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You’ve answered your calling and dedicated your career to compassionate service through nursing. Now you’re ready to translate your expertise into leadership roles in healthcare and improve the quality of patient care throughout your community.
The next step on your career journey to becoming a nursing leader could be a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree. This article will explain what a DNP degree is, how it can transform your career, and how to find the best DNP program for your schedule and goals.
What Is a Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree?
DNP programs integrate coursework and clinical practice to prepare nurses to approach care from a holistic viewpoint, including direct patient care and healthcare policy, ethical leadership, and social entrepreneurship. By the time they earn their clinical doctorate at Saint Mary’s College, nurse practitioners typically have close to 800 hours of clinical experience with patients and more than 400 practicum hours of developing a translational scholarship project that addresses real problems in healthcare.
Having earned a clinical doctorate, nurse practitioners can become leaders in various settings — including inpatient hospital settings, primary care practices, public health centers, nursing education, or other healthcare organizations. DNP graduates can also start their own practice.
Earning your DNP degree from Saint Mary’s College will help you turn your undergraduate and work experience into specialized, expert-level knowledge in nursing practice. You’ll strengthen your professional skills in topics such as leadership strategies, organizational systems, evidence-based practice, and communication.
DNP Vs. PhD: What’s the Difference?
As you research DNP programs, you may wonder what the major difference is between a DNP and a PhD in nursing. Put simply, a PhD program prepares nurses to generate new knowledge that sparks meaningful change in health systems and patient care. On the other hand, DNP programs prepare graduates to become expert clinicians who apply the best evidence when caring for patients while taking on greater leadership roles. DNP graduates develop translational scholarship expertise that enables them to implement the improvements that PhD nurses find through their research.
Why DNP Programs Matter for Today’s Healthcare System
Knowing how you can make the most positive impact is important when your passion drives you to transform the world around you. Earning a DNP degree is one of the best ways to address the most pressing issue in nursing and healthcare: The severe nursing shortage in the United States and around the globe.
Many factors led to this shortage, such as career burnout and a lack of high-quality educational programs to prepare nurses for the daily challenges of nursing in the 21st century. Fortunately, with a DNP, nurse practitioners like you can meet these challenges head-on using the latest research to create sustainable mentorships with RNs to prepare them for a career of compassion.
As a leader with a DNP, you can turn your passion into action and make the healthcare system a more positive place for both patients and providers.
Benefits of Earning a Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree
Earning a DNP degree means not only that you will have the highest credential in clinical nursing, but you’ll also be entering into one of the most high-demand healthcare careers. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses is expected to grow by 40 percent by 2031. That’s nearly four times the national average for all other occupations in the country.
Additionally, with a DNP, nurse practitioners can pursue specializations within healthcare to deliver expert care and guidance to patients and providers in certain fields. Depending on the DNP program you join, you could develop clinical expertise as an Adult Gerontology Acute Care NP or Family Nurse Practitioner focusing on geriatric neuropsychiatry.
Career Opportunities with a Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree
Graduating with a DNP will greatly increase your career options both within healthcare and outside the system. Whatever your career path, you can implement lasting systemic improvements to benefit health systems, patients, and other providers. You'll be qualified for these fulfilling positions with your DNP degree.
Nurse Practitioner (NP)
Nurse practitioners perform health-focused assessments, diagnose diseases, and develop evidence-based interventions to restore health. NPs can serve as primary care providers in outpatient settings or acute care providers in inpatient settings. The DNP degree empowers NPs to offer the best nursing care within the medical setting.
In some states, NPs work with physicians through a collaborative agreement; in others, they can work independently with full practice authority. Thanks to their advanced education and training, nurse practitioners often open their own practices.
The BLS projects a 40% increase in employment opportunities by 2031. The average salary for a nurse practitioner is $124,00. Earning a DNP can increase your salary potential even more.
Educator
A lack of nursing faculty is a major reason that in 2021 about 92,000 qualified students were turned away from nursing programs. This decline in nursing program enrollment contributes to the nursing shortage. Becoming a nurse educator can help solve this critical issue. Earning a DNP allows you to transition into nursing education and eventually assume academic leadership roles. For example, you could become a dean of nursing, design curricula, and shape healthcare education on a systemic level within a university.
According to Nursingjournal.org, job growth for nurse educators is expected to be about 9 percent by 2029, with an average salary of $74,500.
Healthcare Executive
Efficient and hardworking teams are at the heart of healthcare. That’s why hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities depend on skilled and detail-oriented leaders to manage teams and keep the organizations running smoothly.
Daily tasks for healthcare leaders with a DNP might include delivering healthcare services, developing and implementing organizational goals, and ensuring that the organization complies with laws and regulations. You would oversee teams of nurses and other providers and prepare budgets to keep your organization within operating costs.
In addition to the 28 percent employment growth predicted by the BLS for health services managers, the average salary is $101,000 with a bachelor’s degree. Having a DNP will significantly increase your salary potential and help you negotiate when applying for positions.
Start Advancing Your Nursing Career with a DNP Degree From Saint Mary’s College
Now that you know the many ways that earning a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree can help you take your nursing career to new heights, the next step is finding the right DNP program for you and your career goals. Saint Mary’s College offers a student-focused DNP degree aimed at improving the healthcare system for every patient. Thanks to our dedication to providing high-quality education, we were ranked as one of the top five DNP programs in 2022 by registerednursing.org.
The Saint Mary’s College DNP program was designed with the working RN who balances multiple life roles in mind. The program is offered in hybrid format — mainly online with one on-campus immersive experience each semester. The immersive experience facilitates learning and networking with faculty, peers, and healthcare professionals. The program’s design fosters career advancement without sacrificing time with your family or at work.
Our Doctor of Nursing Practice program offers tracks in adult gerontology acute care (AG-ACNP) and family nurse practitioner (FNP). Additionally, if you’re already an APRN, you can get credit for your master’s degree with our accelerated MSN to DNP track.
Furthermore, thanks to small class sizes throughout our DNP program, you’ll receive individualized academic attention from our outstanding faculty. Our faculty mentors have decades of experience as nurse practitioners and educators working to bring positive change to healthcare and address current issues in nursing.
At Saint Mary’s College, we believe in empowering our students to embrace their potential and become leaders who inspire others.