DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE STUDENT HANDBOOK

DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE STUDENT HANDBOOK The College of Nursing The University of Texas at Arlington Current as of August 25, 2011 In all cases, the Graduate Catalog supersedes Students will be notified of updates or changes in this document

Doctor of Nursing Practice Student Handbook Table of Contents Section I: Program Overview A. History B. Administrators C. Graduate Faculty Members D. Curriculum 1. Program Outcomes 2. Core Courses 3. Admission Criteria 4. Blended Classes 5. Enrollment Options 6. Transfer Credit 7. Degree Plans/Degree Requirements 8. Course Descriptions 9. Independent Study 10. Expectations Section II: DNP Program Policies and Procedures A. General Policies 1. Ethics 2. APA format B. Financial Assistance C. Academic Progress 1. Adds, drops and withdrawals 2. Leave of Absence 3. Grade Requirements 4. Graduate Student Termination Policy 5. Petitions Section III: DNP Program Guidelines and Resources A. Culture of DNP Program 1. Professional Socialization 2. Joint Authorship B. Resources

1. Technical Support 2. Academic Advising 3. Doctoral Student Room C. Clinical Project D. Graduation Requirements 1. Degree Requirements 2. Application for Graduation 3. In Absentia Graduation The information provided is to clarify and supplement the new student orientation guide from the Office of Graduate Studies. Reference the Graduate School catalog at: http://grad.uta.edu

A. PROGRAM HISTORY SECTION I PROGRAM OVERVIEW In October of 2008, the Texas Higher Education Coordinator Board approved the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program at UT Arlington. The first students were admitted in the fall semester of 2009. The UT Arlington College of Nursing (CON) is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The practice doctorate for the nurse practitioner (DNP) includes competencies consistent with The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice (AACN, 2006) and the Practice Doctorate Nurse Practitioner Entry-Level Competencies (NONPF, 2006). These documents, and the NONPF Domains and Core Competencies of Nurse Practitioner Practice, provide the foundation for the curriculum. Nurse Practitioner graduates of the DNP Program will demonstrate additional leadership, clinical expertise, and innovation in problem recognition and resolution using evidence based practice. Courses that focus on clinical inquiry/research, translation of evidence into clinical practice, vulnerable populations, and advanced knowledge of the health care delivery system are included in the curriculum. The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice October 2006 can be located at: http://www.aacn.nche.edu/dnp/pdf/essentials.pdf B. PROGRAM ADMINISTRATORS Phillip Cohen, PhD, MA, BA Dean of Graduate School Dr. Philip Cohen is the Dean of the Graduate School. Since 1986, he has been a faculty member in the English Department at the University of Texas at Arlington. He chaired the English Department for four years before becoming first the Associate Dean and then Dean of the Graduate School. Dr. Cohen has published widely on American literature, William Faulkner, and textual scholarship and editorial theory. His scholarly work has been supported by summer stipend and travel grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Dr. Cohen received a Bachelor s degree from American University, a Master s degree from the University of Southern California, and his PhD from the University of Delaware. Elizabeth C. Poster, PhD, RN, FAAN Dean and Professor Dr. Elizabeth Poster received her BSN and MSN from Boston University, and a PhD from Boston College. Dr. Poster was named Dean of the UTA College of Nursing in

