Program Overview

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Nursing Practice: Adult/Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner, DNP

The Adult Gerontology Acute Care DNP program focuses on caring for adult and older adult patients with complex acute and/or acute on chronic illness in settings such as hospitals, ICUs, emergency rooms, surgery, specialty care, and urgent care centers.

Program Description

• The program provides opportunities to engage with impactful, acute care-driven scholarly projects to enhance the care of the students chosen patient population/interest.
• Adult-Gerontology Acute Care students are also presented with the opportunity to complete the Global Health Certificate Program and/or the Healthcare Educator Certificate Program, which complements the curriculum and sets graduates up to succeed in a teaching career.
• Clinical Placement Coordinators organize clinical experience opportunities at nationally ranked including level one academic trauma centers, acute and critical care hospitals, community hospitals, and critical access centers.

Admissions

Admission Requirements

• Graduation from an accredited baccalaureate program in nursing or masters degree from an accredited nursing program (if applicable)
• One year of professional nursing experience
• Minimum GPA requirements:
  • 3.0 in the last 60 baccalaureate credits and/or
  • 3.5 in master's degree credits (if completed master's degree)
• Grade of B or better in an approved graduate level statistics course within the last 5 years.
• Unencumbered Wisconsin RN license (by the program start)
• Certification as an advanced practice nurse (if applicable)
• Application essay (see School of Nursing website for specific criteria)
• Curriculum vitae or resume
• CGFNS Certification (for international applicants only)

English Proficiency Test

• TOEFL (iBT): 100
• IELTS: 8
• Duolingo English Test: 130

Application Deadlines

• Fall Deadline: December 1
• Spring Deadline: This program does not admit in the spring.
• Summer Deadline: This program does not admit in the summer.

Requirements

Curricular Requirements

• Minimum Credit Requirement: 68 credits
• Minimum Residence Credit Requirement: 32 credits
• Minimum Graduate Coursework Requirement: 34 credits must be graduate-level coursework.
• Overall Graduate GPA Requirement: 3.00 GPA required.
• Other Grade Requirements: A student may not receive more than one grade below a B (or a U grade) in any 12 month period.
• Assessments and Examinations: Students must complete a scholarly project, which represents the culmination of a student's doctoral education. This project is a paper of publishable quality. Students must deliver an oral presentation to faculty, students, and the community.

Required Courses

• NURSING 601: Advanced Health Assessment (3 credits)
• NURSING/PHM PRAC 605: Pharmacotherapeutics for Advanced Practice Nurses (3 credits)
• NURSING 702: Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in Diverse Communities (3 credits)
• NURSING 703: Health Care and Public Policy (3 credits)
• NURSING 704: Leadership in Advanced Practice Nursing I (3 credits)
• NURSING 706: Nursing Research (3 credits)
• NURSING 708: Ethics for Advanced Practice in Health Care (2 credits)
• NURSING 722: Advanced Practice Nursing Theory: Adults and Older Adults (3 credits)
• NURSING 726: Foundations for APN Clinical Practice I (3 credits)
• NURSING 727: Foundations for APN Clinical Practice II (3 credits)
• NURSING 728: Advanced Practice Clinical Application and Role Development I (3 credits)
• NURSING 729: Advanced Practice Clinical Application and Role Development II (3 credits)
• NURSING 761: Health Program Planning, Evaluation, and Quality Improvement (3 credits)
• NURSING 764: Nursing and Health Informatics (3 credits)
• NURSING 772: Leadership and Organizational Decision-Making in Health Care (3 credits)
• NURSING 806: Evaluation and Application of Evidence-Based Practice (3 credits)
• NURSING 811: Advanced Pathophysiology (3 credits)
• NURSING 826: Foundations for APN Clinical Practice III (3 credits)
• NURSING 828: Clinical Leadership III (3 credits)
• NURSING 829: Clinical Leadership IV (3 credits)
• NURSING 906: Scholarly Project 1 (6 credits)
• Nursing Elective (3 credits)

Program Plans

Three-Year Program Plan

• First Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 704, NURSING 706, NURSING 722, NURSING 811 (12 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 601, NURSING/PHM PRAC 605, NURSING 703, NURSING 806 (12 credits)
  • Summer: NURSING 708, NURSING 764 (5 credits)
• Second Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 702, NURSING 726, NURSING 728 (9 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 727, NURSING 729, NURSING 761 (9 credits)
  • Summer: NURSING 772, NURSING 906 (5 credits)
• Third Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 826, NURSING 828, NURSING 906 (8 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 829, NURSING 906, Elective (8 credits)

