Department of Nursing College of Health and Human Services California State University, Fresno

California State University, Northern Consortium (NorCal) Doctor of Nursing Practice Program at California State University Fresno and San Jose State University

California State University, Fresno and San Jose State University, both of which are part of the 23-campus California State University system, have joined to offer a Doctor of Nursing Practice program.

The NorCal DNP program can be completed online with the exception of 2 to 3 days of intensive class sessions on one of the 2 campuses. This format enables working professionals to continue with their careers while earning their degrees. The DNP is a practice-based program that helps students gain the high level of scientific knowledge and practice expertise needed to ensure quality patient outcomes in complex health care environments.

Doctor of Nursing Program Curriculum

The 21-month NorCal DNP program uses the cohort model and is only offered on a full-time basis. It can be completed in 5 semesters, including 1 summer session.

The curriculum consists of 37 units of core courses and 2 units of elective courses. It also includes clinical practice and doctoral projects.

Courses cover several topics including health care leadership, the role of diversity in health care, health policy, technology in health care, biostatistics, epidemiology, curriculum development, and evidence-based practice.

Clinical Education in the DNP Program

Clinical education is an integral component of the Doctor of Nursing Program. Therefore, students complete 1,000 hours of clinical practice in a variety of health care settings. This allows students to build upon their nursing skills within the context of their coursework and research.

Clinical hours that were completed in other programs may count toward the hours needed for the DNP program.

The Doctoral Project

Instead of completing dissertations, DNP students work with committees to complete doctoral projects that focus on some aspects of their chosen specialty areas. Each project covers an advance practice issue and focuses on a health problem or potential problem that affects a particular group or community.

Students engage in systematic and rigorous research to develop and implement their projects, which are evaluated in public forums. Final papers are submitted to peer-reviewed journals for publication.

Nursing Faculty Experts

Faculty members in the Doctor of Nursing Program are experts in nursing theory, research, and practice who are committed to helping students excel in the program and in their careers. Faculty members' specialties include clinical nurse specialist, nurse leadership, nurse practitioner, and nursing education.

For example, Dr. Sylvia Miller, assistant professor in the Department of Nursing at California State University, Fresno, has served as a nurse, clinical instructor, project specialist, program coordinator, and lecturer.

Diane L. Stuenkel, EdD, is a professor in the School of Nursing at San Jose State University who has 15 years of nursing practice experience. Her research interests include student nurse success on the NCLEX-RN and work environments for staff nurses.

Excellent Career Opportunities for DNP Graduates

Students who graduate from the DNP program at California State University, Fresno and San Jose State University are prepared to advance health care throughout communities in central and northern California. They are also prepared to spearhead change in the healthcare industry and serve as outstanding nursing faculty members.

Given their advanced skills and the growing need for health care services, DNP graduates have many career opportunities in advanced nursing practice, research, and teaching.

They are also qualified to help various health care organizations and agencies develop innovative care models, thus improving patient outcomes.

DNP Graduate Student Experience

Students in the DNP program have access to a wide-variety of online resources that include courses, registration, and library services. Furthermore, students and teachers who have diverse academic and professional backgrounds interact in virtual classrooms to share information and engage in enriching classroom discussions.

Students also receive support and guidance from faculty members. Additionally, they have access to university resources that help them earn their degrees while managing their careers and personal lives.

Program Costs and Financial Aid

Costs for the DNP program include tuition; travel, food, and lodging for on-site classes; books; and transportation and parking. Students may qualify for financial assistance in the forms of federal loans, scholarships, and grants.

Additional financial resources include the Jonas Nurse Leaders Scholars Program, Chancellor's Doctoral Incentive Program, California Student Aid Commission Financial Aid for Nursing Faculty, and State Nursing Assumption Program of Loans for Education for Nursing Faculty.

Admission Criteria for the NorCal DNP

Applicants to the Doctor of Nursing program must have earned accepted master's degrees while maintaining GPAs of 3.0 or greater. They also must maintain California Registered Nurse Licenses and meet the requirements for certification in a nursing specialty.