1995 after serving as Director of Research and Education at UCLA s Neuropsychiatric Hospital for 11 years where she focused on conducting and disseminating health services research. Since 1992, she has served as editor of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing and is a guest columnist for the Fort Worth Business Press. She has been honored by Boston College as Distinguished Alumnae in Health in 2001, by the Fort Worth Business Press as a Health Care Hero in 2003 and one of the Most Influential Women in the Area of Education in 2000. She served on the Texas Board of Nurse Examiners for six years (1997-2003). In 2003, Dr. Poster was inducted as a Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN). She served as President-Elect of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) for 2005-2006 and as President for 2006-2007. Mary Schira, PhD, RN, ACNP Associate Dean & Associate Professor Chair, Department of Advanced Practice Nursing Dr, Mary Schira received a BSN from the Ohio State University, a MS in Nursing from Duke University, PhD in Nursing from the Medical College of Georgia, and a post-msn certificate as an Acute Nurse Practitioner from the University of Texas at Arlington. Dr. Schira joined the faculty at UTA in 1995 and is the Associate Dean & Chair of the Department of Advanced Practice Nursing, which includes the DNP and all Nurse Practitioner Programs. Dr. Schira s scholarship includes publications and presentations regarding kidney disease, mentoring, and leadership. She is active in the American Nephrology Nurses Association, serving as a reviewer for the Nephrology Nursing Journal and as a past member of the journal editorial Board and Advanced Practice Special Interest Group. Dr. Schira is also nationally certified and recognized by the Texas Board of Nursing as an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner. C. GRADUATE FACULTY MEMBERS Below is a list of graduate faculty members who hold doctoral degrees. Both PhD and DNP prepared faculty are available to work with students in the DNP Program. You can learn about their programs of scholarship by consulting the Research Profile of the individual faculty member (available at http:/uta.edu/ra/real) Dr. Phyllis Adams Dr. Maxine Adegbola Dr. Cheryl Anderson Dr. Joy Don Baker Dr. Donelle Barnes Dr. Susan Baxley Dr. Wendy Barr Dr. Deborah Behan Dr. Carolyn Cason Dr. Mary Cazzell Dr. Daisha Cipher Dr. Reni Courtney Dr. Jeannette Crenshaw Dr. Kathy Daniel Dr. Jennifer Gray Dr. Nancy Handy Dr. Jane Harmon Dr. Lauri John Dr. Judy LeFlore Dr. Beth Mancini Dr. Jacqueline Michael Dr. Ronda Mintz-Binder Dr. Elizabeth C. Poster Dr. Barbara Raudonis Dr. Mary Schira Dr. Marilee Schmelzer Dr. Diane Snow Dr. Pat Turpin

D. CURRICULUM 1. Program Outcomes The DNP program prepares advanced practice nurses who will demonstrate leadership, clinical expertise, and innovation in problem recognition resolution. The program outcomes are: to implement evidence-based health care in selected populations demonstrate leadership in promoting quality improvement in health care systems conduct clinical research to evaluate care and promote evidencebased practice apply the health care policy process in the promotion of evidencebased practice to coordinate interdisciplinary care of selected populations 2. Core Courses The core courses of the DNP curriculum provide knowledge of science, translational research and societal factors that affect health. The courses are designed to facilitate the development of skills that will prepare the graduate for a career of scholarship and advanced practice. These skills include analyzing data, identifying funding mechanisms, interpreting statistical results, disseminating scholarly products, advanced practice nursing and clinical information systems. 3. Admission Criteria Applicants may apply to enter the DNP in Nursing Program with a Master s Degree in Nursing as a Nurse Practitioner (NP) or a Post-Masters with NP Preparation from a National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) or American Association of Colleges of Nursing s Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) accredited School of Nursing or equivalent. The Graduate School allows us to waive the GRE requirement for applicants with a master s in nursing/nursing science. Additional admission criteria are as follows: Current Vita Written statement of a career vision GPA on master s course work or post-masters NP certificate of a minimum (3.0 for probationary or 3.5 unconditional) For TOEFL,TSE-A or IECTS - see graduate catalog Current license as an RN in the state of Texas (or compact state)