Four-Year Program Plan

• First Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 704, NURSING 706, NURSING 722 (9 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 703, NURSING 806, Elective (9 credits)
  • Summer: NURSING 708 (2 credits)
• Second Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 702, NURSING 811 (6 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 601, NURSING/PHM PRAC 605 (6 credits)
  • Summer: NURSING 764 (3 credits)
• Third Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 726, NURSING 728 (6 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 727, NURSING 729, NURSING 761 (9 credits)
  • Summer: NURSING 772, NURSING 906 (5 credits)
• Fourth Year:
  • Fall: NURSING 826, NURSING 828, NURSING 906 (8 credits)
  • Spring: NURSING 829, NURSING 906 (5 credits)

Pre-approved Elective Options

• COUN PSY 650: Theory and Practice in Interviewing (3 credits)
• NURSING 657: Clinical Psychopharmacology (3 credits)
• NURSING/PHM PRAC 674: Seminars in Interprofessional Mental Health Care (2 credits)
• NURSING/MEDICINE/POP HLTH 705: Seminar in Interdisciplinary Clinical Research Evidence (2 credits)
• NURSING/PHM PRAC/SOC WORK 746: Interdisciplinary Care of Children with Special Health Care Needs (3 credits)
• NURSING/LAW 768: Health Justice Clinic (1-7 credits)
• NURSING 784: Teaching and Learning Strategies for Clinical and Simulation Environments in Healthcare Professions (3 credits)
• NURSING 785: Foundations of Curriculum Development and Evaluation for Healthcare Professions (3 credits)
• NURSING 786: Teaching and Learning Strategies for the Classroom and Online Environments in Healthcare Professions (3 credits)
• NURSING 787: Teaching and Learning in Healthcare Professions Practicum (3 credits)
• NURSING 847: Health Policy Practicum (3 credits)
• OTM 753: Healthcare Operations Management (3 credits)
• PUBLHLTH/NURSING/PHARMACY/PHY ASST/PHY THER 758: Interprofessional Public Health Leadership (1 credit)
• PUBLHLTH 780: Evidence-Based Decision-Making (3 credits)
• POP HLTH 650: Special Topics (1-6 credits)
• POP HLTH/SOC 797: Introduction to Epidemiology (3 credits)
• POP HLTH 915: International Health Systems and Policy (2 credits)
• SOC WORK 875: Health, Aging, and Disability Policy and Services (2 credits)

Policies

Academic Probation

Students meeting any of the following conditions will be placed on Academic Probation and will receive written notice of their status:

1. Achieving less than a 3.0 GPA in a term (fall, spring, or summer).
2. Earning a cumulative GPA less than a 3.0.
3. Earning one grade below a B or one Unsatisfactory (U) grade.

Advisor / Committee

Within the DNP Program, each student will have an assigned faculty advisor as well as an assigned academic advisor, which is the Graduate Advising Manager.

Credits Per Term Allowed

15 credit maximum.

Time Limits

• PostBS: Students must complete the requirements within six years of admission.
• PostMS: Students must complete the requirements within four years of admission to the program.

Grievances and Appeals

These resources may be helpful in addressing your concerns:

• Bias or Hate Reporting
• Graduate Assistantship Policies and Procedures
• Hostile and Intimidating Behavior Policies and Procedures
• Office of the Provost for Faculty and Staff Affairs
• Employee Assistance (for personal counseling and workplace consultation around communication and conflict involving graduate assistants and other employees, post-doctoral students, faculty and staff)
• Employee Disability Resource Office (for qualified employees or applicants with disabilities to have equal employment opportunities)
• Graduate School (for informal advice at any level of review and for official appeals of program/departmental or school/college grievance decisions)
• Office of Compliance (for class harassment and discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual violence)
• Office Student Assistance and Support (OSAS) (for all students to seek grievance assistance and support)
• Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (for conflicts involving students)
• Ombuds Office for Faculty and Staff (for employed graduate students and post-docs, as well as faculty and staff)
• Title IX (for concerns about discrimination)