DNP Admission Requirements
Applicants must meet California State University, Fullerton and Doctor of Nursing Practice program requirements requirements for admission, which include the following:
- A Master’s Degree from a regionally accredited institution
- Direct Care Track requires a Master's in Nursing or in a health related field (i.e., Public Health or Health Administration) and national certification as an APRN (CNM, CNS, CRNA or NP)
- Indirect Care Track requires a Master's in Nursing in Nursing Leadership or Administration, Nursing Education, or Community Health Nursing
- A grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in overall graduate course work
- Master’s level courses in Advanced Physical/Health Assessment, Advanced Pathophysiology, and Advanced Pharmacology (for the direct care track)
- Master’s level courses in core nursing areas such as nursing theory, research, and transcultural nursing. Students with a degree other than nursing will be required to make up deficiencies in preparation.
- Active, unrestricted, California RN license with no disciplinary action pending or imposed
University English Proficiency Requirement: Regardless of citizenship, all applicants whose native language is not English must submit proof of English proficiency before an admissions decision can be made. The University will accept TOEFL, IELTS and PTE proficiency tests. Review the University's requirements on the Admissions website.
Degree Requirements
All applicants to the DNP Post-Master's program must have a Master's degree from a regionally accredited institution and a nursing specialty.
- Regional accrediting organizations include HLC, MSCHE, NECHE, NWCCU, SACSCOC and WASC. Regional accreditation is granted to the university, not the nursing program. To verify the accreditation of your university/college, visit that institution's website and/or search for the school on the regional accrediting organizations' websites.
- National accreditation alone is not sufficient.
Direct Care applicants must have:
- A Master’s Degree in Nursing or a health related field (i.e., public health or health administration)
- Master's level courses in
- Advanced Physical/Health Assessment,
- Advanced Pathophysiology, and
- Advanced Pharmacology
Indirect Care applicants must have:
- A Master’s in Nursing Leadership or Administration, Nursing Education, or Community Health Nursing
Applicants With a Non-Nursing Master's Degree must have:
- A Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree
- Master's level courses in core nursing areas to make up deficiencies in preparation. Courses typically required are:
- Nursing theory,
- Nursing research, and
- Transcultural nursing (sometimes called vulnerable populations)
Applicants with Foreign Degrees
If you completed your Baccalaureate degree outside of the United States, to verify if you meet the degree requirements for admission to the program prior to applying, you must have it evaluated by a foreign transcript evaluation agency for equivalency to a Baccalaureate degree in the US, and for the conversion of your Grade Point Average (GPA) to a 4.0 scale.
DNP National Certification
Direct care applicants to the DNP Program must have national certification by the July 1 prior to the beginning of classes.
Direct care applicants should obtain national certification in their specialty area. Applicants with more than one advanced practice nursing specialty area should obtain national certification in the specialty area in which they plan to complete their doctoral project. Below is a list of common national certifications for direct care applicants.
- Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (ACNP): American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
- Adult and/or Geriatric Nurse Practitioner (ANP, GNP): American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA): National Board of Certification & Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists (NBCRNA)
- Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS): Applicants must be CNS certified in California. If ineligible for national CNS certification, applicants should include a note in their application packet specifying the reason(s) for ineligibility and identify an appropriate national certification for their specialty. We will consider these alternate national certifications on an individual basis.
- Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP): American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
- Nurse Midwife (CNM): American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB)
- Additional national certifications can be found through other organizations and may be accepted as well. If you have questions about acceptance of a specific certification, please email dnp@fullerton.edu.
Indirect care applicants are not required to have national certification, but it is recommended that they obtain national certification upon graduation.
Indirect care applicants are generally those in leadership or management positions, school nurses, or community or public health nurses. These applicants are working at advanced levels of nursing practice, but are not considered advanced practice nurses in the traditional sense of nurse practitioner.
What National Certifications are recommended for indirect care applicants?
While not required for admission, obtaining national certification will make you a stronger applicant and will help to advance the profession. National certification for a Doctor of Nursing Practice should require a master's degree. Those that require an associate's degree in nursing are typically not recommended by our program. Some recommended national certifications by specialty are:
- Nurse Leaders: Nurse Executive, advanced certification through ANCC or the Certified in Executive Nursing Practice (CENP) through AONE. Indirect care applicants should choose Nurse Executive or Nurse Executive, Advanced certification based on eligibility. If the applicant is eligible for Nurse Executive, Advance, that is the recommended national certification. Despite "Executive" being in all of these titles, these certifications are appropriate for managers who have a master’s degree and experience in leadership/management. The questions are not aimed towards Directors of Nursing, but rather to any leader in nursing.
- Community/Public Health Nurses: You may apply for initial Advanced Public Health Nursing certification through ANCC via portfolio assessment method.
- School Nurses: National Board for Certification of School Nurses (NBCSN)
- Additional national certifications can be found through other organizations and may be accepted as well. If you have questions about acceptance of a specific certification, please email dnp@fullerton.edu.