Currently recognized by Board of Nursing as an Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) in Texas (or state of residence) Current National certification as an NP Current NP practice Proficiency in use of computer for word processing, spreadsheet development and data and text file creation and manipulation Prior to enrolling in courses requiring clinical practice, the student will be required to meet the following additional criteria: Professional liability insurance Current CPR, ACLS, or PALS as required for your specialty Immunizations required by the School or Nursing Clear criminal background check Negative drug screen 4. Blended Classes Classes in the DNP program are offered in a blended on line/on campus format. Courses are online with students meeting on campus in general 3-5 times a semester. This reduces travel time but maintains personal contact among students and faculty. 5. Enrollment Options Students may be enrolled full or part-time. Full-time enrollment in the DNP program is 9 hours for long semesters (fall, spring) and 6 hours in summer. Parttime enrollment is 3 or 6 hours each semester. Full-time enrollment is a requirement for employment as a Graduate Teaching Assistant or Graduate Research Assistant. 6. Transfer Credit Transfer work is not accepted in the DNP program. However, formal graduatelevel coursework completed in your major area of doctoral study from other institutions granting graduate degrees may serve to establish competency in those subject areas and provide a basis for waiving some UT Arlington course requirements. Such waivers must be approved by the Associate Dean, the CON committee on Graduate Studies and the Dean of Graduate Studies. 7. Degree Plans The DNP program includes a total of 36 semester credit hours; 33 semester hours of required courses and 3 semester hours of elective. The required courses (33 hours) identified for the DNP curriculum meet the AACN Essentials for Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice (AACN, August 2006). Students will

select 3 semester hours of elective with the guidance of the graduate advisor to support and/or extend their practice experience. The degree must be completed within 6 years. A full-time student should plan on 2 years to complete required course work. A part-time student should expect 3-5 years to complete required course work depending on the number of courses completed each semester. DNP Required Courses Semester Credit Hours N5382 Nursing and Health Care Policy 3 Credit Hours N6302 Issues in Studying Health of Culturally Diverse, 3 Credit Hours Vulnerable Populations N6320 Leadership in Health Care Systems 3 Credit Hours N6321 Epidemiology 3 Credit Hours N6323 Clinical Research 3 Credit Hours N6324 Clinical Information Systems 3 Credit Hours N6326 Clinical Research (Scholarly) Project 3 Credit Hours N6620 DNP Clinical Practicum I (270 Clinical Hours) 6 Credit Hours N6621 DNP Clinical Practicum II (270 Clinical Hours) 6 Credit Hours Total Required Course Hours 33 Credit Hours Elective Course 3 Credit Hours Total Program Hours 36 Credit Hours 8. Course Descriptions Course descriptions for all courses may be found in the Graduate Student Handbook, available online at: http://uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012/schools/nursing/ 9. Independent Study Students may register for independent study provided the course has been discussed with the Graduate Advisor and added to the degree plan. Prior to registration, the student must contact the sponsoring faculty member for the Independent Study and obtain his/her permission. The student and faculty must complete and sign an Independent Study Agreement which can be obtained from the Department of Advanced Practice Nursing office.

10. Program Expectations All students will complete the DNP Practicum courses and a Clinical (Scholarship) Project as evidence of program completion. Throughout the program, students will evaluated according to achievement of program outcomes through successful completion of individual course objectives.

SECTION II DNP PROGRAM POLICIES AND PROCEDURES A. GENERAL POLICIES 1. Ethics Code of Ethics Ethical decision making embodies the values of the nursing discipline. As professional nurses and nurse leaders, DNP students are expected to maintain the highest standards of the profession. You will be asked to read and sign the College of Nursing Student Code of Ethics during program orientation. You are encouraged to keep one copy for your records. Academic Integrity Encompassed in the code of ethics is the component of academic integrity. Academic integrity is the accurate presentation of your work and the work of others. In contrast, academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form. All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University. Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts. (Regents Rules and Regulations, Series 50101, Section 2.2). Plagiarism Copying another student s paper or any portion of it is plagiarism. Additionally, copying a portion of published material (e.g., books or journals) without adequately documenting the source is plagiarism. If five or more words in sequence are taken from a source, you should place those words in quotes and the source referenced with the author s name, date of publication, and the page number of publication. If the author s ideas are rephrased, by transposing words or expressing the same idea using different words, you should attribute your idea to the author through proper reference by listing the author s name and date of publication. If a single author s ideas are discussed in more than one paragraph, the author must be referenced in each paragraph. Authors whose words or ideas have been used in the preparation of a paper must be listed in the references cited at the end of the paper. You are encouraged to review the plagiarism module from the UT Arlington Central Library via http://library.uta.edu/tutorials/plagiarism.

