunities for feedback and
reflection. Experiences include in-depth work with experts from nursing as well as other
disciplines and provide opportunities for meaningful student engagement within practice
environments. Given the intense practice focus of DNP programs, practice experiences
are designed to help students build and assimilate knowledge for advanced specialty
practice at a high level of complexity. Therefore, end-of-program practice immersion
experiences should be required to provide an opportunity for further synthesis and
expansion of the learning developed to that point. These experiences also provide the
context within which the final DNP product is completed.
Practice immersion experiences afford the opportunity to integrate and synthesize the
essentials and specialty requirements necessary to demonstrate competency in an area of
20
specialized nursing practice. Proficiency may be acquired through a variety of methods,
such as, attaining case requirements, patient or practice contact hours, completing
specified procedures, demonstrating experiential competencies, or a combination of these
elements. Many specialty groups already extensively define various minimal experiences
and requirements.
Final DNP Project
Doctoral education, whether practice or research, is distinguished by the completion of a
specific project that demonstrates synthesis of the student’s work and lays the
groundwork for future scholarship. For practice doctorates, requiring a dissertation or
other original research is contrary to the intent of the DNP. The DNP primarily involves
mastery of an advanced specialty within nursing practice. Therefore, other methods must
be used to distinguish the achievement of that mastery. Unlike a dissertation, the work
may take a number of forms. One example of the final DNP product might be a practice
portfolio that includes the impact or outcomes due to practice and documents the final
practice synthesis and scholarship. Another example of a final DNP product is a practice
change initiative. This may be represented by a pilot study, a program evaluation, a
quality improvement project, an evaluation of a new practice model, a consulting project,
or an integrated critical literature review. Additional examples of a DNP final product
could include manuscripts submitted for publication, systematic review, research
utilization project, practice topic dissemination, substantive involvement in a larger
endeavor, or other practice project. The theme that links these forms of scholarly
experiences is the use of evidence to improve either practice or patient outcomes.
The final DNP project produces a tangible and deliverable academic product that is
derived from the practice immersion experience and is reviewed and evaluated by an
academic committee. The final DNP product documents outcomes of the student’s
educational experiences, provides a measurable medium for evaluating the immersion
experience, and summarizes the student’s growth in knowledge and expertise. The final
DNP product should be defined by the academic unit and utilize a form that best
incorporates the requirements of the specialty and the institution that is awarding the
degree. Whatever form the final DNP product takes, it will serve as a foundation for
future scholarly practice.
DNP Programs in the Academic Environment:
Indicators of Quality in Doctor of Nursing Practice Programs
Practice-focused doctorates are designed to prepare experts in nursing practice. The
academic environments in which these programs operate must provide substantial access
to nursing practice expertise and opportunities for students to work with and learn from a
variety of practice experts including advanced clinicians, nurse executives, informaticists,
or health policy makers. Thus, schools offering the DNP should have faculty members,
practice resources, and an academic infrastructure that support a high quality educational
program and provide students with the opportunities to develop expertise in nursing
practice. Similar to the need for PhD students to have access to strong research
21
environments, DNP students must have access to strong practice environments, including
faculty members who practice, environments characterized by continuous improvement,
and a culture of inquiry and practice scholarship.
Faculty Characteristics
Faculty members teaching in DNP programs should represent diverse backgrounds and
intellectual perspectives in the specialty areas for which their graduates are being
prepared. Faculty expertise needed in these programs is broad and includes a mix of
doctorally prepared research-focused and practice-focused faculty whose expertise will
support the educational program required for the DNP. In addition to faculty members
who are nurses, faculty members in a DNP program may be from other disciplines.
Initially, during the transition, some master’s-prepared faculty members may teach
content and provide practice supervision, particularly in early phases of postbaccalaureate DNP curriculum. Once a larger pool of DNP graduates becomes available,
the faculty mix can be expected to shift toward predominately doctorally-prepared faculty
members.
The Faculty and Practice
Schools offering DNP programs should have a faculty cohort that is actively engaged in
practice as an integral part of their faculty role. Active practice programs provide the
same type of applied learning environment for DNP students as active research programs
provide for PhD students. Faculty should develop and implement programs of
scholarship that represent knowledge development from original research for some
faculty and application of research in practice for others. Faculty, through their practice,
provides a learning environment that exemplifies rapid translation of new knowledge into
practice and evaluation of practice-based models of care.
Indicators of productive programs of practice scholarship include extramural grants in
support of practice innovations; peer reviewed publications and presentations; practiceoriented grant review activities; editorial review activities; state, regional, national, and
international professional activities related to one’s practice area; policy involvement;
and development and dissemination of practice improvement products such as reports,
guidelines, protocols, and toolkits.

Practice Resources and Clinical Environment Resources
Schools with DNP programs should develop, expand, sustain, and provide an
infrastructure for extensive collaborative relationships with practice systems or sites and
provide practice leadership in nursing and other fields. It is crucial for schools offering
the DNP to provide or have access to practice environments that exemplify or aspire to
22
the best in professional nursing practice, practice scholarship in nursing education, and
provide opportunities for interprofessional collaboration (AACN, 2001a). Strong and
explicit relationships need to exist with practice sites that support the practice and
scholarship needs of DNP students including access to relevant patient data and access to
patient populations (e.g., direct access to individuals, families, groups, and communities)
(AACN, 1999). Practice affiliations should be designed to benefit jointly the school and
the practice sites. Faculty practice plans should also be in place that encourage and
support faculty practice and scholarship as part of the faculty role.
Academic Infrastructure
The academic infrastructure is critical to the success of all DNP programs. Sufficient
financial, personnel, space, equipment, and other resources should be available to
accomplish attainment of DNP program goals and to promote practice and scholarship.
Administrative as well as infrastructure support should reflect the unique needs of a
practice-focused doctoral program. For example, this support would be evident in the
information technology, library holdings, clinical laboratories and equipment, and space
for academic and practice initiatives that are available for student learning experiences.
Academic environments must include a commitment to the practice mission. This
commitment will be manifest through processes and structures that reflect a reconceptualization of the faculty role whereby teaching, practice, and practice-focused
scholarship are integrated. This commitment is most apparent in systems that are
consistent with Boyer’s recommendations for broader conceptualization of scholarship
and institutional reward systems for faculty scholarship (Boyer, 1990). Whether or not
tenure is available for faculty with programs of scholarly practice, appropriate reward
systems should be in place that endorse and validate the importance of practice-based
faculty contributions. Formal faculty practice plans and faculty practice committees help
institutionalize scholarly practice as a component of the faculty role and provide support
for enhancing practice engagement. Faculty practice should be an essential and
integrated component of the faculty role.
23
Appendix A
I. Advanced Health/Physical Assessment
Advanced health/physical assessment includes the comprehensive history, physical, and
psychological assessment of signs and symptoms, pathophysiologic changes, and
psychosocial variations of the patient (individual, family, or community). If the patient is an
individual, the assessment should occur within the context of the family and community and
should incorporate cultural and developmental variations and needs of the patient. The
purpose of this comprehensive assessment is to develop a thorough understanding of the
patient in order to determine appropriate and effective health care including health promotion
strategies.
There is a core of general assessment content that every advanced practice nurse must have.
Specifics and additional assessment related to various specialties (e.g., women’s health,
mental health, anesthesiology, pediatrics) should be further addressed and refined in that
specialty’s course content within each program. Health/physical assessment must also be
used as a base and be reinforced in all clinical experiences and practicum courses.
Individuals entering an advanced practice nursing program are expected to possess effective
communication and patient teaching skills. Although these are basic to all professional
nursing practice, preparation in the advanced practice nursing role must include continued
refinement and strengthening of increasingly sophisticated communication and observational
skills. Health/physical assessment content must rely heavily on the development of sensitive
and skilled interviewing.
Course work should provide graduates with the knowledge and skills to:
1. demonstrate sound critical thinking and clinical decision making;
2. develop a comprehensive database, including complete functional assessment,
health history, physical examination, and appropriate diagnostic testing;
3. perform a risk assessment of the patient including the assessment of lifestyle and
other risk factors;
4. identify signs and symptoms of common emotional illnesses;
5. perform basic laboratory tests and interpret other laboratory and diagnostic data;
6. relate assessment findings to underlying pathology or physiologic changes;
7. establish a differential diagnosis based on the assessment data; and
8. develop an effective and appropriate plan of care for the patient that takes into
consideration life circumstance and cultural, ethnic, and developmental
variations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
II. Advanced Physiology/Pathophysiology
The advanced practice nurse should possess a well-grounded understanding of normal
physiologic and pathologic mechanisms of disease that serves as one primary component of
the foundation for clinical assessment, decision making, and management. The graduate
should be able to relate this knowledge “to interpreting changes in normal function that result
in symptoms indicative of illness” and in assessing an individual’s response to pharmacologic
24
management of illnesses (NONPF, 1995, p. 152). Every student in an advanced practice
nursing program should be taught a basic physiology/pathophysiology course. Additional
physiology and pathophysiology content relevant to the specialty area may be taught in the
specialty courses. In addition to the core course, content should be integrated throughout all
clinical and practicum courses and experiences. The course work should provide the
graduate with the knowledge and skills to:
1. compare and contrast physiologic changes over the life span;
2. analyze the relationship between normal physiology and pathological phenomena
produced by altered states across the life span;
3. synthesize and apply current research-based knowledge regarding pathological
changes in selected disease states;
4. describe the developmental physiology, normal etiology, pathogenesis, and
clinical manifestations of commonly found/seen altered health states; and
5. analyze physiologic responses to illness and treatment modalities.
III. Advanced Pharmacology
Every APN graduate should have a well-grounded understanding of basic pharmacologic
principles, which includes the cellular response level. This area of core content should
include both pharmacotherapeutics and pharmacokinetics of broad categories of
pharmacologic agents. Although taught in a separate or dedicated course, pharmacology
content should also be integrated into the content of Advanced Health/Physical Assessment
and Advanced Physiology and Pathophysiology courses. Additional application of this
content should also be presented within the specialty course content and clinical experiences
of the program in order to prepare the APN to practice within a specialty scope of practice.
As described above, the purpose of this content is to provide the graduate with the knowledge
and skills to assess, diagnose, and manage (including the prescription of pharmacologic
agents) a patient’s common health problems in a safe, high quality, cost-effective manner.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
The course work should provide graduates with the knowledge and skills to:
1. comprehend the pharmacotherapeutics of broad categories of drugs;
2. analyze the relationship between pharmacologic agents and
physiologic/pathologic responses;
3. understand the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of broad categories of
drugs;
4. understand the motivations of patients in seeking prescriptions and the
willingness to adhere to prescribed regimens; and
5. safely and appropriately select pharmacologic agents for the management of
patient health problems based on patient variations, the problem being managed,
and cost effectiveness.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

In October 2009, Don Berwick and I were out of the country when we received invitations from Susan Hassmiller to co-author a background paper on the future of nursing education for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation/Institute of Medicine (RWJF/IOM) Committee on the Future of Nursing. Initial conversations led to long lists of potential topics to be covered. Inevitably, we kept coming back to the question: What would be useful to committee members who deserved a base for their deliberations that was focused and helpful? In the end, we decided that detailed descriptions of the current challenges and recommendations for the future of nursing education from two people were not the answer. Instead, we requested and received permission to challenge five leaders, in addition to ourselves, to write short papers focused on recommendations addressing the most important three issues from each of their perspectives.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

With input from the RWJF/IOM Committee members and staff, we chose five esteemed (and busy) leaders and asked them to rise to this challenge within 10 weeks. Each person agreed, and each met the deadline. There were no group discussions, and, since each of us submitted our papers at the same time (no one finished early!), no one altered his or her content based on reading someone else’s contributions.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The seven papers are reprinted below, followed by a summary of the themes that emerged across papers. How does it match what you would have written?

Go to:
SUMMARY
The authors of the preceding papers came from the Northeast, South, Midwest, and Western parts of the country. One is a distinguished physician colleague, and the nursing educators are comprised of three professors (one a dean emeritus) and three current deans. Each has exerted leadership—in science, teaching, practice, and policy—for multiple decades. Each leads initiatives that extend beyond the boundaries of their places of employment. One is the current president of the American Academy of Nursing. What can we learn across the issues each chose to raise?

