Advanced Nursing Practice (Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner), DNP
Adult, Adult Gerontology, Advanced Gerontology Nurse Practitioner, Doctor of Nursing Practice, Nurse, Nurse Practitioner, Nurse case management, Registered Nurse, Surgical Nurse, nursing
You can provide patient-centered comprehensive care across the continuum of health for adolescents to older adults with acute, critical and complex chronic conditions. Gain hands-on clinical experience in a variety of settings to develop the skills necessary to safely, effectively and efficiently provide care to complex and critically-ill patients.
The adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner concentration of the Doctor of Nursing Practice is an advanced nursing practice degree. This program is focused on the care of adolescents to older adults with acute, critical and complex chronic illness to stabilize the patient condition, prevent complications and restore maximum health across the continuum of care settings.
Core courses include pharmacology, advanced pathophysiology and advanced health assessment. The curriculum focuses on assessment and management of adolescent to older adult patients with chronic, complex acute and life-threatening illnesses.
In addition to advanced nursing specialty-focused outcomes, the DNP program engages students to meet doctoral-level competencies in systems-level thinking, complexity science, quality and safety, evidence-based practice and the development of a doctoral project within a partner organization to improve outcomes at the patient, provider or health care system level. Students are educated as leaders at the highest level of nursing practice to translate research into practice, lead in multidisciplinary teams, and engage in health care policy and advocacy to improve patient outcomes.
Focused clinical experiences are arranged for students residing in Maricopa County, Arizona. Students should expect to travel throughout Maricopa County and, in some cases, throughout Arizona to complete their assigned clinical placement. The program offers clinical rotations in health profession shortage areas throughout the state, in both urban underserved and rural areas, which provide students with multicultural experiences to enhance professional development.
Students residing outside of Maricopa County are responsible for identifying the required number of clinical sites in their area of residence and for identifying preceptors and sites willing to accommodate clinical rotations. Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation must approve these sites before students start any clinical experience; the DNP program office does not guarantee a clinical placement site for any student outside Maricopa County. If, during the program, faculty determine that the student needs additional supervision for clinical progress in the program, the student must complete clinical experiences in the Phoenix area.
As a participating National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements member, Arizona State University is authorized to offer distance education to persons located in individual State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement member states in accordance with the council's established policies and standards. California is not a State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement member, and the California Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education does not regulate out-of-state public institutions offering online and in-person education from Arizona. ASU may offer educational activities in California. There are some exceptions for specific programs at Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation; these are noted on the ASU state authorizations website.
GI Bill® benefits
This new program is not yet approved for use with GI Bill® benefits.
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/.
- College/school:
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
- Location: Downtown Phoenix
- STEM-OPT extension eligible: No
86 credit hours including the required capstone course (DNP 707)
Required Core (13 credit hours) Concentration (27 credit hours) Other Requirements (40 credit hours) Restricted Electives (3 credit hours) Culminating Experience (3 credit hours) Additional Curriculum Information The American Nurses Credentialing Center has recommended a minimum of 1,000 postbaccalaureate practicum hours for all students completing a DNP program. This program includes 1,125 practicum hours, exceeding the ANCC requirement. For electives or research, students should see the academic unit for the approved course list. Other coursework may be used with the approval of the academic unit. When approved by the student's supervisory committee and the Graduate College, up to 30 credit hours from a previously awarded master's degree can be used for this program. Other requirement coursework may be substituted with approval of the academic unit if the student is in an approved concurrent program.
DNP 704 Principles of Evidence-based Care in Advanced Practice (4)
DNP 705 Health Care Outcomes Management (3)
DNP 708 Systems Thinking in a Complex Health Care Environment (3)
DNP 709 Individual and Innovation Leadership in Healthcare Practice (3)
DNP 623 Adult-gerontology Health Promotion (3)
DNP 624 Adult-gerontology Health Promotion Practicum (3)
DNP 649 Advanced Physiology (3)
DNP 662 Principles of Adult Gerontology Acute Care I: Theory (3)
DNP 663 Principles of Adult Gerontology Acute Care I: Practicum (6)
DNP 664 Principles of Adult Gerontology Acute Care II: Theory (3)
DNP 665 Principles of Adult Gerontology Acute Care II: Practicum (6)
DNP 601 Theoretical Foundations for Advance Practice Nursing (3)
DNP 602 Evaluating Research for Practice (3)
DNP 604 Advanced Human Pathophysiology Across Lifespan (4)
DNP 605 Advanced Health Assessment Across Lifespan (3)
DNP 608 Advanced Pharmacotherapeutics Across Lifespan (3)
DNP 609 Advanced Practice Nursing Role (1)
DNP 679 Biostatistics: Principles of Statistical Inference (3)
DNP 703 Innovation in Communication: Scholarly and Professional Writing (2)
DNP 711 Healthcare Policy and Innovation (3)
DNP 712 Clinical Residency and Management (12)
DNP 715 Dynamics and Principles of Information in Health Care (3)
DNP 603 Health Equity and Social Justice (3) or
DNP 661 Ethics and Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
DNP 707 Disseminating Evidence to Advance Best Practice in Health Care and Health Policy (3)
Completion of an evidence-based doctoral capstone project focused on a clinical issue relevant to advanced practice nursing is required.