2. APA Format Correctly citing the source of information used to prepare papers and presentations is an essential skill for a doctorally prepared nurse. The CON has selected the American Psychological Association (APA) format for scholarly papers. You are expected to write your papers, including citing sources, using the APA format. B. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE 1. Nurse Traineeship The College of Nursing Graduate Nursing program applies for a Professional Nurse Traineeship Grant funded annually by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Although preference is given to students who are enrolled full-time, students in part time study will also be considered. The student must complete the Professional Nurse Traineeship Application available at http://www.uta.edu/nursing/files/pnt_application.pdf and meet the following criteria: Be a US citizen or foreign national who possesses a green card Maintain a 3.0 GPA Agree to provide DHHS data regarding professional activity for 3 years following graduation Acknowledge in writing that traineeship funds are taxable income that must be reported after receipt of the 1099 income report Repay any grant money awarded if they drop a class, academic status changes, or withdrawal from the university 2. Graduate Assistantship Policy Graduate teaching and research assistantships may be available to full-time students through grant funding and other sources. If you are admitted on a provisional basis, you are not eligible for an assistantship until all provisional requirements have been met. If you are admitted on a probationary status, you may be considered for an assistantship provided that you maintain a 3.0 GPA while enrolled as a doctoral student, meet Department and Graduate School admission conditions, and meet assistantship enrollment requirements. Students for whom English is not the native language must demonstrate proficiency in English before being appointed to an assistantship at UT Arlington. The UT Arlington Graduate Catalog contains complete information on Graduate Assistantship and Associate ship Policies. For additional information, please refer to the Graduate Catalog at http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012.

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C. ACADEMIC PROGRESS 1. Adds, Drops and Withdrawals The complete details on adds, drops, and withdrawals, all available in the Graduate Catalog at: http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012. 2. Leave of Absence a. To add a course after the end of the late registration, permission of the Associate Dean will be needed. b. If you drop a course or resign from the university after the census date but before the final designated drop date for enrolled semester, you will receive a grade of W if you are passing with a grade of A, B, or C at that time. If you have a grade of D or lower at the time of dropping, an F will be recorded. Faculty permission is required to drop a course after the census date. c. To drop a course, there are three steps: complete a course drop/registration form; obtain faculty signature and current course grade, and submit the form to the Department Office, Room 604. d. Dropping all courses in which you are enrolled constitutes withdrawal from the University. Before taking this serious step, you should consult with the Associate Dean to discuss your options. If you choose to withdraw from all courses, complete the follow steps: complete a course drop/resignation form, obtain the faculty s signature for each enrolled course and current course grade, and file the resignation form in the Department Office, Room 604. If the final drop date has passed, you will need also to file the resignation form in the Office of the Registrar located in Davis Hall, Room 333. Under some circumstances, such as health-related issues or major financial issues, a student may request a leave of absence. Leaves may be granted for up to two long semesters. If you wish to request a leave of absence, please discuss the leave with the Graduate Advisor. Following discussion, you should complete the Leave of Absence Request Form and obtain the signature of the Associate Dean/Graduate Advisor. The form will be submitted to the Dean of Graduate Studies for consideration. You can review detailed information in the Graduate School Catalog at http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012/.

