Advanced Nursing Practice (Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner), DNP
ASU Health - Clinical, Doctor of Nursing Practice
Earn the highest degree in nursing while preparing to deliver comprehensive care for adults across the aging spectrum. You'll build advanced clinical and leadership skills to support patients and drive improvements in adult and geriatric health.
The adult-gerontology nurse practitioner concentration of the Doctor of Nursing Practice program is an advanced nursing practice degree. This program prepares you to provide holistic, client-centered primary care to adolescents, adults and geriatric patients in a variety of settings.
All programs are offered in a flexible format, requiring you to travel to an ASU campus for up to one week for orientation at the beginning of the program and two to three times per semester thereafter.
Core courses include pharmacology, advanced pathophysiology and advanced health assessment across the lifespan. Specialty courses focus on the assessment, screening, diagnosis and evidence-based management of common, chronic and complex health conditions in adolescents, adults and geriatric patients. Content including epidemiology, differential diagnosis, sociocultural variations in evidence-based treatments, health promotion and case management is emphasized. Adult gerontology-focused theory and clinical courses include theories, principles and clinical skills in the care of adolescents and adults across the lifespan in a variety of settings, including private practice, ambulatory clinics, long-term care facilities and the patient's home. Practicing faculty with clinical experience teach the specialty coursework and clinical experiences.
In addition to advanced nursing specialty-focused outcomes, the program engages you to meet doctoral-level competencies in systems-level thinking, complexity science, quality and safety, evidence-based practice and the development of a doctoral project within a partner organization to improve outcomes at the patient, provider or health care system level. You are educated as a leader at the highest level of nursing practice to translate research into practice, lead in multidisciplinary teams, and engage in health care policy and advocacy to improve patient outcomes.
Focused clinical experiences are arranged for you if you're residing in Maricopa County, Arizona. You should expect to travel throughout Maricopa County and, in some cases, throughout Arizona to complete your assigned clinical placement.
If you're residing outside of Maricopa County, Arizona, you're responsible for identifying the required number of clinical sites in your area of residence and for identifying preceptors and sites willing to accommodate clinical rotations. Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation must approve these sites before starting any clinical experience; the program office doesn't guarantee a clinical placement site if you are outside Maricopa County. If, during the program, faculty determine you need additional supervision for clinical progress in the program, you must complete clinical experiences in the Phoenix area.
The program offers clinical rotations in health profession shortage areas throughout the state, both in urban underserved and rural areas, that provide you with multicultural experiences to enhance professional development.
As a participating National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements member, Arizona State University is authorized to offer distance education to persons located in individual state authorization reciprocity agreement member states in accordance with the council's established policies and standards. California is not a state authorization reciprocity agreement member, though ASU may offer educational activities in California. There are some exceptions for specific programs at Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation. These exceptions are noted on the ASU state authorization website.
- College/school:
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
- Location: Downtown Phoenix
- STEM-OPT extension eligible: No
Students can choose to create their own concurrent degree combination to match their interests by working with their academic advisor during or after their first semester of study. Some concurrent combinations are not possible due to high levels of overlap in curriculum; students should speak with their academic advisor for more details.
This degree is also offered as a concurrent program with the following:
84 credit hours including the required applied project course (DNP 707)
Required Core (13 credit hours) Concentration (22 credit hours) Other Requirements (40 credit hours) Electives and Research (6 credit hours) Culminating Experience (3 credit hours) Additional Curriculum Information The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has recommended a minimum of 1,000 postbaccalaureate practicum hours for all students completing a DNP program. This program includes 1,125 practicum hours, exceeding the AACN requirement. Nurses who complete this program meet the eligibility requirements to take the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner exam. In addition to completing didactic courses, students complete 13 credit hours (585 clock hours) of practicum experiences in a community setting. For electives or research, students should see the academic unit for the approved course list. Other coursework may be used with the approval of the academic unit. When approved by the student's supervisory committee and the Graduate College, this program allows up to 30 credit hours from a previously awarded master's degree to be used for this program. Other requirement coursework may be substituted with approval of the academic unit if the student is in an approved concurrent program.
DNP 704 Principles of Evidence-based Care in Advanced Practice (4)
DNP 705 Health Care Outcomes Management (3)
DNP 708 Systems Thinking in a Complex Healthcare Environment (3)
DNP 709 Individual and Innovation Leadership in Healthcare Practice (3)
DNP 623 Adult-gerontology Health Promotion (3)
DNP 624 Adult-gerontology Health Promotion Practicum (3)
DNP 625 Management of Common Health Problems in Adult Gerontology: Theory (3)
DNP 626 Management of Common Health Problems in Adult Gerontology: Practicum (5)
DNP 627 Management of Complex Health Problems in Adult Gerontology: Theory (3)
DNP 628 Management of Complex Health Problems in Adult Gerontology: Practicum (5)
DNP 601 Theoretical Foundations for Advance Practice Nursing (3)
DNP 602 Evaluating Research for Practice (3)
DNP 604 Advanced Human Pathophysiology Across Lifespan (4)
DNP 605 Advanced Health Assessment Across Lifespan (3)
DNP 608 Applied Pharmacotherapeutics Across Lifespan (3)
DNP 609 Advanced Practice Nursing Role (1)
DNP 679 Biostatistics: Principles of Statistical Inference (3)
DNP 703 Innovation in Communication-Scholarly and Professional Writing (2)
DNP 711 Healthcare Policy and Innovation (3)
DNP 712 Clinical Residency and Management (12)
DNP 715 Dynamics and Principles of Information in Health Care (3)
DNP 707 Disseminating Evidence to Advance Best Practice in Health Care and Health Policy (3)
Completion of an evidence-based doctoral applied project focused on a clinical issue relevant to advanced practice nursing is required.
General university admission requirements:
All students are required to meet general
university admission requirements.
U.S.
applicants | International
applicants | English
proficiency
Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation.
Applicants must have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in nursing from a regionally accredited institution.
Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program or a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
All applicants must submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- proof of a current unencumbered RN license
- three professional letters of recommendation
- resume
- goal statement
- admission essay
- health and safety requirements (submitted after admission)
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of their current residency.
A current unencumbered RN license in the state in which the student plans to do clinical practicums is required. All students are also required to have an unencumbered Arizona RN license or an unencumbered compact state RN license as mandated by the Arizona State Board of Nursing. The RN license must remain unencumbered throughout enrollment in any nursing program.
One year of clinical experience working within the specialty population is preferred.
Applicants offered admission must meet health and safety requirements, which include a passing disposition on a background clearance, satisfactory completion of a substance screen, and required health and safety documents. Students offered admission must complete health and safety requirements by the provided deadlines or their offer of admission is withdrawn.
An interview with program faculty is required.
An admission examination is not required.
Applicants requesting review of previously completed courses must have a gap analysis review. Applicants must submit primary source documents (i.e., syllabi) for faculty review to demonstrate advanced physiology or pathophysiology, advanced health assessment, advanced pharmacology, and advanced role courses. Depending on the courses completed in the master's degree program, additional courses may be required to complete this specialty. Courses must have been completed within the past five years to be eligible or actively board certified and practicing.
Applications are reviewed on a space-available basis after the priority deadline.
| Session | Modality | Deadline | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session A/C | In Person | 12/15 | Priority |
Program learning outcomes identify what a student will learn or be able to do upon completion of their program. This program’s learning outcomes include the following:
- Develop strategies to influence organizational culture toward innovative evidence-based practice models.
- Develop nursing practice recommendations using evidence based rationales.
- Integrate evidence-based guidelines to support advanced clinical judgment in the assessment, diagnosis, and management of acute and common health conditions in adolescents, adults, and older adults.
- Synthesize evidence-based guidelines to support advanced clinical judgment in the assessment, diagnosis, and management of complex and chronic health conditions in adolescents, adults, and older adults.
DNP graduates are prepared for excellence upon entering the workplace and are prepared to practice at the most advanced level of nursing.
Graduates of the adult gerontology nurse practitioner program have the knowledge and training to provide health care for patients in a wide variety of settings. The broad base of comprehension and clinical expertise enable graduates to participate effectively and lead within clinical, community and academic arenas.
Career examples include:
- business owner
- community advocate
- nurse practitioner
- professor
ASU programs that may lead to professional licensure or certification are intended to prepare students for potential licensure or certification in Arizona. Completion of an ASU program may not meet educational requirements for licensure or certification in another state. For more information, students should visit the ASU professional licensure webpage.
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
|
HLTHN 301
nursingandhealth@asu.edu
602-496-0937
Program term definitions
Accelerated programs allow students the opportunity to expedite the completion of their degree.
Accelerated master's
These programs allow students to accelerate their studies to earn a bachelor's plus a master's degree in as few as five years (for some programs).
Each program has requirements students must meet to be eligible for consideration. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master's during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program. Interested students can learn about eligibility requirements and how to apply.
Concurrent degrees allow students to pursue their own personal or professional interests, earn two distinct degrees and receive two diplomas. To add a concurrent degree to your existing degree, work with your academic advisor.
Joint programs, or jointly conferred degrees, are offered by more than one college and provide opportunities for students to take advantage of the academic strengths of two academic units. Upon graduation, students are awarded one degree and one diploma conferred by two colleges.
ASU adds new programs to Degree Search frequently. Come back often and look for the "New Programs" option.
ASU Online offers programs in an entirely online format with multiple enrollment sessions throughout the year. See https://asuonline.asu.edu/ for more information.
The Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP) provides a reduced tuition rate to non-resident graduate students who qualify. Visit the WRGP/WICHE webpage for more information: https://graduate.asu.edu/wiche.