The style of the papers differed, so what was called a recommendation, conclusion, or issue varies. I extracted each major point, regardless of label. These major points from all authors are included in the categories below. Following each theme, authors for whom this was a major point are listed in regular font. Some additional authors mentioned the same point but not at the level of recommendations, conclusions, or major issues, and their names are listed in italics. Finally, I organized themes using categories that the RWJF/IOM committee chose for panel presentations at their upcoming meeting (what to teach, how to teach, where to teach), adding a few remaining categories so that all major points were included.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

What to Teach (or What Students Should Learn)
Competencies necessary for continuous improvement of the quality and safety of health care systems—patient-centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, safety, and informatics (Berwick, Cronenwett, Tanner)
Mastery of knowledge of systems, interpretations of variation, human psychology in complex systems, and approaches to gaining knowledge in real-world, local contexts (Berwick)
Skills and methods for leadership and management of continual improvement, for nurse-teachers and nurse-executives (Berwick)
Competencies needed in new care delivery models
Population health and population-based care management (Tanner)
Care coordination (Tilden)
Knowledge based on standardized science prerequisites (Dracup, Tanner)
Health policy knowledge, skills, and attitudes (Tilden)
Competencies related to emerging health needs—e.g., geriatrics (Tanner)
How to Teach
Guide students in integrating knowledge from clinical, social, and behavioral sciences with the practice of nursing to enhance development of clinical reasoning skills (Cronenwett, Dracup, Tanner, Tilden)
Enhance opportunities for interprofessional education (Cronenwett, Dracup, Gilliss, Tilden, Tanner)
Evaluate and test models of interprofessional education, including timing, determination of what levels of students should learn together, and what content is most effectively delivered with interprofessional learners (Tilden)
Develop and test new approaches to pre-licensure clinical education, including use of simulation (Dracup, Tanner)
Involve students in interprofessional quality improvement projects (Berwick, Gilliss, Cronenwett)
Develop model pre-licensure curricula that incorporate best practices in teaching and learning and can be used as a framework for community college–university partnerships (Tanner)
Where to Teach
In baccalaureate and higher degree programs (Aiken, Cronenwett, Dracup, Gilliss, Tanner, Tilden)
Significantly increase the number and proportion of new registered nurses who graduate from basic pre-licensure education with a baccalaureate or higher degree in nursing (Aiken, Cronenwett)
Require the BSN for entry into practice (Dracup, Tilden)
Support community college/university partnerships that increase the number of associate degree graduates that complete the baccalaureate degree (Dracup, Tanner)
Allow community colleges to provide baccalaureate degrees (Dracup)
In post-graduate residency programs
Develop and test clinical education models that include post-graduate residency programs (Tanner)
Implement requirement of post-graduate residency for initial relicensure (Cronenwett, Tanner)
In health care settings that foster day-to-day change and improvement (Berwick)
In programs built on strong academic–practice setting partnerships (Cronenwett, Gilliss)
At Academic Health Centers, promote governance structures that combine the strategic, rather than operational, oversight for nursing (Gilliss)
In settings that are models of integrated care where care coordination skills can be developed (Tilden)
Who Teaches (Characteristics of Desired Faculty Members of the Future)
Increase the number of faculty members:

Whose criteria for appointment and advancement include recognition of practice-based accomplishments, including engagement in the work of improving health care (Berwick, Gilliss, Dracup, Cronenwett)
Who can move easily during careers between practice and academe (Gilliss)
Who shorten their career paths from BSN to doctoral degree (Aiken, Dracup)
Who maintain professional certification and/or clinical competence (Gilliss)
Who build alliances with faculty in other disciplines (medicine, engineering, business, public health, law) (Gilliss)
Who are capable of leading efforts to advance interprofessional education (Dracup, Tilden)
Recommendations: To Nursing Organizations
Ensure that schools produce ever-increasing numbers of nurse practitioners for primary care roles at a time when expanded access to health care will increase society’s need for primary care providers (Cronenwett, Gilliss)
Challenge current credit-heavy requirements and test teaching innovations that improve competence while reducing program credits (Gilliss)
Support the faculty development necessary to bring about the magnitude of reforms in nursing education recommended in the Carnegie study, necessitated by advances in nursing science and practice and guided by advances in the science of learning (Tanner)
Advance post-master’s DNP education, maintaining specialist preparation at the master’s program level (Cronenwett, Gilliss)
Fund initiative to facilitate professional consensus that DNP programs should be launched as post-master’s program for the foreseeable future (Cronenwett)
Clarify the expectations for nurse scientists interested in translational research—will both the DNP and the PhD be required? Will the DNP alone be sufficient for tenure-track positions in research-intensive universities? (Dracup)
Include as accreditation criteria for nursing education programs:
Substantive nursing education–service partnerships, e.g., in shared teaching and clinical problem solving (Cronenwett, Gilliss)
Interprofessional education (Cronenwett, Dracup, Gilliss, Tilden)
Development of competencies in health policy (Tilden)
Student/faculty participation in or leadership of teams that work to improve health care (Berwick, Cronenwett)
Student competency development related to health policy (Tilden)
Identify top ten areas of needed faculty development and provide public recognition for success (Gilliss)
Support a learning collaborative of state boards of nursing willing to implement regulatory requirements for transition to practice residency programs as a prerequisite for initial re-licensure (Cronenwett)
Require proof of a nurse’s participation in or leadership of teams that work to continuously improve the health care system for renewal of certification (Berwick)
Urge testing of interprofessional teamwork and collaboration and health policy competencies in licensure exams (Tilden)
Recommendations: To Government and Other Organizations
Increase scholarships, loan forgiveness, and institutional capacity awards to increase the number and proportion of newly licensed nurses graduating from baccalaureate and higher degree programs (Aiken, Cronenwett)
Increase scholarships, loan forgiveness, and institutional capacity awards for graduate nurse education at master’s and doctoral levels (Aiken, Dracup)
Redirect Medicare GME nursing education funds to support graduate nurse education (Aiken, Dracup, Tanner)
Redirect Medicare GME nursing education funds from hospital-based pre-licensure programs to postgraduate residency programs (Cronenwett, Tanner)
Promote innovation and evaluation of novel approaches to improving preparation for the practice of nursing through expanded Title VIII funding (Cronenwett, Tanner)
Invest in nursing education research, related particularly to the evaluation of multiple pathways to licensure (Tanner)
Use CTSA or other research facilitation structures to promote knowledge development at the point of care, translation of knowledge into practice, practice improvements, and interprofessional education (Dracup, Gilliss)
Create a federal health professions workforce planning and policy capacity in the Executive Branch (Aiken)
Expand authorities for Title VII/VIII funds to support development and evaluation of interprofessional education innovations (Gilliss)
Expand Nurse Faculty Loan Programs and other loan forgiveness/scholarship programs that produce more faculty (Aiken, Dracup)
Encourage public and private resource investments that incentivize students and nursing programs to expedite production of qualified nurse faculty by shortening the trajectory from entry into basic nursing programs through doctoral and post-doctoral study (Aiken, Dracup)
Use Perkins funds to incentivize community college nursing programs to increase the proportion of their nursing students who complete their initial education with a BSN (Aiken)
Increase programs that support greater production of nurse practitioners for primary care (and remove legal barriers to interprofessional education and practice) (Aiken, Cronenwett)
Fund a longitudinal study to track state-based data on number and proportion of new nurse graduates from ADN vs. BSN/higher degree programs (Cronenwett)
Advance media attention to states that exemplify “best practices” in the distribution of new nurse graduates from ADN vs. BSN programs (Cronenwett)
Include health services research (in addition to drug and treatment intervention trials) in initiatives to enhance comparative effectiveness research (Aiken)
Require universities and colleges (presidents, provosts, deans) to support infrastructures and mandates for interprofessional education (Tilden)
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CONCLUSION
The recommendations of seven leaders committed to the development of future generations of health professionals included some expected diversity of views. Nonetheless, given the long list of issues that would have been covered had we chosen to write one comprehensive paper, a remarkably small number of themes emerged. Hopefully, these rich ideas and themes can be used to inform the deliberations of the RWJF/IOM Committee on the Future of Nursing. Even more hopefully, a collective national response to these important issues will create a future that meets nursing’s obligations to the society it serves.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

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NURSING EDUCATION POLICY PRIORITIES
Linda H. Aiken, Ph.D., FAAN, FRCN, R.N.

University of Pennsylvania

Nursing is one of the most versatile occupations within the health care workforce. In the 150 some years since Nightingale developed and promoted the concept of an educated workforce of caregivers for the sick, modern nursing has reinvented itself a number of times as health care has advanced and changed (Lynaugh, 2008). As a result of nursing’s versatility, new career pathways for nurses have evolved attracting a larger and more diverse applicant pool and a broader scope of practice and responsibilities.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. Nursing, because of its versatility, has been an enabling force for change in health care along many dimensions including but not limited to the evolution of the high-technology hospital, the possibility for physicians to combine office and hospital practice, length of hospital stay among the shortest in the world, reductions in the work hours of resident physicians to improve patient safety, extending national primary care capacity, improving access to care for the poor and rural residents, and contributing to much needed care coordination for the chronically ill and frail (Aiken et al., 2009). Indeed, with every passing decade, nursing has become a more integral part of health care services to the extent that a future without large numbers of nurses is impossible to envision.

A POLICY CHALLENGE
From a policy perspective, nursing’s versatility is important to note for the simple reason that nursing has evolved faster than public policies affecting the profession. The result is that nursing’s forward progress to better serve the public is hampered by the constraints of outdated public policies involving government education subsidies, workforce priorities, scope of practice limitations and regulations, and payment policies. An important priority in national health care reform is achieving better value for the expenditures made on health services. Since health care is labor intensive, getting more value will depend in large part on enhancing productivity and effectiveness of the workforce. Nurses represent a large and unexploited opportunity to achieve greater value.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The purpose of this paper is to identify and discuss several key changes in nursing education policy that are critically needed to shape the nurse workforce to best serve the health care needs of the American public in the years ahead. It is written with the assumption that nurse scope of practice and payment policy reforms will take place over the near term to remove some of the existing barriers to nurses practicing to the full extent of their education and expertise. This assumption is based on steady progress in removing barriers to nursing practice at the state level and language in current national health reform legislation show ing greater neutrality in the designation of types of health professionals who can participate in and lead new initiatives in primary care and chronic care coordination. Changes in nursing education policies are needed to ensure that the nurse workforce of the future is appropriately educated for anticipated role expansions and changing population needs.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Five priority recommendations regarding the future of nursing education are advanced for consideration by the RWJF Committee on the Future of Nursing at the IOM:

Increase and target new federal and state subsidies in the form of scholarships, loan forgiveness, and institutional capacity awards to significantly increase the number and proportion of new registered nurses who graduate from basic pre-licensure education with a baccalaureate or higher degree in nursing.
Increase federal and state subsidies for graduate nurse education at the master’s and doctoral levels in the form of scholarships, loan forgiveness, and institutional capacity with a priority on producing more nurse faculty.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
Encourage public and private resource investments to incentivize students and nursing programs to expedite production of qualified nurse faculty by shortening the trajectory from entry into basic nursing education through doctoral and post-doctoral study by expedited bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) to PhD programs and comparable innovations.
Create a federal health professions workforce planning and policy capacity in the Executive Branch with authority to recommend to the President and the Congress health workforce policy priorities across federal agencies and departments.
Recommend the inclusion of health services research on various forms of nursing investments in improving care outcomes including comparisons of the cost effectiveness of improving hospital nurse-to-patient ratios, increasing nurse education, and improving the nurse work environment. At present comparative effectiveness research is more focused on drug and treatment intervention trials than on innovations in care delivery including workforce interventions.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
PRIORITY FUNDING TO INCREASE INITIAL BSN GRADUATES
Every year the percent of new registered nurses graduating from associate degree programs increases, and it is now over 66 percent of all new nurse graduates. Multiple blue ribbon panels on nursing education, including the just released Carnegie Foundation Report on Nursing Education (Benner et al., 2010) as well as health workforce reports to Congress for two decades, have concluded that there is a substantial shortage of nurses with BSN and higher education to meet current and future national health care needs. Advances in medical science and technology, the changing practice boundaries between medicine and nursing, and the increase in the share of the population with multiple chronic health conditions create a level of complexity in health care that requires a more educated health care workforce.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. Nursing is the least well educated health profession by far but the one experiencing the greatest expansion in scope of practice and responsibilities. The National Advisory Council on Nurse Education and Practice (NACNEP) (1996), policy advisors to the Congress and the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services on nursing issues, urged almost 15 years ago that policy actions be taken to ensure that at least 66 percent of nurses would hold a baccalaureate or higher in nursing by 2010; the actual result is closer to 45 percent. As described in the sections below, growing evidence suggests that the shortage of nurses with BSN and higher education is adversely affecting a number of dimensions of health care delivery now and these problems will only become exaggerated in the future.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Quality of Hospital Care
A growing body of research documents that hospitals with a larger proportion of bedside care nurses with BSNs or higher qualifications is associated with lower risk of patient mortality. Aiken and colleagues (2003) in a paper published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) showed that in 1999, each 10 percent increase in the proportion of a hospital’s bedside nurse workforce with BSN qualification was associated with a 5 percent decline in mortality following common surgical procedures. A similar finding was published by Friese and associates for cancer surgical outcomes (Friese et al., 2008).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. Aiken’s team has replicated this finding in a larger study of hospitals in 2006. Similar results have been published for medical as well as surgical patients in at least three large studies in Canada and Belgium (Estabrooks et al., 2005; Tourangeau et al., 2007; Van den Heede et al., 2009).

