Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Post-MS applicants have a Master’s degree in a specialty track and are certified (or eligible for certification) as advanced practice nurses.

DNP Program Eligibility Requirements: Post-MS

• Graduation from an accredited baccalaureate program
• RN license
• Master’s degree in a specialty track from an accredited nursing program
• GPA of 3.5 for the Master’s degree
• Certification as an advanced practice nurse
• One year of professional nursing experience
• Grade of B or better in a graduate level statistics course within the last 5 years. (Note: The course does not need to be taken before applying, but must be successfully completed prior to the start of the fall term.)

Additional Requirements for International Applicants

• CGFNS Certification
• Minimum English proficiency scores in one of the following:
  • TOEFL (600 PBT, 100 iBT)
  • IELTS (8)
  • MELAB (85)

DNP students pay a differential tuition. Rates are subject to change by term. See Tuition Costs Per Credit  (select Doctor of Nursing Practice from the ‘Choose a program’ menu). The Graduate School Cost of Attendance may help in estimating costs—you will need to substitute the DNP tuition rate.

Financial Support

Graduate students in the School of Nursing have access to traineeships, fellowships, scholarships, loans, and research and teaching assistantship positions that may come with full tuition remission. The majority of funding decisions are made in the Spring for the following academic year. All students are encouraged to apply for funding.

Visit the Costs & Financial Aid page for full information about financial support.

The faculty admissions committee will review applications once each year for fall admission. All DNP program applicants must complete the Graduate School’s online application and submit the required supplementary materials.

• Application opens: Early September
• Deadline: December 1
• In-person interview: January 21-22, 2021 (tentative). Interview dates and times will be assigned by the School of Nursing.

For the purposes of application review, unofficial transcripts may be uploaded directly to the application. Official records will be requested by the Graduate School for all candidates who are recommended for admission.

Students must indicate their intended population focus and whether or not they intend to follow the three- or four-year program plan as part of the application. Requests to switch population focus areas after starting the program are only seldom possible and considered on a case by case basis.

After an initial application review, eligible applicants will be invited for an interview in mid-January through late-February. All applicants must participate in an interview in order to be considered for this program. Interview dates and times will be assigned by the School of Nursing.

Application Materials

• Graduate School electronic application and fee

Supplemental application materials:

• Transcripts from all previously attended and currently attending institutions
• Copy of nursing license
• Three (3) letters of recommendation
• Curriculum vitae or resume
• CGFNS Certification,  if you are an international applicant
• Official TOEFL, ILETS, or MELAB scores,  if you are an international applicant
• Reasons for Graduate Study/Statement of PurposeShare your experiences and motivation for pursing a DNP degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Nursing. Your statement must address ALL of the following in 1,600 words or less (5 pages maximum, double-spaced, PDF format):

  1.       DNP Education.
  a.       Share your motivation for pursuing a practice doctorate in nursing.
  b.       Describe the specific skills and knowledge you hope to gain to achieve your professional goals.

  2.       Your Chosen Specialty.
  a.       Share specific experiences that have inspired and prepared you to pursue your chosen specialty track (i.e., Adult/Gerontology Acute Care, Adult/Gerontology Primary Care, Adult/Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist, Pediatric Primary Care, or Psychiatric Mental Health).

  3.       Critical-Thinking Ability.
  A key role of the DNP-prepared nurse is to translate evidence into practice. Describe a significant clinical, population health, and/or system problem in healthcare that you have encountered firsthand. Address the following questions in your response.
  a.       What is the problem?
  b.       Who was most impacted?
  c.       What are the costs or consequences?
  d.       What research, best practice guidelines or innovations have you seen that could provide potential solutions to the problem?

  4.       Diversity.
  Discuss 1-2 of your social identities (e.g., age, culture, dis/ability, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic class, etc.) and how your identities influence your nursing practice?

  Please note that DNP students must possess strong writing abilities. The Statement of Purpose is an important component of the application process and serves as evidence of your ability to communicate your thoughts and ideas in a logical and analytical manner. Your Statement of Purpose will be assessed in the following areas:

  a.       Ability to address the entire prompt
  b.       Ability to write in a logical, analytical and meaningful manner
  c.       Ability to be concise and utilize proper grammar and syntax
  d.       Prior to writing your Statement of Purpose, please review the Essentials of DNP Education.

Optional statement

If you believe that your academic record or test scores do not accurately reflect your ability to be successful in graduate work, you may submit a statement that describes additional factors that you feel merit consideration. Examples might include: experiences that indicate unusual determination, motivation, or leadership characteristics; adverse conditions (e.g. illness); obligations (e.g. family responsibilities); or cultural, linguistic, or economic factors. This optional statement must be 250 words or less (1 page maximum, double-spaced, PDF format).