Doctor of Nursing Practice

Development of the curriculum is structured by four broad areas of knowledge described in the AACN’s Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Practice Nursing (2006).  Acquisition of knowledge within the areas of Scientific/Physiologic Foundation for Advanced Evidence Based Practice; Leadership/Information Management; Practice Inquiry; and Advanced Specialty Practice, will be demonstrated by the student’s development of essential competencies.

Graduates of the program will:

• Use appropriate theories and concepts to identify health-related phenomena of interest
• Design and deliver interventions that can withstand scientific analysis
• Evaluate healthcare delivery and nursing practices using sound evaluation principles
• Use evaluation and other methods to account for quality of care and patient safety for focus populations
• Critically appraise and/or use sources informing best evidence (i.e. epidemiology, statistics, health data, and/or methodologies)
• Deliver and evaluate care processes and outcomes based on best evidence
• Analyze and define critical choices among healthcare technologies and information systems toward the betterment of care processes and outcomes
• Understand the dynamics of healthcare policy and financing at the organizational and national levels
• Provide or assist in the leadership of collaborative, inter-professional teams in healthcare delivery

Admission Requirements

• Current licensure as an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN)
• An undergraduate cumulative grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (post-BSN applicants)
• Post-master's applicants must have an earned master's degree from an accredited institution with a cumulative graduate grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
• Three letters of reference from individuals who can address the applicant's potential to succeed in the DNP program and who can attest to clinical expertise
• A 300-word essay describing professional goals and reasons for seeking the particular specialty concentration
• A pre-admission interview (by telephone or in person) with the concentration program director. The interview is used to establish a fit between the applicant's goals and the desired School of Nursing graduate concentration as recommended by the interviewer(s)

Application Deadline

• July 31 for fall enrollment

Additional Information

The University of Akron DNP program requires a minimum of 71 semester credit hours and 1,040 clinical hours for those students entering with a baccalaureate in nursing degree from an accreditated program.

Post-Master’s entry requires: a) 37 credits of DNP core courses; b) 540 clinical practice hours; c) transfer from the student’s master’s in nursing program a minimum of 34 credits of nursing and advanced practice role-specific coursework, which includes 500 clinical hours (or is taken as a part of the DNP program).

Assistantship/Scholarship Information

Not all departments offer graduate assistantships. Students should inquire with the department directly to determine assistantship availability.

Financial Aid Information

Paying for college is a vital part of the education process. It is important to be informed of the many sources of aid available. Student loans are available to degree-seeking graduate students. Information on student loans can be found through the Office of Student Financial Aid. The Office of Student Financial Aid is located in Simmons Hall.

Tuition and Fees

Current tuition and fees schedules can be found through the Office of Student Accounts.