This research has motivated the American Association of Nurse Executives, the major professional organization representing hospital nurse chief executive officers who employ 56 percent of the nation’s nurses, to establish the BSN as the desired credential for nurses. Many hospitals, particularly teaching hospitals and children’s hospitals, are acting on the evidence base by requiring the BSN for employment. Nurse executives in teaching hospitals have a goal of 90 percent BSN nurses, and community hospital nurse executives aim for at least 50 percent BSN-prepared nurses (Goode et al., 2001). Since only 45 percent of bedside care nurses have a BSN, many executives cannot reach their goals.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Access and Costs
There is some research evidence that the cost effectiveness of nursing improves with a more educated workforce. In Aiken’s JAMA paper, evidence was presented to show that the mortality rates were the same for hospitals in which nurses cared for 8 patients each, on average, and 60 percent had a BSN and for hospitals in which nurses cared for only 4 patients each but only 20 percent had a BSN (Aiken, 2008; Aiken et al., 2003). More research is needed to assess the comparative value of investing in different nursing strategies that evaluate the relative cost and outcomes of increasing nurse staffing, educational levels, and improving the organizational context and culture of the nurse work environment. At this point the evidence is encouraging that a more educated hospital nurse workforce might allow for a smaller nurse workforce without adversely affecting patient outcomes. If confirmed in future research, this finding could have important implications for both cost of hospital care and for the number of nurses actually needed in the future to staff hospitals.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

In the ambulatory sector, there is a strong research base documenting that nurses with advanced clinical training, usually master’s degrees in advanced clinical practice, provide primary care with outcomes comparable to, and in some domains like symptom control and satisfaction better than, those of physicians and with lower costs (Griffiths et al., 2010; Horrocks et al., 2002). Rand researchers estimated, for example, that the state of Massachusetts could save up to $8 billion over a decade by attracting more advanced practice nurses and removing barriers that prevent them from practicing at the full level of their education and expertise (Eibner et al., 2009). Increased use of advanced practice nurses is one of the very few practice innovations currently underconsidered in national health reform, including medical homes and chronic care coordination, that would yield net cost savings nationally according to Rand researchers (Hussey et al., 2009).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

How the Shortage of BSN Nurses Impacts Future Nurse Supply
As argued above, the shortage of BSN nurses has implications for health care quality and safety, access, and costs of care. A less well recognized consequence of the shortage of BSN nurses is a shortage of faculty which could have a long-term impact on national production capacity of nurses for the future.

The Department of Labor estimates that 600,000 new jobs will be created for nurses over the next 10 years, the highest rate of new job production for any profession (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009). In addition, over a half million nurses in the current workforce, which has an average age of around 48, will reach retirement age over the same period, resulting in the need for over a million nurses to be added to the national workforce. The good news is that there is tremendous interest in nursing as a career in the United States after a century of difficulty attracting the best and brightest to nursing. The reasons for this unprecedented interest are multifaceted, having to do with attractive incomes, averaging nationally $65,000 a year and higher in some locations, better job prospects than in other employment sectors, and perceptions of personally satisfying work helping others. If we can take advantage of this unprecedented interest and expand nursing school production, future nursing shortages could be greatly attenuated.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The bad news is that nursing schools do not have the capacity to absorb the great windfall in applicants. Estimates suggest that at least 40,000 qualified applicants to nursing schools are being turned away each year (AACN, 2009). There are several reasons why nursing schools are unable to accept the influx of applicants. Nursing schools have expanded enrollments steadily for more than a decade with graduations increasing from about 75,000 in 1994 to 110,000 in 2008. Resources of all kinds are now stretched and schools are having difficulty expanding further. Institutions of higher education in general are experiencing serious budget constraints and as a result are slowing enrollment growth. Additionally the shortage of nursing faculty has become a major constraining factor.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

A strategy for ameliorating the nurse faculty shortage that has received little attention to date is to increase entry-level education of nurses to produce a larger pool of nurses likely to obtain graduate education. In a recent paper in Health Affairs Aiken and colleagues provided a cohort analysis to determine the highest education achieved by nurses receiving their basic or initial nursing education between 1974 and 1994 (Aiken et al., 2009). We found that choice of initial nursing education program—associate degree or baccalaureate—was the major predictor of final educational attainment.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. Close to 20 percent of nurses irrespective of initial nursing education obtain a higher degree. However, of the 20 percent of associate degree nurses who obtain an additional degree, 80 percent stop at the baccalaureate degree. Of the 20 percent of nurses with a baccalaureate degree who go on for additional education, almost 100 percent obtain at least a master’s degree. This is an important finding for the design of policy interventions since investments in encouraging BSN education have not distinguished between RN-to-BSN programs and basic BSN programs. The yield for teachers is entirely different between the two types of programs. If the current scenario of distribution of nurses by type of basic education had been reversed since 1974 and 66 percent of nurses had graduated from BSN programs instead of 33 percent, we estimate that there would be over 50,000 more nurses with master’s and higher degrees today.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

We concluded in our Health Affairs paper that it was a mathematical improbability that the nurse faculty shortage could be solved without changing the distribution of nurses by type of basic education. There are simply not enough nurses who obtain a master’s or higher degree to meet the dramatic increase in demand for clinicians, administrators, teachers, and leaders who require a graduate degree.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

What would be the expected yield in terms of nursing faculty that would be likely to obtain by increasing basic BSN education? To answer this we undertook an analysis of the National Sample Surveys of Registered Nurses over time to explore whether career trajectories of nurses with graduate education had changed over time. The answer is yes—significantly. For example, in 1982, 17 percent of nurses with master’s degrees and 62 percent of nurses with doctorates were in faculty positions compared to only 7 percent of master’s and 41 percent of nurses with PhDs in 2004. Nurses with graduate degrees are selecting positions in clinical care and administration in ever larger numbers. The yield for teachers is clearly greater for those who earn doctoral degrees which argues for policies that aggressively recruit BSN nurses into expedited doctoral education thus bypassing the master’s, which has a very clinical curriculum and a different end objective focused on producing clinicians. Probably for historical reasons, many schools build their curricula sequentially from BSN to MSN to doctoral degree. However, the clinical master’s in specialty practice has little to do with learning to teach or to conduct research. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The clinical masters is not a building block for doctoral study but a terminal degree like the MBA or the Masters in Engineering. In order to address the faculty shortage two things would have to happen simultaneously. More nurses would need to initiate basic nursing education at the baccalaureate level AND expedited BSN to PhD programs would need to be expanded to interest students in teaching careers earlier and expedited to bypass the clinical masters that emphasize career trajectories in clinical care. The clinical master’s is not a building block for doctoral education but a different career pathway.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Tying educational loan forgiveness to teaching is a reasonable supplemental strategy along with a focus on BSN to PhD education to help offset lower incomes in faculty positions. Actually closing the gap between practice and academic salaries is not feasible. The gap exists in every practice discipline including medicine, law, business, and engineering. University faculty salaries vary for different fields depending upon market factors but not enough to close the gap between teaching and practice within disciplines. Combining clinical and academic responsibilities for nurse faculty is a potential strategy for enhancing faculty incomes. However, in only a few nursing specialties like nurse anesthesia or executive positions are rates of remuneration for clinical nursing care high enough to offset lower academic salaries for teachers with joint clinical appointments.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Articulation programs aimed at facilitating additional education for RNs with less than a baccalaureate degree have been tried for decades and do little to produce more teachers. Once nurses qualify for licensure, 80 percent do not seek further education. Oregon has the most innovative approach to improving articulation between associate degree and baccalaureate programs by standardizing requirement; the Oregon program has twice the success rate of the national average with 40 percent of associate degree nurses obtaining the BSN. However, the Oregon articulation initiative would not solve the shortage of teachers because most of those who get the BSN will not go for a second additional degree. RN-to-MSN programs would have a somewhat higher yield for teachers than RN-to-BSN completion courses but not nearly as high a yield as BSN-to-PhD programs.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Associate degree education is appealing to policy makers because it seems to offer upward mobility and it is less expensive and more geographically accessible. However, data suggest in the case of registered nurses that initial qualification for licensure at the associate degree level actually constrains educational and career mobility compared to those who initially qualify at the bachelor’s degree level. The advantages of associate degree education, lower out-of-pocket costs and geographic proximity, can be offset in the case of nursing by public subsidies for educational costs and distance learning. The length of associate degree and baccalaureate programs are not significantly different because of licensure requirements. Maintaining three (including diploma) educational pathways for nurses that at least on the surface do not seem radically different have a dramatic impact on the upward educational mobility of nurses thus contributing to the shortage of faculty and other nurses requiring graduate-level education.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The majority of countries with health care comparable to the United States have moved to standardize nursing education at the baccalaureate entry level including the European Union. States have the authority in the United States to set licensure requirements for nursing. Prospects for standardizing education of nurses through licensure changes across 50 states are not good. However, financial incentives imbedded in public subsidies for nursing education could have a significant effect on changing patterns of education just as payment incentives change medical practice patterns.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The IOM Committee should recommend increasing public subsidies for basic nursing education—federal and state—and tying these funds to the production of baccalaureate graduates. Policies should be neutral on types of institutions—community colleges or 4-year colleges and universities—that could benefit from funding. Capitation funding on the basis of BSN graduates from basic education programs could be effective in shifting the proportion of graduates toward more with BSN qualifications. Coupled with increased funding for graduate nurse education, this could be an effective strategy for addressing the faculty shortage along with shortages of advanced practice nurse clinicians and administrators.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

IOM committee members in a previous discussion of this option asked what the yield would be for faculty positions in increasing baccalaureate graduates. Additional research is needed to answer this important question directly. However, we know from existing research that BSN initial graduates are three times more likely to get a master’s degree and twice as likely to get a doctoral degree than associate degree nurses (Aiken et al., 2009), which would likely produce more teachers. Because the current yield of teachers is relatively low overall among nurses with graduate degrees—only 7 percent of master’s graduates and 41 percent of doctoral graduates electing faculty positions—policies to increase baccalaureate initial education would have to be accompanied by efforts to increase the teacher yield. Promising strategies to increase the teacher yield among those with graduate credentials include scholarship and educational loan repayment for those in teaching roles and funds to expand BSN-to-PhD expedited programs. And investments in more baccalaureate nurse graduates would also likely return additional benefits in the form of better quality, improved access, and efficiency for those electing clinical practice roles, an outcome in the public’s interest.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

INCREASED FEDERAL AND STATE FUNDING FOR GRADUATE NURSE EDUCATION
The evidence is strong that the growth of advanced nurse practice has contributed to improved access to general care (Aiken et al., 2009). Over the past decade advanced practice nurses have largely staffed the new retail clinics that currently provide about 3 million ambulatory visits a year at an estimated per visit cost of below the average cost to a physician office. Additionally, advanced practice nurses have enabled the largest expansion of Community Health Centers (CHCs) since the Great Society Program; CHCs currently provide over 16 million visits in 7,300 sites to largely underserved people. In total, advanced practice nurses are estimated to provide up to 600 million ambulatory patient visits a year, a national primary care capacity enhancement that will become increasingly critical to access in a context of primary care physician shortage.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The rate of production of new advanced practice nurses (APNs) which had been growing steadily since the 1970s has been flat in recent years. Interest among nurses in advanced practice roles appears strong but the shortage of student financial aid for graduate nurse education has a chilling effect on enrollment growth. It is difficult for many nurses to forego employment income to attend graduate programs full time without scholarships or loans which are in short supply.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The major source of funding for graduate nurse education is Title VIII annual appropriations which currently total about $60 million (estimate for graduate education only, not all of Title VIII funding), compared to $2.4 billion for direct graduate medical education for physicians. A large proportion of APN students pursue graduate education on a part-time basis which slows the production of new graduates. Employer tuition benefits, an important source of educational assistance for practicing nurses, have been reduced during the economic downturn, eroding available financial support for graduate nurse education, particularly at the master’s level which is generally required for advanced nurse clinical practice.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Medicare, since its inception, has paid for a share of graduate medical education. It has also reimbursed some hospitals for a portion of their nursing education costs. An analysis we conducted of 2006 HCRIS data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) suggested that Medicare funding for nursing education was slightly less than $160 million annually, a small amount compared to medical education investments, but almost as much as all of Title VIII funding for nursing in that year. CMS has a larger estimate of $300 million in Medicare payments for nursing education but we cannot verify that estimate with publicly available data. But whether Medicare funding is $160 million or $300 million annually, policies governing expenditures are very different from how the funds are spent in support of medical education, the amount is large relative to other sources of federal support for nursing education, and the funding does not materially affect the supply of nurses or the quality of nursing care for the elderly (Aiken and Gwyther, 1995). Most of the funds are limited to hospital-sponsored diploma nursing schools which currently prepare less than 5 percent of new RNs annually. Also five or six states account for almost half of Medicare nursing education funding because of the location of the relatively few surviving diploma nursing schools.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

A number of workforce studies and commissions, including a 1997 IOM committee, have called for the realignment of Medicare funding for nursing education to graduate nursing education (IOM, 1997). The health reform bill passed by the Senate proposes a small demonstration of up to five hospitals to test Medicare payments for graduate nursing education. While better than no progress at all, the proposed demonstration is too small to significantly advance a change in Medicare policy that is long overdue.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

There is sufficient information available now as suggested by the Institute of Medicine in 1997 to realign Medicare nursing education funding to graduate nursing education. This could be a budget-neutral programmatic shift which would more than double current federal funding levels for graduate nursing education and serve as a significant stimulus for increased production of advanced practice nurses to meet the multitude of existing and emerging needs resulting from the continuously changing boundaries between nursing and medicine.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

