Nursing can be a rewarding career. This field is expected to enjoy a strong demand for workers in the coming years. As a result, individuals in this career field may be able to position themselves for long-term success by advancing their education and gaining new skills in this growing job market. In particular, advanced degrees, such as a Doctorate Of Nursing, can be invaluable to individuals that are looking to take their nursing career to the next level.
What Are The Requirements For Admission Into A Doctor Of Nursing Program?
As with any type of advanced degree, there are many different factors to consider when deciding to admit a student into a doctorate of nursing program. One of the most basic will be for the student to be a Registered Nurse. This is the basic education requirement for admission into many of these programs, but there are some that will prefer for students to already hold a master's degree in a related field. In addition to meeting this basic education requirement, individuals will also need to have at least several years of experience working as a registered nurse.
How Long Can A Nurse Expect A Doctorate Program To Take To Complete?
As with most other advanced degrees, earning a doctorate in nursing will require a significant dedication of your time, focus and energy. Considering that a doctorate will be the highest degree that you can earn, you should expect it to take several years or longer to complete this type of rigorous training. Generally, students will be able to complete these degrees in three to four years, but this will vary greatly on the individual student's workload as well as the particular program that they have chosen to attend. While this type of commitment can be intimidating, it can provide life-long career opportunities that would otherwise have been missed.
What Type Of Careers Can Be Available For A Person With A Doctorate In Nursing?
For nurses that are considering earning their doctorate, there will be several new career paths that open up to them. In particular, these degrees are commonly used by students that are wanting to pursue teaching or research positions. However, there are many hospitals and other providers that will retain nurses with this type of advanced degree for positions in management, internal research or policy creation. Due to the fact that individuals with this degree will often work away from patients, this can be a good career change for those that are burnt out on standard clinical settings or those that are wanting to take on new intellectual challenges while remaining in the medical field.
Look into a doctor of nursing program to learn more.