Alternate Entry Doctor of Nursing Practice (AE-DNP)
| Program start date | Application deadline |
| 2024-06-01 | - |
Program Overview
Alternate Entry Doctor of Nursing Practice (AE-DNP) Program Overview
The AE-DNP program is designed for individuals who hold a bachelor’s or graduate degree in a non-nursing field and wish to pursue both Registered Nurse (RN) licensure and a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree.
Program Details
- Application Deadline: October 1
- Application Available: August 1
- Program Start: Summer once a year only
- Length of Program: 4 years full-time
- Degree Awarded: Doctor of Nursing Practice
- Distance Learning Available: Not at this time
About the AE-DNP
This rigorous program prepares students for the highest level of advanced nursing practice by integrating theoretical foundations with hands-on clinical experience. As a terminal degree, the DNP equips graduates to lead in complex and evolving healthcare environments, improve patient outcomes, and translate research into practice.
AE-DNP Concentration Areas
- AG CNS
- PMHNP
- PC-PNP
Adult - Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist
The Adult-Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist includes perspectives of both health-restoration and health-promotion, while developing skills in case management. This concentration area focuses on physiological and psychosocial theories, concepts, and research underlying self-care and growth needs of individuals age 15 and up.
Psych/Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program (PMHNP)
The PMHNP concentration is a 48-credit hour program that prepares graduates to provide primary psychiatric-mental health care at an advanced level to individuals of all ages and their families.
Primary Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PC-PNP)
The Primary Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner concentration focuses on the delivery of primary care to children from newborns to young adults in a variety of settings.
AE-DNP Resources
- Course of Study: The Foundation Year is an intensive, full-time series of foundation courses.
- Doctoral Coursework: After passing the NCLEX-RN and obtaining their RN license, students are eligible to work as an RN in Texas only.
AE-DNP Objectives
- Integrate nursing science with knowledge from ethics, the biophysical, psychosocial, analytical, and organizational sciences as the basis for the highest level of advanced nursing practice.
- Systematically and comprehensively investigate complex issues encountered in nursing practice to promote person-centered care and optimal health outcomes for individuals, families, communities, populations, and systems.
- Implement scholarly evidence-based processes and health policies to address population health from public health prevention to disease management for the improvement of health outcomes.
- Advance the impact of nursing scholarship by integrating best evidence into practice and promoting ethical conduct of scholarly activities.
- Lead quality and safety initiatives to improve health outcomes contributing to a culture of safety for patients, providers, and work environments.
- Collaborate with stakeholders and interprofessional teams using advanced communication skills to optimize care delivery and strengthen outcomes.
- Apply innovative and systems-based strategies to address complex health problems across the continuum of care.
- Use information, communication technologies, and informatic processes that inform advanced nursing practice to improve healthcare outcomes for individuals, families, communities, populations, and systems.
- Formulate a professional identity in an advanced nursing practice and/or leadership role that reflects nursing’s characteristics, values, and ethics.
- Engage in self-reflection and personal development activities, including dissemination of nursing knowledge, that contribute to lifelong learning, leadership development and resilience.
Admission Requirements
- Degree: Bachelor’s degree in an area other than Nursing.
- GPA: 3.0 (4.0 scale) or comparable GPA in completed upper-division work (junior- and senior-level courses) and graduate work.
- Recommendations: 3 required and 1 reference must be from a healthcare professional.
- Prerequisites: Completion of AE Prerequisite Courses.
- Statement of Purpose
- Curriculum Vitae/resume
Application Procedures
- Complete the online application using the Graduate School Application for Admission and pay the application fee.
- Submit supporting documents, including official transcripts, curriculum vitae, personal statement, and recommendations.
Prerequisite Courses
In addition to a bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing field, applicants must complete 24 credits (grade C- or better) of prerequisite coursework from an approved institution.
- Anatomy with lab (4 credits)
- Physiology with lab (4 credits)
- Microbiology (3 credits)
- Pharmacology (3 credits)
- Human Growth and Development Through the Lifespan (3 credits)
- Nutrition (3 credits)
- Statistics (3 credits)
Prerequisite Policies
- A grade of “C-” or higher must be earned in all prerequisite courses.
- Applicants MUST complete a minimum of 5 prerequisite courses by December 31st of the year applied.
- Final grades for any prerequisite courses in progress during the fall admissions semester must be provided by the second week in January.
- All 7 prerequisite courses must be completed before ENROLLING in the AE program.
Acceptance to Graduate Programs in Nursing
The School of Nursing Graduate Admissions and Progression Committee (GAPC) begin preliminary admission reviews after the October 1st deadline. All application materials must be submitted by the program’s application deadline; files that remain incomplete will not be reviewed or acted upon by GAPC.