FEDERAL AUTHORITY ON HEALTH WORKFORCE POLICIES
There is little effective health workforce policy-making at the federal level. The modest nursing policy capacity is located within the Health Resources and Services Administration, an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with little of its own funding and no authority to engage CMS which controls Medicare nursing education funding or the Department of Education, where the largest funding for nursing education resides in the form of Carl Perkins Act funding for community colleges.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Patterns of basic pre-licensure education for nurses have changed dramatically in the 45 years since the nation’s last major health reform—Medicare and Medicaid. In 1965, over 85 percent of nurses received their basic education in hospital-sponsored diploma programs; now less than 5 percent do.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The percentage of registered nurses receiving training in associate degree programs was less than 2 percent in 1965 but is over 66 percent today. Baccalaureate nursing programs produced about 10 percent of new nurses in 1965, which increased to about a third of new nurses by 1980 and has been stable there for 30 years (Aiken and Gwyther, 1995). Current Medicare policies for support of nursing education as implemented by CMS are still based on nursing education patterns that existed when Medicare was passed but that are practically irrelevant today. CMS has been resistant to proposals to realign existing Medicare support for nursing education to graduate nursing education through multiple different administrations in Washington.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The single largest source of federal support for nursing education is the Department of Education’s funding for community colleges through the Carl Perkins Act. Perkins funds exceed $8 billion annually. A high priority should be set on examining whether and how Perkins funds could be targeted to incentivize community college nursing programs to increase the proportion of their nursing students who complete their initial education with a BSN. There are numerous feasible strategies to do this including having community colleges offer the BSN as in Florida and other states as well as innovative partnerships with 4-year colleges and universities perhaps using state-of-the-art distance learning technologies supported by Perkins funding.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The most influential of the many commissions on nursing over the decades was the 1982 IOM study Nursing and Nursing Education: Public Policies and Private Actions. That study made a recommendation involving an organizational change within HHS that dramatically altered national nurse leadership and nursing education. The recommendation was to move the responsibility and budget authority for nursing research from HRSA to NIH where research was highly visible and influential. The establishment of the National Institute of Nursing Research within two decades fundamentally transformed the engagement of nursing in evidence-based innovations to improve health outcomes, helped create new and important interdisciplinary research and research training collaborations, and improved the relevance and quality of nursing education in universities. The proposal to establish a nursing workforce authority at a higher level of the federal government could have an equally influential impact on the adequacy of the national nurse workforce.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

FINAL THOUGHTS
The Commission on the Future of Nursing has considered many important aspects of the education and practice of nursing. Of the many types of recommendations the committee might consider, recommendations regarding federal (and state) funding of nursing education are among the most actionable and potentially influential in creating a future for nursing that serves the public’s interests in patient-centered accessible health services at affordable costs. What is good for the public is genuinely good for nursing. Using public nursing education policy as a vehicle for achieving a better balance between the qualifications of nurses and national health care needs could result in great return on investment now and in the years ahead.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

This college rankings article focuses on online Nursing Education and related degrees at the masters graduate level (e.g., MSN/ MS Nursing, etc.), and includes post-master’s certificates when available in any of the 25 colleges listed here.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

There have been nursing shortages in the U.S. and elsewhere for some time now — possibly since as far back as the mid-1960s, for varying periods of time. However, there is currently also a shortage of the nurse educators and leaders who are involved in training new nurses, as well as employees of healthcare and other organizations/ agencies, and patients.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The shortage of people in nursing education is due to retirement, career change and other reasons. As well, nursing in general is a fast-growing occupation, with 16-31% jobs growth predicted for some specialties. While students are applying to nursing schools, possibly in response to the clinical nurse shortage, there are apparently not enough faculty at some nursing schools to handle the potential increase in student nurses.

Careers in Nursing Education
For current and future nurses interested in becoming educators, a master’s degree in nursing education, or an existing MSN degree paired with a suitable post-master’s graduate certificate in nursing is a right step in the career path. This college ranking of online masters degrees in nursing education should help get you started in finding an affordable nursing school. A partial list of occupations and industries/ organizations that may be hiring graduates of an MSN Nursing Education degree is shown below.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

administrative nurse faculty
case manager
clinical facilities
clinical nurse educator
clinical supervisor
college/ university lecturer/ nursing school faculty member
community colleges
community health agencies/ organizations
consultant – curriculum
consulting firms
continuing education specialist
government agencies
health care manager
health educator
healthcare organizations
home care agencies
hospitals/ clinics
long-term care facilities
nurse administrator
nurse educator
nurse leader
nursing faculty
nursing instructor
patient educator
patient/staff education departments
staff development manager
staff educator
teaching hospital faculty member
Also see our other rankings of online and traditional bachelors and masters nursing programs, listed on our Rankings page.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

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Notes
We use the average out-of-state tuition listed in NCES for affordability rankings of master’s programs. However, a given program’s actual costs may differ from what we list and is subject to change by the colleges in question. Check Web sites for up-to-date graduate tuition rates.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
These master’s degree rankings do not factor in fees, which can vary for online programs.
As college accreditation can change or only be valid regionally, please verify accreditation of any college to which you are planning to apply.
This college rankings list uses the most recently reported data at time of writing; however, NCES data is subject to change as colleges report new information.
The Areavibes cost of living score is from Areavibes.com and represents the city/ town of the college in question. It is completely independent of each college’s on-campus housing costs.
Rankings: Affordable Online Master’s Degrees in Nursing Education

25: Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE) is a public university established in 1957 and located in Edwardsville, Illinois, about 26 miles roughly northeast of St. Louis, MO. It is part of the Southern Illinois University System and originally created as an extension of the main Carbondale campus.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

SIUE offers five online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) Nurse Educator; Post-master’s certificate: Nurse Educator. This MSN is a 36-credit program consisting of 12 courses, including two statistics-centered courses and three practicum courses. The program has a total of 270 hours required for the three face-to-face practicums. Note that clinical opportunities are not possible in all states, so online students should consider this before starting the program. The curriculum prepares graduates for roles as educators for student nurses. Program graduates qualify to sit for the NLN’s CNE exam after completing this MSN degree and also teaching for two years. Students already holding a master’s degree can take the post-master’s Nurse Educator certificate, which requires between 13-36 credits, depending on MSN coursework taken.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Advanced Specialty Nursing Practice for Nurse Educators: Seminar; Curriculum Theory, Design and Program Evaluation in Nursing Education; Health Policy and Advanced Nursing Practice; Instructional Design, Assessment and Evaluation for Nursing Education; Research in Advanced Nursing Practice; Synthesis for Teaching in the Nurse Educator Role; Teaching and Learning Theory, Development and Socialization in Nursing Education; Theoretical Foundations of Nursing

%grads taking only distance edu: 11%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 7%.
In-state tuition: $6,544.
Out-of-state tuition: $12,830.
Student population: 13972.
# undergrads: 11421.
# grads: 2551.
Campus setting: Suburb: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: C+.
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24: University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UWYO) is a public research university that was established in 1886. Its main campus is in Laramie, Wyoming, about 145 miles north and slightly west of Denver, Colorado.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

UWYO offers around a dozen online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) Nurse Leader with Nurse Educator Concentration. This MSN is a part-time, 36-credit program consisting of eight Leadership courses. Students taking the optional NE concentration also take several Education courses, including an Education practicum. The curriculum prepares students for both nurse leadership and educator roles. The timeline is three years of study and clinical experiences, and some on-campus presence is required. A GRE is not required for admission. Note: UWYO has phased out their older MSN Nurse Educator program, with the last cohort entering in Fall 2015.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Leadership Strategies; Becoming a Leader; Business of Healthcare; Educational Leadership; Evidence-Informed Decision-Making; Health Policy for Rural and Global Population Health; Leadership within Healthcare Systems; Population Health; Rural Leadership Service-Learning Experience; Science of Quality Improvement and Safety; Theoretical Foundations for Nursing Leadership

%grads taking only distance edu: 19%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 7%.
In-state tuition: $4,176.
Out-of-state tuition: $12,474.
Student population: 12820.
# undergrads: 10124.
# grads: 2696.
Campus setting: Town: Remote.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A.
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23: University of Mary
University of Mary is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1959 and located in Bismarck, North Dakota, about 196 miles roughly west of Fargo, ND. Original name: Mary College. Affiliation: Catholic Church

UM offers 17 online master’s degrees, including concentrations/ specializations. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nurse Educator – BSN to MSN. This MSN is a 42-credit program consisting of 17 courses, including Thesis courses and practicum experiences, as well as grad orientation courses. The program prepares graduates for nurse leadership roles in education, either at colleges/ universities, or in healthcare settings such as hospitals, clinics, health agencies, etc. A total of 500 hours of leadership and education experience is combined together. There are three start dates per year.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment for Nurse Educators; Advanced Pathophysiology for Nurse Educators; Critique and Design of Nursing Research; Evidence Based Practice and Strategic Healthcare Decision Making; Graduate Student Assessment Nursing; Healthcare Across the Population; Healthcare Law and Policy; Influential Nursing Leadership; Leadership and the Future of Nursing; Principles of Pharmacology for Nurse Educators; Professional Roles in Advanced Nursing; Seminar in Nursing Education I, II

%grads taking only distance edu: 28%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 47%.
In-state tuition: $12,100.
Out-of-state tuition: $12,100.
Student population: 2809.
# undergrads: 2036.
# grads: 773.
Campus setting: Rural: Fringe.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A.
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22: Wheeling Jesuit University
Wheeling Jesuit University is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1954 and located in Wheeling, West Virginia, about 59 miles roughly southwest of Pittsburgh, PA. Original name: Wheeling College.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

WJU offers four online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN with Nursing Education Specialist Track; Graduate certificate: Nursing Education Specialist Track. This MSN is a minimum 39-credit program consisting of five Core MSN courses and six NE speciality courses, including Capstone and Practicum courses. The specialty courses are divided into education courses and clinical courses. The program prepares graduates for roles as educators or faculty members in nursing programs. Students who already hold an MSN have the option of taking the 18-credit post-master’s certificate in Nursing Education, which includes a Capstone and a Practicum.

Sample courses: Comprehensive Health Assessment; Curriculum and Instruction; Educational Technology; Evaluation; Health Care Delivery Systems and Economics; Health Care Policy and Politics; Health Promotion; Nursing Research I; Nursing Theories

%grads taking only distance edu: 62%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 4%.
In-state tuition: $11,970.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,970.
Student population: 1575.
# undergrads: 1187.
# grads: 388.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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21: Walden University
Walden University is a private, for-profit/ PBC (Public Benefit Corporation) established in 1970 and located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was founded by two teachers from New York, Bernie and Rita Turner.

WU offers 50+ online master’s degrees and a large selection of graduate certificates. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nursing Education. This MSN offers three tracks, the choice of which determines the total number of credits required. The tracks are (1) BSN to MSN (holding a bachelor’s in nursing), (2) RN to MSN (holding a diploma or associate’s degree in nursing); (3) RN to BSN to MSN dual degree. The curriculum listed below is for option 1, which requires 51 quarter credits (qc) and consists of 11 course, including a Practicum. The overall program prepares graduates for roles as nurse educators who design, develop and implement programs that train nurses to implement evidence-based practice.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment and Diagnostic Reasoning; Advanced Pathopharmacology; Curriculum Development, Assessment, and Evaluation; Essentials of Evidence-Based Practice; Foundations for Graduate Study; Interprofessional Organizational and Systems Leadership; Policy and Advocacy for Improving Population Health; Specialty in Clinical Nursing; Teaching Learning Strategies: Integrating Technology Into Nursing Education; The Role of the Nurse Educator; Transforming Nursing and Healthcare Through Technology

%grads taking only distance edu: 100%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 0%.
In-state tuition: $11,895.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,895.
Student population: 52188.
# undergrads: 8960.
# grads: 43228.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: No.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: C.
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20: University of Texas at Tyler
University of Texas at Tyler is a public institution established in 1971 and located in Tyler, Texas, about 98 miles roughly southeast of Dallas, TX. Original name: Tyler State College.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

UTT offers 16 online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nursing Education; Graduate certificate in Nursing Education. This MSN is a 37-credit program consisting of 13 courses, including two Capstones. The program, which can be taken full- or part-time. It prepares grads for the CNE national certification exam or for doctoral studies. Alternately, students can take the 9-credit (three courses) grad certificate in Nursing Education.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Nursing Pharmacology; Advanced Pathophysiology; Capstone I, II; Evaluation in Nursing Education; Health Care Informatics; Health Policy/ Population Health; Nursing Education Curriculum; Nursing Education Roles/Strategies; Organizational Sys. Leadership; Translational Science I, II

%grads taking only distance edu: 64%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 19%.
In-state tuition: $4,662.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,726.
Student population: 8036.
# undergrads: 5849.
# grads: 2187.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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19: Thomas Edison State University
Thomas Edison State University is a public institution established in 1972 and located in Trenton, New Jersey, about 33 miles roughly northeast of Philadelphia, PA. Original name: Thomas Edison State College.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

