DOCTOR of Nursing?!

I would assume that most people did not know that there was a doctorate in nursing...I know as a young nursing student, the thought was absurd. However, now that I have finished my master's I feel as if I am left wanting more from my education and want to be able to provide more for my profession. There are two different options for getting a doctorate as a nurse: Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) or Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD).

The NEW Doctor of Nursing Practice (or DNP) is the most exciting thing to happen to nursing education in probably 30 years!!! As most health care professions have changed their educational standards to keep up with new technology and the changing (more complicated) health care industry, so has nursing. The DNP education is scheduled to replace the master's education for Nurse Pracitioners and Clinical Nurse Specialists. It does not get rid of other specialities that still reside within a master's preparation such as nursing administration, etc. As many Advanced Practice Nurses (APNs) know, the education programs are very heavy in course work (class hours as compared to other graduate level education programs) and clinical hours that could very well equal a full-time position. But how still do APNs get out of their education feeling something lacking when starting their new job...

The DNP education will extend the course work and clinical work by about 2 years. Each program is different but most include a internship/"residency" and a capstone project (instead of a dissertation). This program is supposed to more fully prepare you to be a Nurse Practitioner...not create a NEW ROLE IN NURSING!!! This is aimed towards expert clinical practice NOT research and education roles. In addition, as of now most DNP programs are only post-master's but some are accepting new RN grads.

So what exactly should be in a DNP program...please check out this link to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing to more fulling understand.

http://www.aacn.nche.edu/DNP/pdf/Essentials.pdf

Plus a list of DNP programs: http://www.aacn.nche.edu/DNP/DNPProgramList.htm

But what if you want to go into research and/or academia??? If you are, you will be much happier as a PhD student. This program will most likely take about 4 years (but can be much more depending on your research project). The research project you perform will result in your dissertation which you will present to a committee for approval (graduation requirement).

If you want to become a DOCTOR of nursing, there is money available!!! Especially if you are interested in becoming a nurse educator, a federally funded program will pay up to 85% of your student loans back if you work as a nurse educator for a few years after graduating!!

Personally I want my DNP and PhD, and everyone I tell just rolls their eyes and thinks I am crazy...