Juana Garcia/The Cougar
Amid a pandemic, the College of Nursing has officially announced the opportunity for a doctoral degree in their program, the Doctor of Nursing Practice.
The Doctor of Nursing Practice program will be under the directorship of associate dean and professor Dr. Kathleen Reeve.
“The rapidly changing healthcare environment dictates the need for a new educational process for advanced practice registered nurses to augment the workforce of primary care providers, nurse educators and nurse executives,” Reeve said. “This program will build upon the existing nursing program at UH and allow the College of Nursing to maintain a leading position in nursing education.”
The process to approve the program took two years and on Jan. 21, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board unanimously voted in its favor. The proposal included the incorporation of interdisciplinary coursework with the students from the newly approved medical school.
As a part-time program, nurses will be available to either become nurse practitioners or follow a path in administration. Furthermore, DNP is a practicing degree and requires a total of 36 credit hours and up to 1,000 hours of clinical practicum.
When nursing students apply to UH, they apply as pre-nursing and later declare their majors. This differs from other universities because the program does not accept transfer students, making this an opportunity specifically for UH students.
“Most people choose nursing because we wish to help and care for our patients,” pre-nursing freshman Denise Huynh said. “This program will allow us to learn to provide the aid patients need, especially during this time, that is out of the normal knowledge of a registered nurse.”
The program aims to build on its mission statement, “The Mission of the University of Houston College of Nursing is to provide innovative, dynamic, and nationally competitive nursing education to a diverse student population that builds professional leaders and clinical experts.”
In addition, the program wants to expand on and uphold the University’s versatile goals. Applicants will be admitted into the program starting Fall 2021.
“It’s in congruence with the mission of the University of Houston to offer and strengthen its status as a nationally competitive public research university by offering a full range of degree programs including doctoral and professional programs,” Reeve said.