3. Grade Requirements You are considered to be in good academic standing and making satisfactory progress in a degree program if you: meet all admission conditions within the time required have a B (3.0 GPA) or better on all coursework undertaken while in Graduate School, and have a B (3.0 GPA) or better grade-point average in courses needed to satisfy degree requirements by the end of the semester in which you intend to graduate. You must be in good academic standing by the end of your final semester in order to receive an advanced degree from UT Arlington. See the policy in the Graduate Catalog at http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012. 4. Graduate Student Termination Policy It is the student s initial responsibility to recognize when they are having academic difficulties. You are expected to initiate steps to resolve the problem. If you are having academic difficulty, and depending on the severity of the problem, you may receive an oral warning and/or written statement of the problem and be required to take corrective actions. Failure to take these corrective actions can result in termination from the degree program. If you were admitted unconditionally and your grade point average in all graduate courses taken while enrolled as a UTA graduate student falls below 3.00, you will be placed on academic probation. You must attain a grade point average of at least 3.00 in the next semester that you are enrolled or be subject to dismissal. Undergraduate courses or graduate courses graded P, R, X or W cannot be used to remove the condition of academic probation. If you were admitted on probation and you earn a grade below a B during the first 12 hours of coursework, you are subject to dismissal. If you have been dismissed from the Graduate School for failure to meet the 3.0 GPA requirements, you may be readmitted for further graduate study in the same or in a different program only if a Petition to the Graduate Faculty has been approved by the appropriate Committee on Graduate Studies and the Dean of Graduate Studies. Termination due to inadequate academic progress is a decision made by the Graduate Advisor and Graduate Studies Committee. Your thesis/dissertation committee may recommend termination for failure to prepare a thesis/dissertation proposal, prospectus or final draft in a satisfactory manner, or failure to complete and submit work in an acceptable amount of time to the program's Graduate Advisor and Graduate Studies Committee. Such decisions to terminate you will be

communicated to the Dean of Graduate Studies by the Chairman of the Graduate Studies Committee in writing, giving the specific reasons involved, all warnings provided to you, a description of the procedures and actions leading to the recommendation and the recorded votes of the Graduate Advisor and Graduate Studies Committee. You may appeal your termination to the Dean of Graduate Studies in writing within one year of the date of the decision by the Graduate Advisor and Graduate Studies Committee. You may continue enrollment during the appeal process. 5. Petitions A student may request exceptions to published rules in the Graduate Catalog by filing a petition with the Graduate Studies Committee (GSC) in Nursing. The petition is acted on by the GSC and Associate Dean of the DNP Program with the final decision being made by the Dean of the Graduate School. Limited exceptions to some rules may be approved if the facts presented by the petitioner fully justify an exception. Petition forms can be found online at: http://grad.pci/students/forms.

SECTION III DNP PROGRAM GUIDELINES AND REOURCES A. CULTURE OF THE DNP PROGRAM The faculty and administrators of the University of Texas at Arlington College of Nursing have created a community of scholars that includes PhD and DNP students. Within this community, we provide peer review and celebrate achievements, such as grant funding, publications, and presentations. The culture promotes excellent in scholarly work in discovery, teaching, application, and integration (Boyer, 1990). 1. Professional Socialization The DNP program prepares the advanced practice nurse to make or continue to make significant contributions to the nursing profession and health care. Participation in professional and college sponsored activities will provide you with opportunities to be socialized as a doctorally prepared nurse. The Associate Dean asks that students submit (via email) any news of professional accomplishments such as awards, offices held in professional organizations, publications, and presentations for inclusion in program and College of Nursing newsletters. Students are also encouraged to attend the national level Doctor of Nursing Practice conference that is held annually 2. Joint Authorship with Faculty When a student collaborates with faculty on a project or publication, decisions regarding who will be listed as the first author should be negotiated at the beginning of the project. If you present work or develop materials for publication developed as a part of doctoral course requirements, the presentation/publication should indicate your affiliation with and status as a DNP student in the UT Arlington CON. Additionally, if you use faculty data or request or obtain faculty assistance on a presentation or publication, you should work with the faculty to determine if the faculty member s name should appear as a second author of the work. B. RESOURCES 1. Technical Support MyMav, the online system for registration and payment, provides access to course grades and a record of all courses completed. Your net ID and password provide you with secure access to the MyMav and other electronic support programs including the UTA email system, the library, and Blackboard course management

