Program Overview

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Master of Science in Nursing: Forensic Nursing

The Master of Science in Nursing: Forensic Nursing program at Oakland University is designed to equip students for a dynamic career in advanced nursing. As Michigan's only forensic nursing program and one of the few nationwide, it prepares students to work with patients who are victims, suspects, or perpetrators of trauma, violence, and maltreatment.

Program Overview

The forensic nursing program stands out for its rigorous curriculum, extensive clinical training, and convenient high-tech, high-touch format that integrates online and in-person instruction. Students can work full-time while completing the program, which holds accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The program was developed in collaboration with forensic nursing's founder, Virginia Lynch, who calls Oakland University "the forensic nursing pace-setter."

Forensic Nursing: The Oakland University Advantage

The program offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity for career advancement, providing elite education from pioneers in the emerging field of forensic nursing. Students interact with multidisciplinary team members in victim advocacy, the legal system, public health, and law enforcement.

Key Features

• Comprehensive education: The program covers all subspecialties within the profession, including sexual violence, human trafficking, intimate partner violence, child maltreatment, elder maltreatment, death investigation, disaster response, and more.
• Exceptional clinical experience: The program includes a minimum of 420 hours of clinical training, compared to 150-300 hours in most other programs.
• Superior faculty: Students work with active forensic nursing practitioners who teach from firsthand experience and offer personalized guidance.
• Tight-knit community: Although most coursework is online, the interactive digital platform ensures strong relationships with faculty and peers.
• Hands-on technical training: Students become proficient in advanced assessment and the use of specialized equipment, such as colposcopes, digital cameras, alternative light sources, evidence collection kits, and laboratory technology.

What Can You Do With a Forensic Nursing Degree?

Forensic nurses work as independent practitioners and members of a multidisciplinary team, optimizing health and legal outcomes for victims of trauma, violence, and maltreatment. Career pathways include employment by or collaboration with hospitals, community health care clinics, psychiatric institutions, correctional facilities, victims' advocate organizations, law enforcement agencies, coroner and medical examiner offices, emergency preparedness and first-response units, judicial agencies, public health departments, and law firms.

Forensic Nursing: What You'll Learn

The program combines online coursework with in-person clinical instruction, providing flexibility to work full-time while in the program. Students complete 500 hours of clinical training and can choose from two credentials: a graduate certificate and a master of science in nursing.

Graduate Certificate in Forensic Nursing

The graduate certificate totals 18 credits, with a 16-month plan of study, and includes:

• Foundational course in forensic nursing
• Specialized courses in death investigation, emergency preparedness and disaster management, interpersonal violence and maltreatment, and advanced forensic nursing

Master of Science in Nursing: Forensic Nursing

The master's program requires 39 credits and can be completed in 28 months. It includes the same coursework as the graduate certificate, plus additional courses in:

• Nursing scholarship
• Nursing leadership
• Health policy
• Advanced health assessment
• Advanced pharmacology
• Advanced pathophysiology

Forensic Nursing Program Resources

• Degree requirements
• Graduate certificate requirements
• Admission requirements
• School of Nursing

Programs Related to Forensic Nursing

For those unsure if forensic nursing is right for them, Oakland University offers other graduate degree programs, including:

• Master of Science in Nursing: Acute Care Adult Gerontologic Nurse Practitioner
• Master of Science in Nursing: Primary Care Adult Gerontologic Nurse Practitioner
• Master of Science in Nursing: Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner