Degree Offered
- Doctor of Nursing Practice
Nature of the Program
Description
- advanced practice nurse
- nurse entrepreneur
- nurse administrator
- health care advocate
The programs are offered by faculty on the Morgantown and Charleston campuses. Courses are offered via web-based modalities, with both synchronous and asynchronous formats. Enrollment in nursing courses is based upon readiness, availability of space, and an adequate cohort of students. The DNP project proposal and final presentation take place on either campus depending on the preference of the committee chair.
It is a strong recommendation by the University and the School of Nursing that graduate students limit their credit load if they are also involved in full-time work. Full-time work and studies may negatively affect the student’s ability to succeed academically.
Admissions for 2025-2026
Criteria
Applicants for the DNP Program must have:
- a Master of Science in Nursing degree from a nationally accredited nursing program and regionally accredited institution,
- a minimum overall nursing GPA or a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale,
- a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale on all graduate work attempted. (Provisional admission may be considered if the overall GPA is 2.75-2.99 depending upon space available and other qualifications.)an overall GPA on all college work attempted of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale,
- an active, unrestricted RN license in at least one state at the time of application (and licensure in the state in which he or she plans to complete clinical immersion),
- Letters of good standing (required for transfer students or those that have taken courses in another graduate program but did not complete the degree).
Applicants must submit official transcripts from all degree programs of attendance, a curriculum vitae/resume, evidence of licensure, and an application fee by the specified deadline.
Students must satisfactorily complete background checks and drug screens upon admission.
Notes: To be considered, applicants must meet all WVU admission requirements, in addition to program specific admission criteria. Admission criteria are subject to change. Please see the School of Nursing website for the most up-to-date criteria at https://nursing.hsc.wvu.edu. Any student who has been dismissed from the West Virginia University School of Nursing or any other nursing program may be considered for readmission if the dismissal was academic and was followed by successful completion on an additional degree. Any student who has withdrawn from the WVU School of Nursing program may be considered for readmission.
Students may apply for readmission in accordance with the following guidelines and criteria but must follow the standard admission procedures. Students must meet all original admission requirements.
- Students previously enrolled in a WVU nursing program must complete all exit procedures and forms during the semester of withdrawal to be eligible for readmission.
- Readmission to a WVU graduate nursing program will be considered one time only.
- Students unable to complete the program within 7 years of the original admission date will be required to restart the program if readmitted.
- Readmission is not guaranteed and is dependent upon space available, applicant qualifications, and academic discretion.
- Students may be required to repeat courses, revise the original progression plan, and/or validate clinical skills/knowledge obtained from previous courses.
Readmission
Any student who has been dismissed from the West Virginia University School of Nursing or any other nursing program may be considered for readmission if the dismissal was academic and was followed by successful completion of an additional degree. Any student who has withdrawn from the WVU School of Nursing program may be considered for readmission. See Graduate Readmission Policy.
Graduate Provisional Admission Policy
Provisional graduate admission may be offered to students when they have earned a baccalaureate, graduate, or professional degree from a regionally accredited college or university but do not meet the criteria for regular admission. Provisionally admitted graduate students may have program-defined deficiencies or an undergraduate or graduate scholastic record that shows promise but is below the required 3.0 overall and/or nursing GPA for admission to the nursing program. Students will be considered for provisional admission on a case-by case basis depending upon space available and other qualifications.
Provisions of Admission
Degree seeking students admitted provisionally must meet all progression standards including achieving and maintaining at least a 3.0 nursing program GPA.
Provisional graduate students who fail to meet the provisions of admission or who fail to achieve the required grade point average will be dismissed from the program and reclassified as non-degree.
Reclassification of Graduate Students
Provisional graduate students may be reclassified as regular graduate student’s if/when they meet the program requirements specified in the offer of admission and the WVU minimum grade point average of 2.75.
Academic records of full-time degree seeking students who are admitted provisionally will be reviewed no later than the end of the term in which the students complete 18 credit hours.
Application Process
Applicants may apply at any time for fall admission by going to the West Virginia University Graduate Admissions website and completing the main graduate student application. Applicants should select the fall term, “Professional” as the student type, and “Nursing DNP” as the intended program. Applicants will then be asked to select a full-time or part-time progression plan. Applicants to the DNP program need to complete the following steps in order to be considered for admission:
- Application for Admission to Graduate Studies (available at: https://westvirginia.force.com/wvugrad/TX_SiteLogin?startURL=%2Fwvugrad%2FTargetX_Portal__PB)
- Request an official transcript of records from each college or university attended.
- It is preferred that official transcripts be sent via an online, secure service such as eScrip-Safe, National Student Clearinghouse, or Parchment to graduateadmissions@mail.wvu.edu.
- Alternatively, sealed, untampered, physical official transcripts can be sent directly to WVU Graduate Admissions, P.O. Box 6510, Morgantown, WV 26506-6510.
- Applicants who completed prior education outside of the U.S. must have their transcripts evaluated by World Education Services (WES). Please request a “course-by-course” International Credential Advantage Package (ICAP).
- Submit a current curriculum vitae.
- Submit a professional writing sample using the guidelines provided on our website.
Admission Process for the DNP Program
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until July 1 for a Fall term start date. Acceptance is dependent upon space available in the program.
