Master of Science in Nursing Program Information

Dean of Nursing: Janiszewski Goodin

Professors: Janiszewski Goodin

Associate Professors: Taylor

Assistant Professors: Baker, Segovia, Zamaripa

Instructors: Anderson, Pierson, Stevens, Steele, Sung, Whitcraft

Introduction and History

The Nursing Program was established in 1950 as a department in the College of Arts and Sciences. In 1965, it became the School of Nursing, an integral academic unit of the university. The undergraduate nursing curriculum provides students the opportunity to blend a strong liberal arts foundation with professional studies. The Masters of Science in Nursing (MSN) graduate program was established in 1994 and provides the registered nurse the opportunity to advance through interdisciplinary education. The faculty members are skilled professionals as well as dedicated teachers. Student experiences in a wide variety of health care facilities throughout Columbus and Franklin County provide a broad base of knowledge and skill for professional practice.

Innovation in Practice

Over the years, innovation, creativity, and service have characterized the School of Nursing. The School pioneered the incorporation of nursing research at the undergraduate level, was in the forefront of the wellness movement in nursing education and in precepted learning experiences for students. At the height of the national interest in the space program, the School, with the help of the United States Air Force, was the first in the free world to offer a number of its student’s short-term study in aerospace nursing.

The School has long demonstrated a strong commitment to the transcultural aspects of nursing with increasing emphasis within the curriculum. Off campus study opportunities that include clinical experiences are offered in Mexico twice per year. Informatics education for nurses has been a cutting edge aspect of our Graduate Nursing program for several years. Faculty and students regularly respond to requests for participation in studies from master and doctoral students from other institutions and conduct institutional and professional research consistent with the mission of the University.

Holistic Focus

Since its inception, the School of Nursing has been committed to the practice of holistic nursing. Recognition of this commitment and excellence in the provision of holistic education is demonstrated through earning endorsement of all four nursing programs from the American Holistic Nurses Certification Corporation (AHNCC).

Honorary Degrees

A desire to recognize and celebrate nursing’s contributions to society has been operational through the nominations of outstanding nurses for honorary degrees from Capital University.  To date, seven nurses have been so honored.  They are:

Pearl Tucker, Col., USAF, Retired
Geraldine Price, Director of the Division of Nursing at the Ohio Department of Health
Dorothy Cornelius, Executive Director of the Ohio Nurses Association, past ANA and ICN President
Juanita Thiele, founder of the Department, a leader in nursing education & global service
Mary Jane Sievwright, nursing leader in Jamaica and ICN
Sister Roni Daniels, advocate for the homeless and health care provider in Washington, D.C., Haiti and the Dominican Republic
Kevin Sowers, President, John Hopkin’s Health System

Nursing Honorary

A chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing, Theta Theta, was chartered at Capital University in 1986.  Capital’s Theta Theta Chapter was subsequently recognized with a major award, the chapter Key Award, from the International Honor Society in 1991.  This honor is impressive for so young a chapter since only 26 chapters in undergraduate nursing programs were selected from among the over 300 chapters worldwide. 

Eligible senior TUP, ABSN, and ABSN-H students, graduate students, and community nurse leaders are eligible by invitation for election to Theta Theta Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing based on scholarship and leadership.  The Chapter offers programs for the nursing community each year and coordinates with other local chapters for special events.

Facilities

Faculty offices, classrooms, simulation labs, and nursing skills labs are located in Battelle Hall. The assessment rooms and laboratories are equipped to allow students to develop their skills in simulated clinical settings in preparation for actual practice in healthcare facilities. The Helene Fuld Health Trust Learning Resources Laboratory provides state-of-the-art simulation and flexible learning space. A student lounge area is available, as well as a small kitchen area for food storage and preparation.

Accreditation

The School of Nursing is approved by the Ohio Board of Nursing to offer the pre-licensure BSN program. Both the undergraduate and graduate nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Capital University is a charter member of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and is a member of the North American Consortium of Nursing and Allied Health for International Cooperation (NAC-NAHIC). All Nursing programs have been endorsed by the American Holistic Nursing Credentialing Center (AHNCC).