In addition, they must meet the admission requirements for California State University, Fresno and complete an interview and writing sample (as requested). Furthermore, applicants must demonstrate sufficient experience as advanced practice nurses or nurse administrators, managers, or executives.

CSU Fresno

California State University, Fresno is located in Fresno, California, in the western region of the United States. CSU Fresno, which was founded in 1911, has more than 21,000 students including approximately 2,300 graduate students.

Also known as Fresno State, the university has many distinguished alumni including Cruz M. Bustamante, former lieutenant governor of California; Olympic gold medalist Laura Berg; and Congressman Jim Costa.

CSU San Jose

Founded in 1857, San Jose State University is located in downtown San Jose, California. It offers to more than 30,000 students over 130 bachelor's and master's degree programs.

Rigorous coursework, outstanding research opportunities, and small class sizes are the hallmarks of San Jose State's academic programs.

• Degrees Offered
• Major Degree Levels Offered
• Nursing Master of Science (MS) [specialist/nurse educator]
  Master of Science (MS) [clinical nurse]
  Master of Science (MS) [primary care nurse practitioner]

• Degrees Awarded
• Master's Degrees 26
• Doctoral Degrees Not reported
• First Professional Degrees Not reported
• Other Advanced Degrees Not reported
• * Shows the number of degrees awarded for the last academic year that data was reported.

• Earning Your Degree
• Part-time study available? Yes
• Evening/weekend programs available? Yes
• Distance learning programs available? No
• Terminal master's degree available? Not reported

• Degree Requirements
• Master's Degrees Alternate accepted
• Doctoral Degrees Not reported
• First Professional Degrees Not reported
• Other Advanced Degrees Not reported

• Acceptance Rate
• Applied14
• AcceptedNot Reported
• Acceptance RateNot Reported
• EnrolledNot Reported
• Applying
• Application Fee - Domestic $55
• Application Fee - International $55
• Electronic applications accepted? Yes
• Applications processed on a rolling basis? Yes
• Application Deadlines
• Type Domestic International Priority Date
• Fall deadline May 1st May 1st Not Reported
• Winter deadline Not Reported Not Reported Not Reported
• Spring deadline October 1st October 1st Not Reported
• Entrance Requirements
• Master's DegreesGRE General Test, 1 year of clinical practice, previous course work in statistics, and BSN, minimum GPA of 3.0 in nursing
• Doctoral's DegreesNot Reported
• First-Professional's DegreesNot Reported
• Other Advanced DegreesNot Reported
• International DegreesTOEFL required

• Tuition & Fees
• In-state tuition *Not Reported
• Out-of-state tuition *Not Reported
• International student tuitionNot Reported
• * Tuition for full-time graduate student per academic year
• Fees
• Per-academic year feesNot Reported
• Per-term feesNot Reported
• One-time feeNot Reported
• * Fees for full-time graduate students
• Financial Support
• Financial award applicants must submitFAFSA
• Application deadlines for financial awardsMarch 1
• Types of financial support availableTeaching Assistantships, Career or Field-Related Internships, Federal Work-Study, Financial Support for Part-time Students, Scholarship and/or loans, Traineeships

• Gender
• Total Graduate StudentsNot Reported
• Female PercentageNot Reported
• Male PercentageNot Reported
• Participation
• Total Graduate StudentsNot Reported
• Part-time PercentageNot Reported
• Full-time PercentageNot Reported
• Ethnicity
• Hispanic / Latino12%
• Black / African American4%
• White / Caucasian50%
• American Indian / Alaskan Native0%
• Asian21%
• Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander0%
• Two or more races0%
• Unknown13%

• Faculty Breakout
• Total Faculty9
• Full-time Percentage100%
• Part-time Percentage0%
• Female Percentage89%
• Male Percentage11%

• Existing Research
• Focus of faculty researchTraining grant, HIV assessment
• Externally sponsored research expenditures last yearNot Reported