TESU offers 12 online master’s degrees and 12 graduate certificates. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) with Nurse Educator Specialty; Graduate Nurse Educator Certificate. This MSN is a 36-credit program consisting of four Core courses (12cr), three Direct Care/ Elective courses (9cr), three NE specialty courses (9cr) and two Practicums (6cr). The program prepares students for “teaching roles in healthcare and academic settings” and awards a certificate upon the completion of this MSN. Alternately, current RNs already holding a master’s degree can take the grad certificate alone (12-15 credits), which includes the same two Practicum courses as in the MSN — each of which requires 120 supervised hours.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Curriculum Theory and Development in Nursing Education; Evidence-Based Nursing Practice; Health Policy; Nurse Educator: Seminar and Practicum I, II; Nursing Informatics: Concepts and Issues; Nursing Leadership in a Global Community; Testing, Assessment and Evaluation; Theoretical Foundations and Instructional Strategies in Nursing Education

%grads taking only distance edu: 100%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 0%.
In-state tuition: $11,610.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,610.
Student population: 21495.
# undergrads: 20143.
# grads: 1352.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: No.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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18: University of Texas at El Paso
University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a public university established in 1914 as the Texas State School of Mines and Metallurgy. It is part of the University of Texas System and is located in El Paso, Texas, some 550 miles northwest of San Antonio, TX, and about 270 miles south of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

UTEP offers 10 distance master’s degrees, several of which are offered online. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN in Nursing Education. This MSN is a 33-credit program consisting of 11 courses. The program prepares graduates for educator roles and the skills and knowledge for “curriculum design and development, teaching methods, educational needs assessment, and learner-centered theories and methods.”NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Curriculum Development; Effective Teaching Strategies; Evaluation of Learning; Health Law Policy and Ethics; Integrated Concepts in Pathophysiology and Pharmacology; Managing Health Care Outcomes; Mentored Experience Clinical Populations; Mentored Experience Educator Role; Nursing Research Appraisal and Application; Nursing Theories

%grads taking only distance edu: 21%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 15%.
In-state tuition: $4,336.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,517.
Student population: 23079.
# undergrads: 19817.
# grads: 3262.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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17: Texas Woman’s University
Texas Woman’s University (TWU) is a public university that was established in 1901 and was first known as the Girls Industrial College. TWU’s main campus is located in Denton, Texas, some 40 miles northwest of Dallas, TX.

TWU offers 20 online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing Education. This MSN is a 40-credit program consisting of six Core courses (20cr) and six NE specialty courses, including a project and a practicum. Students can choose the site of practical experiences near their place of residence, from an approved list.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Assessment/Differential Diagnosis; Advanced Pathophysiology; Clinical Specialization; Curriculum Design and Management in Nursing; Educational Communication and Technologies of Instruction; Evaluation Models for Curriculum Management; Health Promotion and Policy; Measurement and Assessment in Nursing; Pharmacotherapeutics for Advanced Nursing Practice; Research in Nursing ; Teaching Practicum in Nursing; Theoretical Basis for Nursing Education; Theoretical Foundations of Nursing Practice

%grads taking only distance edu: 44%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 19%.
In-state tuition: $4,380.
Out-of-state tuition: $11,400.
Student population: 15071.
# undergrads: 9680.
# grads: 5391.
Campus setting: City: Midsize.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: C+.
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16: Regis University
Regis University is a 4-year, private, non-profit university based in Denver, Colorado It was founded in 1877 as Las Vegas College and is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church (Jesuit).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Regis offers 35 online master’s degrees, including concentrations/ specializations. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Leadership in Health Care Systems: Education Focus (MSN-EF; blended program); RN to MS Nursing with Focus in Education (MSN-E). The Regis MSN-EF is a 42-credit program (nine Core and six EF courses) with 8-week courses and three start dates yearly. The program prepares graduates with the skills to design a curriculum, develop courses, and teach, mentor and evaluate students in both clinical and academic settings. Regis also offers an RN-to-MSN program that allows current RNs to earn both a BSN and an MSN on an accelerated schedule. Both MSN programs require a total 210 practicum hours. The RN to MSN has a study timeline of 24-36 months.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Apps. of Research for Evidence-Based Practice; Advanced Health Assessment of the Patient and Family; Advanced Nursing Practice: Leadership and Theoretical Frameworks; Advanced Pharmacology for Advanced Practice; Advanced Physiology and Pathophysiology Across the Lifespan; Comprehensive Evaluation; Curriculum Development; Ethics for Nurse Leaders; Evaluation Methods in Health Care Education; Foundations of Financial Management for Nursing Leaders; Health Care Organizations and Systems Leadership; Health Care Policy; Leadership in Health Care Systems Practicum; Population Health and Interprofessional Collaboration Practicum; Teaching and Learning Strategies in Health Care (3 semester hours)

%grads taking only distance edu: 46%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 5%.
In-state tuition: $10,800.
Out-of-state tuition: $10,800.
Student population: 9208.
# undergrads: 5009.
# grads: 4199.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: D+.
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15: Angelo State University
Angelo State University is a institution established in 1928 and located in San Angelo, Texas, about 90 miles roughly southwest of Abilene, TX. Original name: San Angelo College. Affiliation: Texas Tech University System.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

ASU offers 13 distance master’s degrees, some of which are online. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) with Nurse Educator (NE) Specialization; Graduate Nurse Educator Certificate. This MSN is a 39-credit program consisting of nine Core courses (27cr) – including a 50-clock-hour Assessment course — and four NE courses (12cr) – including a Practicum requiring 150 clock hours. The curriculum prepares graduates for various roles including faculty members at nursing schools and teaching hospitals. Alternately, nurses already holding an MS Nursing degree who are interested in pursing an educator role can take ASU’s 12-credit (four courses) post-master NE certificate, which includes a 150-clock-hour Practicum.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Pathophysiology; Curriculum in Nursing Education; Evaluation in Nursing Education; Evidenced-Based Practice and Theory for Advanced Nursing; Health Policy and Ethics; Informatics and Healthcare Technology for Advanced Nursing; Leadership and Practicum in Nursing Education; Leadership and Roles in Advanced Nursing; Pharmacotherapeutics; Population Health Epidemiology for Advanced Nursing; Research Foundations for Advanced Nursing; Teaching Strategies in Nursing Education

%grads taking only distance edu: 68%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 9%.
In-state tuition: $3,726.
Out-of-state tuition: $10,746.
Student population: 6494.
# undergrads: 5359.
# grads: 1135.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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14: Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi
Texas A & M University-Corpus Christi is a public institution established in 1947 and located in Corpus Christi, Texas, about 143 miles roughly southwest of San Antonio, TX.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

TAMUCC offers eight online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) Nurse Educator; Post-master’s certificate: Nurse Educator. This MSN is a 37-credit program consisting of 12 courses, including a Practicum. Up to 12 credits can be transferred. The curriculum prepares graduates for roles in nursing education, including for a selected specialty (though not in clinical terms). Students will identify and select their own mentor for clinical experiences. For nurses already holding an MSN, TAMUCC offers a post-masters Nurse Educator grad certificate that prepares candidates for teaching in either academic or clinical nursing education roles.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Pharmacological Concepts for Nursing Educators; Advanced Physiology with Pathophysiological Applications; Assessment, Measurement, and Evaluation in Nursing; Diverse Care Environments; Education Practicum for the Nurse Educator; Health Assessment for Advanced Practice; Instructional Teaching Strategies; Intro to Advanced Role; Nursing Curriculum Planning, Development, and Evaluation; Nursing Research; Science in Nursing; Theory and Concepts for the Nurse Educator

%grads taking only distance edu: 21%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 27%.
In-state tuition: $3,568.
Out-of-state tuition: $10,588.
Student population: 11256.
# undergrads: 9076.
# grads: 2180.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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13: Concordia University-Wisconsin
Concordia University-Wisconsin is a private, nonprofit university established in 1881 and located in Mequon, Wisconsin, about 20 miles roughly north-northeast of Milwaukee, WI. It was originally founded as Concordia College Milwaukee and is part of the Concordia College System (CCS).

CUW offers just under 40 online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nurse Educator Track. This MSN is a 39-credit program consisting of eight Core courses (24cr), one Elective (3cr) and five NE Specialization courses (13cr) including a Capstone (1 of 13 credits). The curriculum prepares graduates for teaching in either associate and bachelor’s nursing programs, or in the education department of other organizations, particularly health care.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Pathophysiology Across the Lifespan; Advanced Physical Assessment for Nurse Educators; Culturally Congruent Care for Advanced Nursing; Evaluations and Testing in Nursing; Evidence Based Nursing Practice; Foundations of Healthcare Informatics; Genetics, Immunology, an Microbiology For Advanced Nursing Roles; Global Perspectives/Primary Care; Health Policy and Issues in Advanced Nursing; NEI – Role Transition for Nurse Educators; NEII – Instructional Design in Nursing Education: Classroom Teaching; NEIII – Instructional Design in Nursing Education: Clinical Teaching; Nurse Educator Capstone; Pharmacotherapeutics; Theoretical Foundations for Advanced Nursing Roles and Interprofessional Collaboration

%grads taking only distance edu: 40%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 31%.
In-state tuition: $9,864.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,864.
Student population: 8161.
# undergrads: 4377.
# grads: 3784.
Campus setting: Suburb: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: D.
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12: Wayland Baptist University
Wayland Baptist University (WBU) is a private, nonprofit university established in 1908 and located in Plainview, Texas, about 77 miles roughly south of Amarillo, TX. It was originally founded as Wayland Literary and Technical Institute and is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

WBU offers 11 online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN). This MSN is a 36-credit program consisting of 12 courses, including a Practicum. The curriculum prepares graduates to teach in nursing programs or as an educator in healthcare and other organizations. Topical focus includes “curriculum development, teaching strategies , evaluation, and adult learning.” Students can transfer up to 12 credits.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Applied Learning Theories in Nursing Education; Classroom Management in Nursing Education; Curriculum Development in Nursing Education; Evaluation of Learning in Nursing Education; Foundations of Adult Learning in Nursing Education; Foundations of Economics and Finance Theory and Practice; Legal and Ethical Issues in Nursing Education; Organizational Structure and Systems Leadership in Nursing; Research Methods in Nursing Education; Role Development in Nursing Leadership; Teaching Strategies in Nursing

%grads taking only distance edu: 47%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 23%.
In-state tuition: $9,720.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,720.
Student population: 5536.
# undergrads: 3981.
# grads: 1555.
Campus setting: Town: Remote.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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11: Clarkson College
Clarkson College is a private, nonprofit college established in 1888 and located in Omaha, Nebraska, about 190 miles roughly north-northwest of Kansas City, MO. It got its start as a school of nursing. Currently, degree programs are primarily health sciences-related but also include some business and education. Affiliation: Episcopal Church.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

CC offers four online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) with Specialty in Nursing Education (NE). This MSN is a 39-credit program consisting of 8 Core courses (17cr, 1-3cr each), NE Specialty courses (18cr) and three evidence-based research project (1-2cr each = 4cr). The curriculum prepares graduates for roles as an educator, combining “clinical practice of medicine and health care with classroom instruction.”NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Application and Evaluation of Theory in Nursing; Applied Statistics; Curriculum Development for the Nurse Educator; Evaluation Strategies for the Nurse Educator; Evidence-Based Practice Research Project I-III; Health Care Delivery Systems and Managed Care; Nursing Education Practicum; Nursing Law and Ethics; Pharmacology, Pathophysiology and Health Assessment Overview for Nurse Educators; Research Design and Methods I; Role Transition; Teaching and Learning Strategies for the Nurse Educator; Theories and Concepts of Advanced Practice Roles; Theories of Learning for the Nurse Educator

%grads taking only distance edu: 92%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 5%.
In-state tuition: $9,630.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,630.
Student population: 1221.
# undergrads: 744.
# grads: 477.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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10: Mount Carmel College of Nursing
Mount Carmel College of Nursing is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1903 and located in Columbus, Ohio, about 175 miles roughly east of Indianapolis, IN. Affiliation: Catholic Church.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, MCCN offers: MS Nursing (MSN) with Nursing Education (NE) Track; Graduate certificate, Nursing Education. This MSN is a 34-credit program consisting of five Core courses (13cr), three Direct Care Core courses (9cr) and five NE courses (12cr). The latter group includes two Practicums totaling 200 clinical hours. Course are mostly three credits each, with some worth 1-2cr. The timeline is seven semesters (approx. three years).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment for Nurse Educators; Advanced Pharmacology; Advanced Physiology/Pathophysiology; Assessment, Measurement and Evaluation; Curriculum and Program Development; Educator Practicum; Family Health Practicum; Leadership in Advanced Nursing Roles; Nursing Research and Evidenced Based Practice; Quality, Safety and Effectiveness; Theoretical Foundations of Nursing; Theoretical Foundations of the Instructional Process

%grads taking only distance edu: 18%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 38%.
In-state tuition: $9,480.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,480.
Student population: 1084.
# undergrads: 927.
# grads: 157.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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9: Ferris State University
Ferris State University is a public institution established in 1884 and located in Big Rapids, Michigan, about 57 miles roughly north-northeast of Grand Rapids, MI. Original name: Big Rapids Industrial School.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

FSU offers five online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN with Concentration in Nursing Education (MSN-NE); Graduate certificate in Nursing Education. This MSN is a 37-credit program consisting of six Core courses (18cr), three NE concentration courses (9cr) and four Practicum and Prep courses (10cr). The curriculum prepares graduates for teaching in a nursing program at the associate or bachelor level. Students have the option of taking 1-4 courses at a time, allowing them to study at an accelerated pace, if desired. Alternately, FSU offers a grad certificate in Nursing Education that requires 12 credits, the courses for which overlap with the MSN-NE.