system. If you have difficulty with electronic access, contact the Help Desk maintained by the university at: http://www.uta.edu/oit or email: helpdesk@uta.edu. 2. Academic Advising The Associate Dean for the Department of Advanced Practice Nursing serves as Graduate Advisor for DNP students. After acceptance into the DNP program and prior to class registration, you will work with the Associate Dean to establish a degree plan or a plan of study. During the program, it is important to discuss your academic plans with the Associate Dean. In addition, questions regarding your performance in the program or factors that are affecting your ability to progress should be discussed with the Associate Dean. The Associate Dean is available by email, telephone, or by appointment on campus. Faculty may also request that the Associate Dean meet with you. The Associate Dean is also available for questions about program requirements, policies, and resources within the CON and UT Arlington. 3. Doctoral Student Room The Delta Theta Chapter Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing Scholarship Room has been designated as a site for students to work, study, rest and socialize. The doctoral student room is located in Pickard Hall, Room 554, and has been renovated and decorated by members of Sigma Theta Tau specifically for doctoral students (PhD and DNP) in the CON. In order to ensure your safety and to maintain the room for future use, please adhere to the following guidelines. Security: The student ID card allows you access to the doctoral student room whenever the University is officially open. Please observe security measures as you enter and leave the room. If you are working alone in the evening hours, please be aware that you may be one of the few individuals in the building. During those times, the door should remain closed and locked. The UTA emergency police number is 2-3003. Equipment: The computers in the doctoral student room have been provided for use by doctoral students through a Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) grant. Please report any problems with the computers to the PhD program s administrative assistant at extension 2-1038. Food and Drink: You are welcome to bring snacks into the room as well as to use the coffee pot. Please use care with beverages near the computers so that they are protected from spills. Also please assure that the coffee pot is turned off and disconnected when not in use and at the end of the day.

C. CLINICAL PROJECT When obtaining/gathering evidence for the scholarly evidence based project, students are expected and required to adhere to ethical standards and guidelines set forth by the College of Nursing and by UT Arlington. You should become familiar with those policies prior to conducting any project/study. In most cases, the DNP Project will require institutional review board (IRB) approval in order to proceed. Information related to conducting research is available at the Office of Research Integrity & Compliance at http://www.uta.edu/ra/oric. Forms related to research are at http://www.uta.edu/ra/oric. After the project proposal is approved by the faculty sponsor, you will submit a protocol to the appropriate Institutional Review Board (IRB) for research to be conducted on human or animal subjects. The IRB protocol must be signed by the chair and by the Dean of the College of Nursing before it goes to the IRB office. Review the IRB procedures on the research website to determine the level of IRB review required. At the time you begin the study, your human research subject training must be current. Along with the IRB, you and your project advisor must submit a financial relationship statement to avoid any threats to the integrity of the study. Students will work with their faculty sponsor to complete and submit the appropriate IRB forms. D. GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS 1. Degree Requirements Graduate students are expected to complete degree requirements in accordance with the Graduate Catalog in force at the time they entered the graduate program in which the degree will be awarded. If you choose to complete degree requirements in accordance with the catalog of a year subsequent to that in which you entered the graduate program, your graduate advisor must submit an outline request form to the Graduate School. The graduate advisor may contact the Office of Graduate Studies graduation desk for access to the required form. Additional information is available at http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012/general/regulations/ 2. Application for Graduation Graduating students must file an Application for Graduation with the Graduate School by the deadline specified in the Graduate School calendar for the semester

of graduation, typically 30 days after the first day of classes. Please refer to the Graduate Catalog for complete information at: http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012. Forms related to graduation are available at: http://grad.uta.edu/students/forms. 3. In Abesntia Graduation In Absentia registration will be allowed when degree candidates have completed all requirements for graduation by the last date to qualify for In Absentia registration (see the Graduate School calendar at www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2012/calendar and who would otherwise need to register in the following semester for the sole purpose of having a degree conferred. Please refer to the Graduate catalog for complete information at: http://www.uta.edu/gradcatalog/2011/general/regulations/ DNP AND GRADUATE SCHOOL FORMS All DNP Program and Graduate School forms are available through the Department of Advanced Practice Nursing office (Pickard Hall 604) or online. As forms may change, the student is encouraged to consult with the Department staff and/or Graduate Advisor for assistance in locating the current appropriate forms.