DNP Admission Criteria/Application

application deadline: February 1

• Criteria

• DNP Admission

Criteria

Students are evaluated for admission to the DNP program on six criteria. These criteria, in order of their importance, include:

• On-Campus Interview
  (on-campus interviews will be held on Friday, February 21, 2014)

• Essay and CV
  (essay and CV should demonstrate experience with primary care)

• GRE Scores

• Letters of Recommendation

• GPA

• Experience in Primary Care
  (either professional work experience or 20-hour shadowing experience)

DNP Admission

Application Items

1. Graduate Application Form
   The following link will take you to the UW Admissions/Graduate Application form. Fill out and submit online.

   Graduate Application Form

2. On-Campus Interview
   To qualify for the on-campus interview (February 21, 2014), applicants must: 1) Have a BS or MS degree in Nursing and an unencumbered RN license OR be enrolled in a BS nursing program with an anticipated graduation date of no later than August 2014*; 2) have a complete DNP application packet on file on or before February 1, 2014; 3) meet minimal GPA and GRE requirements, and 4) have at least two out of the three supportive letters of recommendation (or no more than one negative letter). All DNP applicants who meet these criteria are offered an interview.
   -----
   *Current family nurse practitioners (FNPs) and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) need to possess national certification (ANCC or AANP) as an FNP or PMHNP and have current, unencumbered licensure as an FNP or PMHNP.

3. Essay*
   In a 2-3 page essay (double-spaced with 1” margins using Arial or Times Roman numeral, 11 or 12 point font) discuss all of the following:

   • Describe what aspects of primary care most appeal to you and why you are pursuing an advanced practice degree in primary care.

   • Describe your goals as a DNP-prepared FNP.

   • What aspects of UW’s DNP Program of Study, mission & philosophy most reflect applicant's goals and learning philosophy and why.

   _______________
   *If you are already prepared as an FNP and are only seeking the DNP degree, please discuss only the last two bullets above in the format noted.
   
   

4. Curriculum vita (CV)

   • Employment history
     - Nursing jobs or experiences (may include volunteer work)—(duties, dates of employment, approximate # hours)
     - Employment if different from above (duties, dates of employment, approximate # of hours)

   • Certifications and licensure

   • Teaching experiences (institution, course names and course levels [Associate’s Bachelor’s, Graduate], applicant's role in course, course format [e.g., online, face to face])

   • Academic history (schools and location of schools, degree, major, graduation month and year)

   • Description of any research with which applicant has been involved

   • Publications

   • Presentations

   • Memberships and activities in professional organizations

   • List of continuing education experiences in last 3 years (name, date, hours, CE sponsor)

5. GRE Scores
   All applicants (both post-BS and post-master’s) must submit current (within the last 5 years) Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores. To be considered for admission, applicants must have a combined (verbal and quantitative) GRE score of 291 and a minimum writing score of 3.5. For applicants who are submitting scores from an older version of the GRE (prior to August 2011), the combined minimal score is 900, with a writing score of 3.5. Please note that these scores are minimums. All applicants are encouraged to seriously prepare for the GRE. To learn more about the GRE and how to prepare for it, visit: http://www.ets.org/gre/.

6. 3 Professional Letters of Recommendation
   Choose reference writers carefully. Writers should be knowledgeable about applicant's preparation and/or qualifications for DNP education (i.e., employers or instructors).

7. RN or NP Licensure
   Current unencumbered licensure as a registered nurse with a minimum of a baccalaureate degree in nursing (BSN) from a program nationally accredited by CCNE or NLNAC. Current FNPs and PMHNPs who are only seeking the DNP degree and who do not desire a second NP certification, need to possess national certification (ANCC or AANP) as an FNP or PMHNP and current unencumbered licensure as an FNP or PMHNP.

8. GPA
   Minimal overall GPA of 3.25

9. Experience in primary care
   All applicants must demonstrate experience working in primary care or shadowing a primary care provider (nurse practitioner, physician, or physician's assistant) in a primary care setting (i.e., an out-patient clinic) for 20 hours. Applicants are responsible for arranging shadowing experiences.
   
   In addition, applicants should read the following documents prior to making a decision to apply, and again prior to writing the admission essay.

   • The Institute of Medicine (1994). Defining Primary Care: An Interim Report. Washington, DC. National Adacemies Press. (Full text available from http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9153&page=R1)

   • National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (2012). Statement on acute care and primary care certified nurse practitioner practice. Retrieved from http://www.nonpf.com/associations/10789/files/ACPCStatementFinalJune2012.pdf

10. Official Transcripts
    ...from all nursing and graduate (if applicable) programs. These should be sent directly from applicant's schools to UW Graduate Admissions.

*******

Admission Procedure/Timeline

• February 1, 2014:
  Applications are due for admission into the Fall 2014 DNP cohort

• February 8, 2014:
  On or before February 8th, qualified applicants are invited for interviews

• February 21, 2014:
  On-campus interviews

• March 29, 2014:
  Applicants are advised regarding their admission status into the 2014 DNP cohort

*******

Physical Requirements

All graduate nursing students must be able to perform the essential functions of a nurse. Reasonable accommodations are afforded to student nurses with disabilities as required under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Faculty and staff from the School of Nursing work with staff from the University Disability Support Services to determine what constitute reasonable accommodations.

*******

International Applicants

• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) results

• Meet requirements of UW Admissions for International Student Admission. (International Students seeking graduate degrees should consult the Graduate Students section at the UW Admissions site for application information.)

*******