Sample courses: Advanced Physical Assessment, Pathophysiology and Pharmacology; Clinical Practicum I, II; Clinical Practicum Prep I, II; Clinical Prevention and Population Health; Critique of Evidence for Practice; Curriculum Design in Nursing Education; Health Care Systems, Policy and Advocacy; Intro to Advanced Nursing Roles; Organization and Systems Leadership; Quality Improvement and Safety; Teach Methods in Nursing Education

%grads taking only distance edu: 13%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 6%.
In-state tuition: $6,324.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,480.
Student population: 14600.
# undergrads: 13373.
# grads: 1227.
Campus setting: Town: Distant.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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8: Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion
Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) is a 4-year, private, non-profit university based in Marion, Indiana, about 52 miles roughly southwest of Fort Wayne, IN. It was founded in 1920 as Marion College and is affiliated with the Wesleyan Church. The student body represents over 80 Christian denominations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

IWU offers 80+ online degrees at all levels. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) – Nursing Education. This MSN is a 41-credit hybrid program with some in-person presence required. It prepares graduates to teach at the university level or through community outreach. The timeline is 22 months, and students can take either a BSN-to-MSN or RN-to-MSN option. Online students need to be licensed nurses in the state in which they will take their practicum experience.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Biostatistics and Epidemiology; Course Design and Development; Ethics and Health Policy; Evidence Based Communication; Health Assessment for the Nurse Educator; Innovative Teaching Strategies; Integration of Theory Into Nursing Education Practice; Introduction to Professional Development for Advanced Practice in Nursing Education; Leadership in Nursing Education; Program Evaluation and Assessment; The Art of Teaching; Theoretical Foundations for Advanced Nursing Practice; Utilization of Research for Evidence Based Practice

%grads taking only distance edu: 57%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 26%.
In-state tuition: $9,265.
Out-of-state tuition: $9,265.
Student population: 14943.
# undergrads: 10392.
# grads: 4551.
Campus setting: Town: Distant.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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7: American Sentinel University
American Sentinel University is a private, for-profit institution established in 1988 and based in Aurora, Colorado, about 10 miles roughly east of Denver, CO. It was formed from the merger of two schools, the older one founded in 1988.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

ASU offers five online master’s degrees, plus concentrations/ specializations. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN), Nursing Education Specialization. This MSN is a 36-credit program allowing up to 18 transfer credits. Courses run eight weeks each. The curriculum, which prepares graduates for teaching nursing, consists of six Core courses (18cr) and six NE specialization courses (18cr). including a Capstone. The program uses three types of Practice Experiences (PEs) in order for students to build knowledge and skills. This includes real-world application, simulations, and off-campus assignments.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Advanced Physical Assessment; Assessment of Learning; Curriculum Design and Learning Outcomes; Distance Education; MSN Role Development; Organizational Dynamics of Higher Education; Research Design; Teaching to Diverse Learning Styles; Theoretical Foundations

%grads taking only distance edu: 100%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 0%.
In-state tuition: $8,910.
Out-of-state tuition: $8,910.
Student population: 3173.
# undergrads: 1712.
# grads: 1461.
Campus setting: City: Large.
Campus housing avail.: No.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: B.
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6: Oklahoma Baptist University
Oklahoma Baptist University is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1910 and located in Shawnee, Oklahoma, about 40 miles roughly east-southeast of Oklahoma City, OK. Affiliation: Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

OBU offers four online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nursing Education Track (MSN-NE); RN to MSN with Nursing Education Track; Graduate certificate in Nursing Education. The OBU MSN-NE is a 35-credit, 18-month program for students holding a BSN, which prepares graduates for roles as a nurse educator. The curriculum consists of nine Core courses (including two Capstones) and four NE track courses. Students already hold an MSN can choose the 10-credit post-master’s certificate in Nursing Education, which overlaps with the MSN-NE specialty courses, including two Practicum courses. For students with an associate’s degree or diploma in nursing, OBU offers an RN to MSN program, which also has a Nurse Educator option. Students desiring to gain a BSN as well will be required to take undergraduate courses as well as the graduate courses, increasing total credits needed for completion.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Nursing Practicum I, II; Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology Applications; Curriculum Design and Evaluation; Curriculum Development; Health Care and Nursing Informatics; Nursing Leadership and Health Care Policy; Nursing Research: Evidence for Nursing Practice; Philosophical Foundations of Professional Nursing; Strategies and Evaluation; Strategies for Teaching in Nursing

%grads taking only distance edu: 5%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 5%.
In-state tuition: $8,100.
Out-of-state tuition: $8,100.
Student population: 1979.
# undergrads: 1921.
# grads: 58.
Campus setting: Town: Distant.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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5: Wilmington University
Wilmington University (WilmU) is a private, nonprofit university established in 1968 and located in New Castle, Delaware, about six miles roughly southwest of Wilmington, DE, and about 38 miles roughly southwest of Philadelphia, PA. It was originally founded as Wilmington College. The university has 14 locations (campuses and learning centers) collectively in Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey, as well as an online division. All degree programs can actually be completed online.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

WU offers 19 online master’s degrees, plus concentrations/ specializations. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nursing Leadership with Educator Concentration. This MSN is a 36-credit program with a time frame of 2-3 years (maximum five). Students will build upon research techniques, an awareness of current health care needs (individual, family, community), ethical decision-making, understanding of health care policies at local through global levels, and more. The core program consists of four courses (12 credits), plus four courses in the Educator concentration (12 credits), and a Nurse Leadership Portfolio requirement.

Sample courses: Clinical Teaching and Evaluation; Contemporary Concepts in Advanced Practice Roles; Curriculum Development; Evidence Based Practice in the Health Professions; Instructional Technology for Nurse Educators; Nurse Leadership Portfolio; Politics and Policy in the Healthcare System; Teaching and Learning in Nursing

%grads taking only distance edu: 33%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 15%.
In-state tuition: $7,992.
Out-of-state tuition: $7,992.
Student population: 14467.
# undergrads: 8810.
# grads: 5657.
Campus setting: Suburb: Large.
Campus housing avail.: No.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: D+.
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4: Briar Cliff University
Briar Cliff University is a public institution established in 1930 and located in Sioux City, Iowa, about 101 miles roughly north-northwest of Omaha, NE. Original Name: Briar Cliff College. Affiliation: Roman Catholic/ Franciscan.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

BCU offers online master’s degrees in six topic areas. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN Nurse Educator. This MSN is a 44-credit program consisting of 15 courses, including a practicum, and a total of 280 clinical hours. The curriculum prepares graduates to take roles to educate nurses using the compassionate principles of Franciscan tradition.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Human Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Cultural Competence in Health Care; Curriculum and Instruction; Evidence-Based Practice; Foundations Of Advanced Nursing Practice; Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Throughout the Lifespan; Heath Care System: Paradigms, Policy And Ethics; Research Methods for Advanced Practice Nursing; Teaching and Evaluating Learning in Colleges of Nursing; Teaching in Colleges of Nursing Practicum; Theoretical Foundations For Advanced Nursing Practice; Theoretical Foundations in Higher Education

%grads taking only distance edu: 95%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 0%.
In-state tuition: $7,920.
Out-of-state tuition: $7,920.
Student population: 1135.
# undergrads: 1041.
# grads: 94.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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3: Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies
Central Methodist University-College of Graduate and Extended Studies is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1854 and located in Fayette, Missouri, about 117 miles roughly east of Kansas City, MO. Original name: Central Methodist College. Affiliation: United Methodist Church.

CMU offers two online master’s degrees. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing with Nurse Educator Specialization. This MSN is a 34-credit program consisting of four Core courses (12 credits) and seven NE specialization courses (22 credits). The curriculum, which allows up to nine transfer credits, prepares graduates for nursing education roles in health care settings. Topics covered include accountability, evaluation and design of curriculum, etc.

Sample courses: Advanced Health Assessment; Advanced Pathophysiology; Advanced Pharmacology; Advanced Professional Role – Nurse Educator; Curriculum Development; Evaluation Methods; Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing Education; Instructional Strategies; Issues and Trends in Post-Secondary Education; Nurse Educator Practicum; Theoretical Frameworks

%grads taking only distance edu: 29%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 19%.
In-state tuition: $7,584.
Out-of-state tuition: $7,584.
Student population: 4537.
# undergrads: 4291.
# grads: 246.
Campus setting: Town: Distant.
Campus housing avail.: No.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: A+.
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2: Charleston Southern University
Charleston Southern University is a private, nonprofit institution established in 1964 and located in Charleston, South Carolina, about 293 miles roughly southeast of Atlanta. Original name: Baptist College. Affiliation: Southern Baptist Church.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

CSU offers seven online master’s programs. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MSN with Nurse Educator Emphasis; post-master’s certificate in Nursing Education. This MSN is a 30-credit program consisting of 10 courses running five weeks each. Students have between 12-16 months for completion. The curriculum prepares graduates for faculty positions to teach in nursing programs, as well as for educator roles in hospitals and clinics. There is also a part-time study option (39 credits), as well as a 14- to 19-credit certificate for students already holding an MSN.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Advanced Concepts; Evaluation in Nursing Education; Evidence-based Research in Nursing ; Healthcare Informatics; Issues in Nursing Education; Leadership and Professional Role Development; Nursing Curriculum Design ; Nursing Education from a Faith Perspective; Quality and Safety in Nursing Education; Teaching Methodologies in Nursing; Teaching Practicum in Nursing; Theoretical Frameworks of Nursing Education

%grads taking only distance edu: 21%.
%grads taking some distance edu: 9%.
In-state tuition: $7,500.
Out-of-state tuition: $7,500.
Student population: 3367.
# undergrads: 2967.
# grads: 400.
Campus setting: City: Small.
Campus housing avail.: Yes.
Areavibes.com cost of living score: D+.
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1: Grantham University
Grantham University is a private, for-profit online university that was established in 1951. Grantham is headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas, some 20 miles southwest of Kansas City, KS, and about 180 miles northeast of Wichita, KS. Original name: Grantham Radio License School.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

GU offers 15 online master’s degrees, including concentrations/ specializations. For online master’s degrees in Nursing Education, they offer: MS Nursing (MSN) with Specialization in Nursing Education. This MSN is a 37-credit program consisting of 12 3-credit core courses and a 1cr grad orientation course. The curriculum, which includes a Capstone and a Practicum, prepares graduates for roles in nursing education in academic and healthcare environments, builds knowledge of emerging trends , and skills such as leadership and management, human diversity, social issues, disease prevention, health promotion and more.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample courses: Assessment and Teaching to Diverse Learning Styles; Concepts of Distance Education; Curriculum Design and Learning Outcomes; Diverse Populations and Healthcare; Foundations of Advanced Practice Nursing; Healthcare Systems; Legal and Ethical Issues of Advanced Practice Nursing; Modern Organizations and Healthcare; Nursing Research and Evidence Based Practice; Organizational Dynamics of Higher Education

Master of Science in Nursing, students are admitted under Plan B (non-thesis option, no comprehensive examination required) but Plan A (thesis option) is also offered; Post-master’s Certificate; Post-baccalaureate Certificate; Doctor of Nursing Practice, Doctor of Philosophy

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS
MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NURSING
The master of science in nursing programs include:

The Direct Entry Master of Science for Non-nurses program. This program offers a generalist master of science in nursing to students with a non-nursing baccalaureate degree. Graduates of this program are academically prepared to take the national licensing examination as a registered nurse (NCLEX).

The Direct Entry Master of Science for A.D.N. Nurses program. This program is designed for A.D.N. nurses who have baccalaureate degrees in a non-nursing discipline. Graduates are prepared for specialty roles in advanced nursing practice or nursing leadership and makes them academically eligible to seek professional certification in one of these specialty nursing roles.

The Master of Science in Nursing program. This program is designed for nurses with baccalaureate degrees in nursing and prepares students for specialty roles in advanced nursing practice and nursing leadership. Graduates of the specialty program are academically eligible to seek professional certification in one of these roles.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NURSING — SECOND DEGREE DIRECT ENTRY FOR NON-NURSES WITH NON-NURSING BACCALAUREATE DEGREES
The master’s program for non-nursing graduates is designed for those individuals who hold baccalaureate degrees in fields other than nursing and who wish to become nurses. The program builds upon students’ broad educational preparation and provides an intense, accelerated nursing curriculum to meet students’ career goals.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

There are two campuses for the program: the Milwaukee campus and the Pleasant Prairie campus. The latter is a hybrid program with online theory classes and in-person clinical and laboratory experiences. Full-time status is required for the program. Maintenance of 3.000 GPA each term and every summer session are required.

Admission and Application Requirements for M.S.N. – Second Degree Direct Entry for Non-Nurses

Baccalaureate degree in a discipline other than nursing with a GPA of 3.000 or above, using a 4.000 system.

GRE scores (General Test only). Waived if applicant already has a master’s degree or if undergraduate GPA is 3.200 or above.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Completion of three recommendation forms.

Completion of the following prerequisite courses with grade of C or above:

Human anatomy and physiology: 5-6 credits (preferably within the last 5 years).

Chemistry or biochemistry or biology or microbiology: 5-6 credits total (preferably within the last 5 years).

Therapeutic nutrition: 3 credits.

Behavioral sciences, e.g., psychology, sociology: 3 credits.

Statistics (including inferential): 3 credits to be completed within the last 5 years of program start date. For students who have had an inferential statistics course, but it has been longer than five years, the ability to demonstrate proficiency by examination may be available through an approved testing source. A list of approved examination providers is available from the College of Nursing.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Resume and written statement of professional goals.

Official transcripts from all current and previous colleges/universities except Marquette.

(For international applicants only) a TOEFL score or other acceptable proof of English proficiency.

A completed application form and fee online directly to NursingCAS.

Students admitted to the Milwaukee and Pleasant Prairie locations are required to pay a non-refundable $500 deposit, which is applied toward tuition.

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NURSING — SECOND DEGREE DIRECT ENTRY FOR NURSES WITH AN ASSOCIATE DEGREE IN NURSING AND NON-NURSING BACCALAUREATE DEGREES
This program facilitates students who have an associate’s degree in nursing and also have a bachelor’s degree in a discipline other than nursing to complete a master of science in nursing degree with a specialty focus as an advanced practice nurse or nurse leader.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Admission and Application Requirements for M.S.N. — Second Degree Direct Entry for A.D.N. Nurses

Baccalaureate degree in a discipline other than nursing with a GPA of 3.000 or above, using a 4.000 system.

Associate’s degree in nursing with a GPA of 3.000 or above, using a 4.000 system.

GRE scores (General Test only). Waived if applicant already has a master’s degree or if undergraduate GPA is 3.200 or above.

Completion of three recommendation forms.

Resume and written statement of professional goals.

Completion of the following prerequisite courses with grade of C or above:

Anatomy and physiology: 5-6 credits.

Chemistry or biochemistry or biology or microbiology: 5-6 credits total.

Behavioral sciences, e.g., psychology, sociology: 3 credits.

Statistics (including inferential): 3 credits to be completed within 5 years of program start date. For students who have had an inferential statistics course, but it has been longer than five years, the ability to demonstrate proficiency by examination may be available through an approved testing source. A list of approved examination providers is available from the College of Nursing.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Official transcripts from all current and previous colleges/universities except Marquette.

Wisconsin or eNLC R.N. Licensure.

(For international applicants only) a TOEFL score or other acceptable proof of English proficiency.

A completed application form and fee online directly to NursingCAS.

Students admitted to the Milwaukee and Pleasant Prairie locations are required to pay a non-refundable $500 deposit, which is applied toward tuition.

MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NURSING FOR NURSES WITH BACCALAUREATE DEGREES IN NURSING
The master of science in nursing program for nurses with baccalaureate degrees in nursing prepares nurses for specialty roles in advanced practice nursing or nursing leadership. Graduates of the specialty program are academically eligible to seek formal professional certification.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Master of Science in Nursing Specializations

Adult-Older Adult Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to episodic and chronic health problems. Care includes health promotion, advanced physical assessment, diagnosis and management of health problems in patients aged 13 and up, in a clinic setting. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for adult gerontology primary care nurse practitioner.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Adult-Older Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to complex health problems. Graduates care for acutely ill patients, ages 13 and up, in a variety of settings such as acute care facilities, specialty practice offices and skilled care. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for adult gerontology acute care nurse practitioner. This specialization is offered both at the Milwaukee and the Indianapolis campuses. One year of full-time nursing experience in an acute care setting with the adult population is required prior to beginning clinical courses. NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Adult-Older Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist
Prepares students for practice in three spheres of influence: patient/family, nurse/nursing and organizational/institutional. Includes knowledge of health promotion, advanced physical assessment, evidence-based practice, systems, quality and safety. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for adult gerontology clinical nurse specialist.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Nurse Midwifery
Prepares students for independent management of low risk women during the antepartum, intrapartum and postpartum periods and for primary and gynecologic care of women throughout the life span. Graduates are prepared for collaborative management of women with risk factors. Program graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination of the American Midwifery Certification Board.

Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students for advanced practice as a pediatric nurse practitioner. Graduates are prepared to independently provide health care for children and families from simple to complex health issues, usually in primary care settings. Graduates are academically eligible to take primary care pediatric nurse practitioner national certification examinations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to manage complex chronically ill, acutely ill and critically ill children. Graduates are eligible to take the national certification examination for the acute care pediatric nurse practitioner specialty. This specialty may be attained through the M.S.N., D.N.P., or a post-master’s certificate for nurses who already have a master of science in nursing. One year of full-time nursing experience in a pediatric acute care setting is required prior to beginning clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Dual Primary Care and Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to practice as a dually-trained pediatric acute care/primary care nurse practitioner. Graduates are prepared to manage well children, pediatric acute and episodic illnesses, complex chronically ill, acutely ill and critically ill children. Graduates are eligible to take the national certification examinations for the acute care and primary care pediatric nurse practitioner specialties. One year of full-time nursing experience in a pediatric acute care setting is required prior to beginning acute care clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Clinical Nurse Leader
Prepares the student to have competence in clinical outcomes management and health care environment management. Students complete core M.S.N. courses and a combination of illness management and health care systems leadership courses. These graduates remain at the point of care and assure patients receive health care in a safe, cost effective and timely manner by implementing lateral integration of care services. Graduates are academically eligible to take the AACN CNL® Certification Examination.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Systems Leadership and Healthcare Quality
Prepares the student for leadership, administrative and executive roles in health care. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for Nursing Administration.

POST-MASTER’S GRADUATE CERTIFICATE
These certificate programs prepare nurses who already have a master of science in nursing to become academically eligible for certification as an advanced practice nurse or nurse leader.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

CERTIFICATE PROGRAMS
Adult-Older Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Adult-Older Adult Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Adult-Older Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist
Family Nurse Practitioner (only for nurse practitioners in primary care pediatric or adult-gerontology)
Nurse Midwifery
Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
Systems Leadership and Healthcare Quality

POST-BACCALAUREATE CERTIFICATE
The post-baccalaureate certificate program prepares registered nurses and other health care or social service professionals for clinical case management and care coordination (CCM/CC) in a variety of health care system, community-based or managed care settings. Completion of the 12-credit graduate-level courses also provides a foundation to obtaining a graduate degree such as master of science in nursing (M.S.N.) or doctor of nursing practice (D.N.P.). Applicants to the post-baccalaureate certificate in clinical case management and care coordination (CCM/CC) must apply online through the Marquette University Graduate School.

DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE
The doctor of nursing practice emphasizes development of nursing practice expertise at the highest level. The curriculum includes translational research, epidemiology, informatics, statistics, advanced clinical practice, health policy and professional issues. The doctor of nursing practice includes two entry points: the post-master to doctor of nursing practice and the post-baccalaureate to doctor of nursing practice.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The post-master to doctor of nursing practice entry requires the student to have a master of science in nursing with a specialization in an advanced practice or leadership/policy role. If students do not have this preparation in their master of science of nursing, a post-master’s certificate in one of these areas must be completed concurrently with the post-master’s doctor of nursing practice degree.

The post-baccalaureate to doctor of nursing practice entry prepares expert advanced practice nurses or nursing leaders who understand the complexities of health care, including patient safety, advanced diagnostics and treatments, information technology, business management and health care finance. Graduates of this program bring best practices to the point of service, having competence in evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement. Graduates are eligible for specialty certification.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE SPECIALIZATIONS
Adult-Older Adult Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to episodic and chronic health problems. Care includes health promotion, advanced physical assessment, diagnosis and management of health problems in patients aged 13 and up, in a clinic setting. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for adult gerontology primary care nurse practitioner.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Adult-Older Adult Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to complex health problems. Graduates of this program care for acutely ill patients, ages 13 and up, in a variety of settings such as acute care facilities, specialty practice offices and skilled care. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for adult gerontology acute care nurse practitioner. One year of full-time nursing experience in an acute care setting with the adult population is required prior to beginning clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Nurse Anesthesia
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills to complex health problems. The nurse anesthesia program prepares expert clinicians who understand the complexities of health care, including patient safety, advanced diagnostics and treatments, information technology, business management and health care finance. The curriculum and clinical experiences prepare students in a variety of regional and general anesthesia techniques for every setting in which anesthesia is delivered to patients. A minimum of one year, preferably two years, of full-time work experience (or its part-time equivalent) as a registered nurse in a critical care setting within the United States, its territories or a U.S. military hospital outside of the United States is required prior to application.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills. The program prepares nurses for advanced practice as pediatric nurse practitioners. Graduates are prepared to independently provide health care for children and families from simple to complex health issues usually in primary care settings. Graduates are academically eligible to take primary care pediatric nurse practitioner national certification examinations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Pediatric Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills. Graduates are prepared to manage complex chronically ill, acutely ill and critically ill children. Graduates are eligible to take the national certification examination for the acute care pediatric nurse practitioner specialty. One year of full-time nursing experience in pediatric acute care setting is required prior to beginning clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Dual Primary Care and Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills. The program prepares nurses to practice as a dually trained pediatric acute care/primary care nurse practitioner. Graduates are prepared to manage well children, pediatric acute and episodic illnesses, complex chronically ill, acutely ill and critically ill children. Graduates are eligible to take the national certification examinations for the acute care and primary care pediatric nurse practitioner specialties. One year of full-time nursing experience in pediatric acute care setting is required prior to beginning acute care clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Systems Leadership and Healthcare Quality
Prepares students to have competence in leadership, evidence-based care and translational research methods for quality improvement as well as preparation at the very highest level to apply advanced clinical assessment and management skills. Prepares students for leadership, administrative and executive roles in health care. Graduates are academically eligible to take the national certification examination for Nursing Administration.

Admission and Application Requirements for the M.S.N. for Nurses with Baccalaureate Degrees in Nursing or Doctor of Nursing Practice and Post-master’s Certificate

Applicants to the master of science in nursing (M.S.N.) program or the post-baccalaureate to doctor of nursing practice (D.N.P.) program should have graduated with, or be about to graduate with, a bachelor’s degree in nursing from a nationally accredited program with an upper division major in nursing. (Specifically, for the nurse anesthesia D.N.P. specialty, a baccalaureate or graduate degree in nursing from a nationally accredited college or university is required.) The applicants for the post-master to doctor of nursing practice must have an earned nursing master’s degree with a specialization in an advanced practice or leadership/policy role with evidence of certification in a specialty, if applicable. Applicants for a post master’s certificate must have an M.S.N.

The required minimum undergraduate GPA of 3.000 on a 4.000 scale is required for the M.S.N. and the post-baccalaureate D.N.P. Additionally, for the D.N.P. with the nurse anesthesia specialty, a science GPA of 3.000 or above is required. For programs requiring a prior master of science nursing degree, the GPA from that degree must be a minimum of 3.000 on a 4.000 scale. For graduates of foreign nursing schools, a formal evaluation of their nursing program of study documenting equivalency to a U.S. bachelor of science in nursing degree must be submitted.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Prior to or during the first term of study, all master of science in nursing and post-baccalaureate doctor of nursing practice applicants must have taken undergraduate nursing research and a statistics course which included inferential analysis (must be completed within 5 years of program start date). If the time period of 5 years has been exceeded for the statistics course, it may be possible for applicants to demonstrate proficiency by examination through an approved testing source (list of approved examinations available from the College of Nursing). Applicants who select an advanced practice nursing specialization must have taken an undergraduate course in health assessment.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Graduate Record Exam Scores (GRE). Waived if cumulative GPA is 3.200 or higher.

Unencumbered Registered Nurse license to practice in the United States. A Wisconsin or eNLC license is required at the time of admission. For students in the Indiana program, an Indiana R.N. license is required.

Clinical experience requirements

For the acute care nurse practitioner programs (pediatric or adult-older adult): A minimum of one year of full-time work experience (or its part-time equivalent) as a registered nurse in an acute care setting is required prior to beginning any clinical courses.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

For nurse anesthesia: A minimum of one year, preferably two years, of full-time work experience (or its part-time equivalent) as a registered nurse in a critical care setting within the United States, its territories or a U.S. military hospital outside of the United States. Applicants must have developed as an independent decision maker capable of using and interpreting advanced monitoring techniques based on knowledge of physiological and pharmacological principles. A critical care setting is defined as one where, on a routine basis, the registered nurse manages one or more of the following: invasive hemodynamic monitors (e.g., pulmonary artery, central venous pressure, and arterial catheters), cardiac assist devices, mechanical ventilation and vasoactive infusions. Examples of critical care settings may include, but are not limited to: surgical intensive care, cardiothoracic intensive care, coronary intensive care, medical intensive care, pediatric intensive care and neonatal intensive care. Experiences in other areas may be considered provided the applicant can demonstrate competence with the above identified skills (i.e., invasive monitoring, etc.).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

BCLS from the American Heart Association, which must be maintained during all programs. Additional certifications: pediatric acute care – PALS prior to clinical; pediatric primary care – optional PALS prior to clinical; adult-older adult acute care – ACLS prior to clinical; nurse anesthesia – ACLS and PALS certification upon admission.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Letters of reference: Three completed recommendation forms prepared by previous or present employers and teachers familiar with graduate education in nursing. For nurse anesthesia applicants, at least one letter must come from the critical care area.

