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Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program
Marquette University College of Nursing began its Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program in the Fall semester of 2008; the first such program in the state of Wisconsin. The DNP is a terminal professional degree for nurses in advanced practice and nursing administration. This degree represents attainment of the highest level of clinical nursing competence and educational parity with other health team members holding clinical doctorates. The DNP is considered a clinical or practice oriented doctorate and involves skills beyond the baccalaureate without the necessity of an intermediate Master’s degree. Graduates are able to sit for certification as an advanced practice nurse in specialty areas or nursing administration. Graduates of this program bring the “best practices” to the point of service, having competence in evidence based care and translational research methods. The focus of Marquette University College of Nursing’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program is advanced practice preparation at the very highest level. The DNP will have preparation in the specialties of: pediatrics- primary care, pediatrics- acute care, adults, older adults, acute care- adults, nurse-midwifery, and health care systems leadership (HCSL). The DNP is a response to the need for a better prepared nursing workforce due to the complexities of health care, need for patient safety, aging population and other changing demographics, advanced clinical care demands (diagnostics and treatments), as well as a professional mandate. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), the professional organization for Baccalaureate and higher degree programs, indicated that by 2015 all advanced practice preparation should be at the doctor of nursing practice level. This movement is similar to the preparations of physical therapy, audiology and pharmacology, which are all moving to the doctoral level of preparation. Dr. Kerry Kosmoski-Goepfert, PhD, RN Interim Associate Dean for Graduate Programs Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs Dr. Mary Ann Lough, PhD, RN Director of Graduate Operations Option Coordinator, Clinical Nurse Leader Kelly M. Hillard PhD Program Assistant Karen Nest Graduate Program Assistant
Program Learning Outcomes and Performance Indicators At the completion of the program, students will be able to:
DNP Degree Requirements The 63-67 credit post-Baccalaureate DNP program is designed to include all of the existing Master’s courses plus additional courses designed to enable students to meet the competencies of Doctoral-level education for APNs. The program was deliberately planned so that students will earn a Master’s degree en route to the DNP and be eligible to write the certification exam in their area of specialization upon completion of required courses. The 27 credit post-Master’s DNP program builds on the existing Master’s program. Transcripts of students whose Master’s degrees are from nursing Master’s programs other than Marquette University are evaluated on a case-by-case basis to assure attainment of prerequisite knowledge and clinical experience; additional coursework beyond the 27 credit requirement may be necessary to meet all of the Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Practice. The DNP residency requirement expands upon the Master’s level practica that precede it and leads to completion of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s recommended 1000 hours of supervised clinical practice. The practica enable the student to demonstrate the highest level of independent advanced practice and contributes to the student’s achievement of the program outcomes. The DNP residency is individualized for each student and prior to the course, students are required to develop and submit a plan for achievement of the residency course objectives. Students who are functioning in an advanced practice role may be able to complete a portion of the clinical residency hours in their place of employment; however, they would be expected to demonstrate doctoral level practice. Planning for the residency course requires that the student complete the residency planning template and meet with their option specialty advisor at the end of the spring semester prior to enrolling in the course the following fall semester. Once approval has been obtained from the advisor, the template plan will be forwarded to the course faculty for final approval. The post-Baccalaureate DNP at Marquette requires 66 credits post-Bachelor’s for the Adult, Older Adult, Acute Care, Pediatrics Primary Care and Pediatrics Acute Care advanced practice options, 67 credits for the Nurse-Midwifery option, and 63 credits for the Health Care Systems Leadership (HCSL) option. The specific domains of content for all options include: core courses, research, statistics and information systems, practicum courses, and a DNP Residency Course. Health promotion/illness management is required for advanced practice options. HCSL course examples include: finance, outcomes management, human resources, program evaluation and mediation. Both the DNP and DNP “Bridge” programs may be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. Sample curriculum plans are below. Schedules of classes may be found at: http://www.marquette.edu/registrar/snapshot. At this time, most courses are classroom-based on-campus courses and clinical courses. There are also a few “hybrid” courses which combine online and on-campus aspects. Students must have completed applications (all components) filed with the Graduate School by February 15th, 2010 for a Fall 2010 semester start. DNP applicants who apply after the February 15th deadline will be considered on a space-available basis for Fall admission, provided their application is complete by June 1st. Credits are currently $865 apiece. Several sources of financial assistance, including scholarships, are available. Financial Aid information may be found at http://www.fafsa.ed.gov and http://www.marquette.edu/about/fin_aid.shtml. You may begin the application process by logging on to https://marquette-grad.gotoextinguisher.com/application/login/. International student information is found at http://www.marquette.edu/grad/future_intl.shtml.
Admission Requirements To apply to the DNP Program, you must have graduated with at least a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited program, normally with a graduate GPA of at least 3.0 using the 4.0 system (4.0=A). A statistics course which included inferential analysis must have been taken within the last 5 years. Undergraduate courses in both nursing research and in health assessment are required prerequisites, as is a copy of your current Wisconsin nursing license. Other criteria include:
For more information, please contact: Kelly Hillard, PhD Program Assistant, at kelly.hillard@mu.edu. DNP Program Information and Admission Requirements Curriculum (MSN Courses + Bridge Courses = DNP)
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