According to new survey data released yesterday by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), enrollment in doctoral nursing programs increased by more than 20% this year, signaling strong interest among students in careers as nursing scientists, faculty, primary care providers, and specialists. Final results from AACN’s 2009 annual survey confirm that enrollments in all types of baccalaureate and higher degree programs continue to trend upward. Though nursing schools have been able to expand student capacity, the latest data show that more than 54,000 qualified applications to professional nursing programs were turned away in 2009, including more than 9,500 applications to master’s and doctoral degree programs.
“Expanding capacity in baccalaureate and graduate programs is critical to sustaining a healthy nursing workforce and providing patients with the best care possible”
“Expanding capacity in baccalaureate and graduate programs is critical to sustaining a healthy nursing workforce and providing patients with the best care possible,” said AACN President Fay Raines. “Even though these across-the-board increases in enrollments are encouraging, we simply must find ways to advance policy and programs that will enable schools to accommodate all qualified applicants in professional nursing programs. Bringing more nurses into graduate programs is urgent given the calls for more expert nurses to deliver high quality, cost-effective care in a healthcare system undergoing reform.”
AACN’s latest survey findings update the preliminary data announced in December 2009 and determine enrollment trends by comparing data from the same schools reporting in both 2008 and 2009. Final survey data show that enrollments in entry-level baccalaureate programs in nursing rose by 3.6% in 2009. See http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Media/pdf/EnrollChanges.pdf.
This increase in baccalaureate student population is welcome news given the calls by AACN, the American Organization of Nurse Executives, the American Nurses Association, and other authorities to concentrate the education of new nurses in baccalaureate programs. In a recent report by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Dr. Patricia Benner and colleagues state that “profound changes in nursing practice call for equally profound changes in the education of nurses.” The authors found that many of today’s new nurses are “undereducated” to meet practice demands across settings and strongly support baccalaureate programs as the appropriate pathway for RNs entering the profession.
Growth in Doctoral Programs in Nursing
Given the need for more nurses to serve as Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs), faculty, and research scientists, the growth in the number of students entering both practice-focused and research-focused doctoral programs last year is particularly gratifying to nursing’s academic leaders.
In October 2004, AACN member schools voted to endorse the Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing, which called for moving the level of preparation for advanced nursing practice from master’s to doctoral by 2015. Nursing schools have made great strides in the past six years toward realizing this vision by planning and launching Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) programs, now available in 35 states. AACN’s survey found that 28 new DNP programs were opened in 2009, bringing the total number of programs to 120. AACN survey data found that an additional 161 DNP programs are in the planning stages. At present, 71.9% of schools with APRN programs (388 schools) are either offering or planning a DNP program.
“The stunning growth in the number of DNP programs is truly impressive, as we are only at the midway point in realizing the 2015 vision for advanced nursing education,” said Dr. Raines. “A change of this magnitude is enormous, and we realize that schools in many states are facing great economic, resource, and regulatory challenges in their efforts to move to the DNP. AACN stands ready to focus its efforts on influencing policymakers, advocating for resources, and developing tools to support schools committed to making this transition.”
The number of research-focused doctoral programs (e.g., PhD, DNSc, DNS) is climbing with 120 programs currently enrolling students and another 8 programs in development. See http://www.aacn.nche.edu/Media/pdf/Docprograms.pdf.
Other key findings from AACN’s 2009 survey include the following; trends in applications, acceptance rates, and total enrollment in nursing programs (including accelerated programs, degree completion programs, clinical nurse leader programs, baccalaureate-to-doctoral programs, and doctoral nursing programs), survey response rates and student diversity data (including men in nursing).
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