A written statement of professional goals, including reasons for pursuing graduate study. Nurse anesthesia applicants must address career goals and future contributions to the nurse anesthesia profession in a two-page, double-spaced document.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Curriculum vitae or resume.

Official transcripts from all current and previous colleges or universities – must reflect undergraduate courses in health assessment, nursing research and statistics (including inferential analysis).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

(For international applicants only) a TOEFL score or other acceptable proof of English proficiency.

A completed application form and fee online directly to NursingCAS.

An interview is required for applicants to nurse anesthesia and nurse midwifery programs. The adult-older adult acute care nurse practitioner may require an interview. Applicants who are invited for an interview are notified by email.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
The doctor of philosophy program in nursing prepares teacher-scholars. The curriculum focuses on vulnerable populations, which include persons at high risk for adverse health outcomes. Persons who are vulnerable may include such groups as the unborn, chronically ill, frail elders, impoverished children and the marginalized. The graduate of this doctoral program has the ability to advance health care through teaching, research and health care leadership.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Doctoral education in nursing is built on the master’s level nursing foundation. It is characterized by the acquisition of research skills necessary for the discovery and use of new nursing knowledge and for preparation for teaching roles.

There are two entry routes to the Ph.D program: post-master’s and post-baccalaureate. Applicants to the doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) program in nursing should have graduated with, or be about to graduate with, a bachelor of science in nursing from a nationally accredited program or a master of science in nursing from a nationally accredited program.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

For a bachelor’s applicant, the requirements are: R.N. licensure, a GPA of 3.200 on a 4.000 scale, a statistics course within the last 5 years, acceptable GRE scores, three letters of reference, a goal statement and a personal interview.

Generally, for a master’s applicant, a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.200 on a 4.000 scale is recommended. A graduate-level research course is a required prerequisite along with the GRE and a statistics course grade of a B or above within the last 5 years.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Graduates of foreign nursing schools must submit a formal evaluation of their nursing program of study which documents equivalency to a U.S. bachelor of science in nursing degree or master of science in nursing degree. They must be licensed to practice as a registered nurse in the United States.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Familiarity with computers and the web (e.g., electronic retrieval of data, word processing) is required for all applicants. Some courses use online, web-enhanced and/or hybrid teaching.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Application Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy

Applicants must submit:

A completed application form and fee online directly to NursingCAS.

Official transcripts from all current and previous colleges/universities except Marquette.

Three Ph.D. letters of recommendation.

GRE scores (General Test only).

A curriculum vitae.

A written statement of professional goals, including reasons for pursuing graduate study. Applicants must include objectives/career intentions, including research interests.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Sample of scholarly writing.

(For international applicants only) a TOEFL score or other acceptable proof of English proficiency.

APPLICATION DEADLINES AND START TERMS
Nov. 15 For spring admission: M.S.N., direct entry M.S.N. for non-nurses (Pleasant Prairie), post-master’s certificates, Ph.D. and D.N.P. programs

Dec. 15 For summer admission for all programs. Required for direct entry M.S.N. for non-nurses (Milwaukee)

Feb. 15 For fall admission: M.S.N., direct entry M.S.N. for non-nurses (Pleasant Prairie), post-master’s certificates, Ph.D. and D.N.P. programs

Aug. 1 For fall admission: post-baccalaureate certificate in clinical case management and care coordination

M.S.N., post-master’s certificate, direct entry M.S.N. for non-nurses (Pleasant Prairie), Ph.D. and D.N.P. applicants who apply after the Feb. 15 deadline are considered on a space-available basis for fall admission, provided their application is complete by June 1.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Upon acceptance to the graduate program, students must complete and submit the Graduate Student Health Status Report form. Information on CPR requirements, physical examination and immunization status, including results of a T.B. skin test and proof of Wisconsin R.N. licensure (or Indiana R.N. licensure for students in the adult-older adult acute care nurse practitioner – Indianapolis M.S.N.) and a criminal background check and drug screen must be submitted to a program on the website (castlebranch.com). NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. Results of a T.B. skin test must be provided annually, an influenza vaccine is required annually, and a drug screen must be completed three months prior to beginning clinical practicum courses. Students are responsible for the cost of these services. The information is required for progression within the program.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Clinical courses in the College of Nursing are restricted to students in the degree program. Various clinical facilities in the greater Milwaukee area, throughout Wisconsin and in northern Illinois are utilized for clinical experiences. Indiana based programs have clinical experiences in Indiana.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.
While Marquette University is concerned about the professional advancement of its students, facilitates the process of certification, and provides excellent educational opportunities, it cautions that professional success in a chosen field requires, above all else, constant development of individual abilities, personal initiative and a professional sense of commitment to fulfill all appropriate legal and technical responsibilities. Hence, the university assumes no responsibility for the success of the students in obtaining educational certification or other types of professional licensure.

Licensure in Wisconsin or eNLC state is mandatory for employment with compensation.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

PROGRESSION POLICY
The College of Nursing Academic Progression Policy for Graduate Students applies to all course work taken during the academic year and summer sessions. The policies of the Graduate School on academic performance, professional integrity, professional performance, academic dishonesty and student conduct are all followed by the College of Nursing. A variety of responses to problems in any of these areas may be implemented, depending on the nature of the problems encountered. Warnings, remediation plans, probation, immediate withdrawal from clinical or laboratory activities, suspension and dismissal are all possible actions under these policies. The College of Nursing considers any of the following as possible grounds for dismissal:NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Lack of satisfactory academic progress as evidenced by a failure to achieve a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.000 each term.

Serious or repeated problems with academic, laboratory or clinical performance.

Serious or repeated problems with professional integrity and professionalism.

Serious or repeated problems with academic honesty.

A lack of substantial and visible progress toward completion of program requirements, including failure to complete the comprehensive or qualifying examination, thesis or dissertation or capstone project.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

SPECIAL FEES
$60 – Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Certification (approximate fee). (This certification must be maintained throughout the student’s program through biannual recertification.)

$124 – Health requirements and criminal background check initial fee (approximate fee) and drug test. Additional costs may be required for immunizations, antibody titers and physical examinations. (castlebranch.com).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

$80 – A one-time clinical tracking system (Typhon) fee for M.S.N. and D.N.P. students in the specialty clinicals.

Additional fees for Direct Entry M.S.N. students:

$500 – Assessment Tests, predictor examination, and NCLEX review course for the M.S.N. program for Non-Nursing Graduates. (Approximate fee. Exact amount based upon vendor costs in effect at time of registration.)NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

$300 – Uniforms for the M.S.N. program for Non-Nursing Graduates. (Approximate fee. Must be purchased through a private vendor. Vendor list available from the College of Nursing.)NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

$175 – Assessment Equipment for the M.S.N. program for Non-Nursing Graduates. (Stethoscope $70. Sphygmomanometer $60. Approximate fee. Exact amount based upon vendor costs in effect at time of registration. Must be purchased through a private vendor.)
Program fees for Nurse Anesthesia students:NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Acceptance Fee

The College of Nursing requires that all students accepting an offer of admission to the graduate nurse anesthesia educational program submit a non-refundable deposit of $1,000 to the Graduate School to be guaranteed a spot in the program. The deposit is then applied toward tuition and fees after the students register for the initial fall term.

Annual Fees

Annual, nonrefundable, technology and evaluation fee of $2,659 to be paid in full at the start of each fall term.

Annual malpractice insurance fee of $275 to be paid in full at the start of each fall term. Nurse anesthesia students are required to hold malpractice insurance coverage as identified by the program with a policy start date of 9/1 for each year enrolled in the program. This coverage must be maintained throughout the program. A lapse in malpractice coverage results in removal of students from clinical site rotations.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

A Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree from Mount Carmel College of Nursing is the firm foundation to an exciting career in the profession of nursing.

Mount Carmel College of Nursing boasts one of the largest baccalaureate programs among Ohio private college nursing programs. Our small classes, personal attention, diverse student body, and affiliation with Mount Carmel Health System, one of the largest healthcare providers in central Ohio, all contribute to a rich and diverse educational experience that prepares students to competently and confidently assume the role of a professional nurse.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The Mount Carmel College of Nursing is fully accredited as an institution of higher learning by both the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools and by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education is recognized by the United States Department of Education as the national accrediting body for all types of nursing education programs.

Baccalaureate Nursing Program Outcomes
The undergraduate program prepares a graduate who:

Applies the knowledge of the relationship of the physical and social sciences and humanities as a basis for professional nursing.
Exhibits the values of dignity of persons, service to others, social justice, altruism, autonomy, and integrity in the care of clients.
Practices culturally competent caring behaviors.
Uses evidence-based practice to promote the health of clients;
Incorporates professional behaviors within one’s role as a member of the nursing profession and society;
Implements the nursing process to maximize the health outcomes of clients through the use of evidence based practice;
Implements the communication process within the professional role;
Uses leadership skills to design, provide, coordinate, and manage health care in the achievement of safety and quality in client care;
Collaborates with interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary teams to provide quality care for clients through the efficient management of resources;
Implements critical thinking; and
Demonstrates clinical competence in a variety of settings with diverse populations.
Four options are available that will lead to a BSN degree:
Traditional Four-Year Program
Designed for students without previous nursing experience.

Advanced Placement Program
Enables students with the right coursework to complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree in five semesters.

Second Degree Accelerated Program
An accelerated 13-month program for students who already have a baccalaureate or advanced degree.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Online RN-BSN Completion Program
A dedicated program for registered nurses who want to further their education.

View our Undergraduate Handbook for more information.

Students in this course are introduced to Walden University and are provided with a foundation for professional development in doctoral nursing practice. Students learn professional standards and end-of-program expectations. They engage in course assignments focused on the practical application of professional writing, critical-thinking skills, and the requirements for successful participation in an online curriculum. Students also explore the essentials of being a Walden doctoral student; past, present, and future similarities and differences between the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) and a Ph.D. in nursing, relevant professional and specialty standards of doctoral-level nursing practice, intra- and interprofessional collaboration, and the process of the DNP project.
The DNP program requires that all students complete The Measured Success Writing Assessment during the first course in the program, NURS 8000. This assessment is a computer-based evaluation where students write an essay online to determine “writing readiness” at the doctoral level. An outside vendor provides an automated evaluation of the student’s writing sample. The assessment is cost-free to students.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers. The writing assessment provides a holistic score of 1–6, as well as scores for five analytical writing categories. The categories include: focus/meaning, content development, organization, language/style, and mechanics/conventions. Students who do not demonstrate writing readiness are encouraged to enroll in WCSS 6000N – Graduate Writing: Evaluative and Persuasive Composition Skills. The course provides students with the written communication tools necessary to complete longer writing projects that necessitate a persuasive academic voice. There is no cost to the student for this course.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

The RN to BSN option is designed for nurses who have completed an associate degree or diploma in nursing from an institution with accreditation from the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). If a prospective student has not earned an associate degree or diploma in nursing, they can begin the 4-year Bachelors of Nursing degree – Undergraduate Admissions

Through collaboration with Ohio State’s regional campuses and the introduction of CARMEN, the university’s new distance learning system, the R.N. to B.S.N. program is now able to reach beyond central Ohio. This allows students greater flexibility to work, meet family responsibilities, and study while earning a B.S.N. in their local communities.NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

Program Description The program requires a total of 120 semester hours, including prerequisite, general education, and nursing courses. Some of the course work can be earned through previous courses taken at institutions of higher education, and/or associate or diploma nursing programs. A minimum of 30 semester hours must be completed at Ohio State in order for degree conferment.

Prerequisites The prerequisites may have been completed within the previous educational experience of the registered nurse. Any outstanding prerequisites must be completed by the year of application and before beginning the nursing courses. For complete details please click here: Prerequisites

Nursing Courses and General Education Students can access all required nursing courses online, allowing them more flexibility and convenience. The clinical nursing courses are tailored to registered nurses’ previous experiences and can be completed near home. Other non-nursing courses necessary for the baccalaureate degree can be fulfilled at any of the Ohio State campuses. These include additional courses in composition, math, history and humanities. For complete details please click here: Nursing General Education

Application Admission is competitive and selective. For the online application, deadlines, and minimum requirements please click here: Application

Learn More For additional information about the RN-BSN program and next steps, prospective students should visit the OSU College of Nursing website or contact the RN-BSN program office directly (rnbsn@osu.edu or 614-292-4041).

Students interested in taking prerequisite or General Education courses on the Newark campus should first confirm course requirements with the RN-BSN program office and then contact the OSU Newark Admissions and Advising office (740-366-9333 or 800-963-9274 ext. 69333).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.

All questions regarding admission to the RN-BSN program, transfer credit evaluations, and program details should be directed to the OSU College of Nursing RN-BSN program (rnbsn@osu.edu or 614-292-4041) or to the Office of Graduate and Professional Admissions (gpadmissions@osu.edu or 614-292-9444).NURS 8000 – Foundations and Essentials of Doctoral Assignment Papers.