General university admission requirements:
All students are required to meet general
university admission requirements.
U.S.
applicants | International
applicants | English
proficiency
Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation.
Applicants are eligible to apply to the program if they have earned a bachelor's or master's degree in from a regionally accredited institution.
Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = ''A'') in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program or a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = ''A'') in an applicable master's degree program.
All applicants must submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- proof of a current unencumbered RN license
- three professional letters of recommendation
- resume
- goal statement
- admission essay
- health and safety requirements (submitted after admission)
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of current residency by scoring at least 4 on the Internet-based TOEFL® (iBT), or a score of 80 if taken before January 21, 2026 in a testing center; 6.5 on the IELTS; or 105 on the Duolingo English test.
A current unencumbered RN license in the state in which the student plans to do clinical practicums is required. All students are also required to have an unencumbered Arizona RN license or an unencumbered compact state RN license as mandated by the Arizona State Board of Nursing. The RN license must remain unencumbered throughout enrollment in any nursing program.
All applicants must have an interview with program faculty members before admission to the program.
One year of clinical experience working within the student's specialty population is preferred.
Applicants offered admission must meet health and safety requirements, which include a passing disposition on a background clearance and satisfactory completion of a substance screen.
An admission examination is not required.
Applications are reviewed on a space-available basis after the priority deadline.
Students requesting review of previously completed courses must have a gap analysis review. Courses completed prior to admission need to have faculty review to determine applicability to their current program of study. Primary source documents (such as syllabi) must be provided by the student for faculty review. If an applicant or student would like to request previously completed courses to apply to their program of study, the courses must have been completed in the past five years to be eligible. If an applicant or student is currently a nurse practitioner, and actively practicing, the program will consider courses beyond five years.
Any additional courses determined by the student's gap analysis must have been completed in the past five years to be eligible for credit.
DNP graduates are prepared for excellence upon entering the workplace and are prepared to practice at the most advanced level of nursing. Graduates of the adult gerontology nurse practitioner program have the knowledge and training to provide health care for patients in a wide variety of settings. The broad base of comprehension and clinical expertise enable graduates to participate effectively and lead within clinical, community and academic arenas.
Graduates have career opportunities in many areas. Career examples include:
- acute care nurse practitioner in hospitals, emergency rooms, intensive care units, outpatient specialty clinics or long-term care
- administrator
- business owner
- nursing educator
- professor
- researcher
ASU programs that may lead to professional licensure or certification are intended to prepare students for potential licensure or certification in Arizona. Completion of an ASU program may not meet educational requirements for licensure or certification in another state. For more information, students should visit the ASU professional licensure webpage.
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
|
HLTHN 301
dnpnursing@asu.edu
602-496-0937
Program term definitions
Accelerated programs allow students the opportunity to expedite the completion of their degree.
Accelerated master's
These programs allow students to accelerate their studies to earn a bachelor's plus a master's degree in as few as five years (for some programs).
Each program has requirements students must meet to be eligible for consideration. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master's during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program. Interested students can learn about eligibility requirements and how to apply.
Concurrent degrees allow students to pursue their own personal or professional interests, earn two distinct degrees and receive two diplomas. To add a concurrent degree to your existing degree, work with your academic advisor.
Joint programs, or jointly conferred degrees, are offered by more than one college and provide opportunities for students to take advantage of the academic strengths of two academic units. Upon graduation, students are awarded one degree and one diploma conferred by two colleges.
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ASU Online offers programs in an entirely online format with multiple enrollment sessions throughout the year. See https://asuonline.asu.edu/ for more information.
The Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP) provides a reduced tuition rate to non-resident graduate students who qualify. Visit the WRGP/WICHE webpage for more information: https://graduate.asu.edu/wiche.
