School of Nursing

Director
Deborah Greubel

Adult Gerontology - Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Program Director
Brandon King

Family Nurse Practitioner Program Director
Sheryl Stansifer

Clinical Professor
Elmus Beale

Clinical Associate Professor
Deborah Greubel

Clinical Assistant Professors
Brandon King
Jennifer Kuwitzky
Sheryl Stansifer

For more information about degree offerings, visit the S chool of Nursing webpage.

The School of Nursing’s graduate curriculum leads to the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

The curriculum combines advanced nursing sciences and intensive clinical training to educate advanced practice nurses who are prepared to provide high quality, appropriate and cost conscious health care. Students in the program learn through a combination of classroom, human patient simulation, and clinical experiences in the community to advance their knowledge and skills in providing modern interprofessional health care.

Learning Objectives

The core DNP curriculum is based on the guidelines set forth by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice that denotes eight essential broad competencies to be met by the DNP Program graduates:

Recognizes the philosophic and scientific underpinnings essential of the complexity of nursing practice at the doctoral level.
Recognizes the competencies essential for improving and sustaining clinical care and health outcomes, eliminating health disparities, and promoting patient safety and excellence in care.
Recognizes competencies essential for translation of research into practice, evaluation of practice, practice improvement, and the development and utilization of evidenced-based practice.
Recognizes competencies essential to manage, evaluate and utilize information and technology to support and improve patient care and systems.
Recognizes the responsibility nurses practicing at the highest level have to influence safety, quality, and efficacy of care, and the essential competencies required to fulfill this responsibility.
Recognizes the critical role collaborative teams play in today’s complex health care systems and the competencies essential for doctorate prepared nurses play a central role in these teams.
Recognizes the competencies essential to transform the clinical education of health professionals in response to the changing needs of the population and demands of practice.
Recognizes the essential competencies reflective of the distinct, in-depth knowledge and skills that form the basis for nursing practice at the highest level regardless of practice role.

Accreditation

The DNP program is eligible to begin the candidacy process by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), 3343 Peachtree Road NE, Suite 850, Atlanta, GA 30326. The School of Nursing is a member of the National League for Nursing and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing. Graduates of the program will be eligible to apply to sit for national board certification in their respective field of study after accreditation is granted by the ACEN.

Advanced Practice Certification

The DNP program is approved by the Oklahoma Board of Nursing. Graduates of the program are eligible to apply to sit for national board certification in their respective field of study.

The University of Tulsa cannot guarantee that completion of the DNP program will enable one to take the National Certification exam if the student has a previous arrest or conviction record. The Nurse Practice Act varies from state to state regarding arrests or convictions. States may prohibit nursing licensure due to violent misdemeanors or due to felony convictions. If seeking licensure in another state, contact the board of nursing in that state regarding arrest or conviction records.

Admission

To apply for the DNP Program, applicants must submit the following:

Graduate School Online Application.
Copies of all academic transcripts showing undergraduate and graduate coursework.
Three letters of recommendation; one written by an advanced practice nurse and one written by a nursing supervisor.
Documentation of a current, unencumbered Oklahoma Registered Nurse license.
Evidence of appropriate clinical experience
- Adult-Gerontology Acute Care - minimum of one-year high acuity acute care nursing experience
- Family Nurse Practitioner - at least one-year full time nursing experience
- Post-Master’s to DNP completion - certification and experience as an Advanced Practice Nurse
TOEFL or IELTS scores along with transcripts accompanied by a certified English translation. (International students only)

The DNP Council will evaluate all applications once the items listed above have been submitted. Qualified applicants will be invited for an interview.

For more information about the program specific admission requirements, see the program website.

Admitted students will begin the program during the fall semester. Students must take the required courses offered each semester to stay in the program. The majority of the courses are face-to-face courses, but some are hybrid courses to provide opportunities for students to integrate their traditional course work with their clinical rotations.

Progression of Students

Progression of DNP students is dependent upon completion of required curriculum while maintaining a 3.0 GPA. Should a student not fulfill one or more of the Program requirements at the end of the semester, the student will be notified in writing by the Director of the School of Nursing of his/her continuing status in the Program. Because of the sequential nature of the curriculum, a grade below a C in any courses is grounds for non-progression and therefore the student may be referred to the Graduate College for dismissal from the Program.

All courses in the DNP programs are required courses and are completed in sequential order for the specific track. The clinical practicum for each clinical track will build on the advanced sciences, simulation, and didactic preparation.

The FNP clinical practicum begins the fall of the second year, with 300 hours for three semesters, followed by 100 hours in the fall of the final year. The FNP track will have a total of 1000 clinical practice hours in addition to high fidelity simulation.
The AG-ACNP clinical practicum begins the fall of the second year. The track will have a minimum 200 clinical hours per semester over five semesters. The students will complete a minimum of 1000 hours, but may elect to do more based on specialty interest. Their clinical time will be in addition to advanced high fidelity simulation during the course of their training.
The Post-Master’s to DNP completion track builds on previous academic work and practice experience. Students complete 24 credit hours of core DNP research and theory courses, and five hours of DNP project building courses. This course plan includes 500 supervised clinical practice hours for the implementation and completion of their DNP project in the clinical setting.

The final DNP project may be at the individual or system level. Students will identify a need within their field during their first four semesters of study. Their project will be built and conducted over the course of the remaining semesters. Their final work will be the disseminated as a demonstration of the culmination of their work. An example would be introduction of a validated clinical assessment tool into a new healthcare system, with analysis of its effect on care improvement. The students will not create original research, but instead demonstrate proficiency in the application of existing science through translational research. All students will complete a final DNP project that is the culmination of the student’s scholarship and project implementation using the translation of existing science into practice to improve health.

Clinical Sites and Preceptors

Students will complete clinical rotations in healthcare facilities in Tulsa and the Tulsa region. Clinical Preceptors are selected by faculty for their ability to demonstrate and teach professional leadership and competent patient care.

Students must submit the following documentation before they will be able to begin clinical rotations:

Immunizations, including MMR, Hepatitis B, Varicella, TB test, Flu shot
Drug screen using the 10 panel by a SAMHSA Certified Lab
Criminal background check including OK Department of Corrections Sex Offenders Registration
Signed Performance Standards for Admission and Progression form
BLS for Healthcare Providers certification

The Hurricane Health Clinic, an interprofessional health clinic, is located within the Oxley College of Health Sciences and is used as a clinical training site. The Clinic provides students the opportunity to provide healthcare across the continuum of life over a long duration of time, and collaborate with other health, legal and social service professionals. The practice setting offers students the ability to develop the skills needed to take this model into the community upon graduation.

Programs

Doctoral

Courses

Nursing