Major Code: 8664
Doctor of Nursing Practice Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| NSG 702 | Population Health Promotion | 3 |
| NSG 704 | Health Care Leadership | 3 |
| NSG 707 | Evidence Based Practice Methods | 3 |
| NSG 710 | Health Care Issues, Policy, and Ethics | 3 |
| NSG 724 | Health Research Statistics 1 | 3 |
| NSG 739 | Scientific Underpinnings of the DNP Role | 3 |
| NSG 745 | Clinical Immersion * | 5 |
| NSG 754 | Transforming Health Care Through Information Technology | 3 |
| DNP Project ** | ||
| NSG 830 | Doctor of Nursing Practice Project Development | 2 |
| NSG 831 | Doctor of Nursing Practice Project Implementation | 2 |
| NSG 832 | Doctor of Nursing Practice Project Presentation | 2 |
| Total Hours | 32 | |
- *
A minimum of 5 credits of Clinical Immersion is required prior to graduation. A total of 1000 hours post baccalaureate supervised clinical practice is required prior to graduation and therefore students may be required to take additional credits to meet this total. Spread over multiple semesters.
- **
Total DNP Project hours - at least 6 credits. Spread over multiple semesters.
- ***
Individual progression plans to be developed based on previous course work. Total credit hours will vary according to previous course work provided credit for, including number of post-baccalaureate clinical experience hours gained prior to admission to the program.
Suggested Plan of Study
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer | Hours |
| NSG 724 | 3 | NSG 707 | 3 | NSG 702 | 3 |
| NSG 739 | 3 | NSG 754 | 3 | NSG 745 | 1 |
| NSG 830 | 2 | ||||
| 6 | 6 | 6 | |||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer | Hours |
| NSG 704 | 3 | NSG 710 | 3 | NSG 745 | 1 |
| NSG 745 | 1 | NSG 745 | 1 | ||
| NSG 831 | 1 | NSG 831 | 1 | ||
| 5 | 5 | 1 | |||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | ||||
| NSG 745 | 1 | ||||
| NSG 832 | 2 | ||||
| 3 | |||||
| Total credit hours: 32 | |||||
Progression and Performance Standards
To progress in the DNP curriculum, a student must meet the following performance standards. Failure to meet the criteria below will result in dismissal from the program.
- Grade Point Average (GPA) requirements:
- DNP students are required to maintain a 3.0 in all work attempted in the program. A student who falls below 3.0 after nine or more credit hours are completed in the program will be placed on academic probation and has only one semester to bring up the GPA to the 3.0 requirement. Failure to raise the cumulative GPA to 3.0 in one semester will result in dismissal from the program.
- Earn a letter grade (A, B, C) on all required courses. A grade of F in any course results in dismissal from the program.
- Carry forward only one C grade in a nursing course. A second C in any nursing course will result in dismissal from the program.
- Students can withdraw from only one course (resulting in a “W” on the academic transcript), and only one time.
- If a student needs to withdraw from all courses in a semester, the student must meet with his or her faculty advisor (see Leave of Absence and Withdrawal policies in program handbook).
Note: Any student who has been dismissed from the WVU SON will not be readmitted to the program.
Graduate Readmission Policy
Any student who has been dismissed from the West Virginia University School of Nursing or any other nursing program may be considered for readmission if the dismissal was academic and was followed by successful completion of an additional degree. Any student who has withdrawn from the WVU School of Nursing program may be considered for readmission. Students may apply for readmission in accordance with the following guidelines and criteria but must follow the standard admission procedures. Students must meet all original admission requirements.
- Students previously enrolled in a WVU nursing program must complete all exit procedures and forms during the semester of withdrawal to be eligible for readmission.
- Readmission to a WVU graduate nursing program will be considered one time only.
- Students unable to complete the program within 7 years of the original admission date (all graduate programs) and within 5 years of entry into candidacy (PhD program) will be required to restart the program if readmitted.
- Readmission is not guaranteed and is dependent upon space available, applicant qualifications, and academic discretion.
- Students may be required to repeat courses, revise the original progression plan, and/or validate clinical skills/knowledge obtained from previous courses.
Grading Scale
The grading scale for nursing as posted in each course syllabus is:
- A = 93-100, B = 85-92, C = 77-84, F = 76 and below.
Major Learning Outcomes
Post-Master's DNP Program Goals
Upon completion of the program, the graduate will be able to:
1. Use disciplined reasoning, science-based theories, and concepts from sciences and humanities to:
a) Determine the nature and significance of health and health care delivery phenomena.
b) Describe actions and advanced strategies to improve health care delivery, to diverse populations.
c) Develop, deliver and evaluate theory based health care.
d) Analyze nursing history to expand thinking and provide a sense of professional heritage and identity
2. Demonstrate organizational and systems leadership that:
a) Emphasizes clinical practice.
b) Continually improves health outcomes.
c) Ensures patient safety.
3. Use analytic methods, evidence, and nursing science to:
a) Critically appraise existing literature to identify and evaluate best practices and practice guidelines.
b) Facilitate the evaluation of systems of care in order to improve patient outcomes.
c) Serve as a practice specialist/consultant in collaborative knowledge generating research.
d) Disseminate results through translational scholarship.
4. Demonstrate proficiency and provide leadership for the integration of information systems/technology to:
a) Support, monitor, and improve patient care, healthcare systems, clinical decision-making, nurse-sensitive outcomes, and academic settings.
b) Support quality improvement and patient safety.
5. Assume a leadership role in advocacy and health care policy development.
6. Establish, participate in, and lead interprofessional collaborations for improving patient, population, and systems outcomes.
7. Develop, implement, and evaluate practice and healthcare delivery models for the purpose of quality improvement and improved patient outcomes considering:
a) Safety and quality.
b) Epidemiological, bio-statistical, environmental, and other appropriate scientific data.
c) Culturally appropriate care.
d) Values based professional practice and behaviors.
e) Economies of care, business principles and health policy related to individual, aggregate, and population health.
8. Ensure accountability for advanced practice based on refined assessment skills, advanced communication skills, biophysical, genetic, genomic, psychosocial, sociopolitical, economic, ethical, and cultural principles.
9. Practice and provide services for populations within the area of advanced nursing specialization.