Nursing Program Mission

Educating professional nurse leaders to promote and enhance holistic health, healing, and well-being with diverse people in the world.

Philosophy

Capital University is a comprehensive, private, church-related university philosophically committed to providing a liberal arts education within a caring and inclusive environment. The School of Nursing supports the University’s mission, values, and goals and the fundamental commitment to its Lutheran heritage. The School of Nursing encourages the development of the total person: intellectual, physical, psychosocial, moral, ethical, and spiritual. Recognizing the unique worth of each student, the faculty support students as they develop and work toward the attainment of their individual learning goals. Through collaborative experiences, students actively participate in a competency-based learning process in a caring culture that values diversity and equity.

Nursing incorporates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alleviation of suffering through compassionate presence. Nursing is the diagnosis and treatment of human response, and advocacy in the care of individuals, families, groups, communities, and populations in recognition of the connection of all humanity (ANA, 2021). Nurses, as members of an interprofessional team, enter into therapeutic partnerships with care recipients in all spheres of care. Through their professional roles e.g. clinician, educator, advocate, researcher, leader, consultant, and role model, nurses provide safe, quality holistic healthcare.

The faculty of the School of Nursing embrace the core values of holistic nursing as the fundamental tenets within the discipline. The goal of holistic nursing is whole-person healing. Holistic nurses recognize the totality of the human being - the interconnectedness of body, mind, emotion, spirit, social/cultural, relationship, context, and the environment. The holistic nurse is an instrument of healing and facilitates individuals, families, groups, and populations to attain or maintain optimum levels of health and well-being throughout the lifespan and in all spheres of care.

Professional education focuses on the attainment of a specialized body of knowledge, skills, and attitudes pertaining to a discipline through a commitment to the social, ethical, and scholarly standards of the profession. It fosters the professionals’ acceptance of responsibility for critical thinking and clinical judgment congruent with the level of practice. Nursing education develops students who provide culturally sensitive, ethically grounded, and spiritually appropriate, evidence-informed/based health care. Inherent in holistic nursing education is attention to self-development. This requires nurses to integrate self-care, self-responsibility, spirituality, and reflection in their own lives. The pre-licensure nursing programs provide a foundation for the development of self, creativity, maturity, and the growth of intellectual, cultural, and leadership skills and perspectives. The graduate program extends the development of these qualities in both depth and scope.

Nursing knowledge is acquired through empirical, personal, ethical, aesthetic, and social knowing. Education occurs in an environment of scholarly inquiry and is dedicated to preparing students to care about and for care recipients across their lifespan. Nursing students also develop respect for the inherent worth of every human being, reflect upon personal values and attitudes, and demonstrate commitment to lifelong learning and to the profession. Preparation for baccalaureate professional nursing practice is based on a program of study that includes the art and science of nursing: human, physical, and behavioral sciences; and the university’s signature learning courses - e.g. ethics, global awareness; fine arts, and humanities. Preparation for graduate professional nursing practice builds on the undergraduate foundation and is based on a program of study that includes the application of nursing knowledge, theories, research, and advanced clinical and leadership skills within an interprofessional context. Graduate nurses serve as leaders in healthcare and the profession of nursing. Synthesis of theories, principles and research from nursing and related disciplines produces knowledge that contributes to a distinctive science of nursing.

Nursing is a career of significance for its impact on and value to society. Nurses make a difference in people’s lives as they care for the whole, enhancing human health and wellness and enabling hope. Their presence is a constant, and nursing practice occurs whenever, wherever, and however a need is identified. Graduates of the Capital University School of Nursing are prepared in the art and science of human caring, respectful of their role in this significant profession.

Graduate Admission Policies

MSN Graduate Program Admission

Admission to the Master of Science in Nursing Program is open to nurses who are licensed in the state of Ohio (or in the state they plan to complete clinical hours) and have graduated from a program of nursing academically accredited by two sources: 1) the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC) or the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE); and 2) a higher learning commission Regional Accrediting body. Admission will not be denied on the basis of race, religion, age, sex, color, disability, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, or political affiliation. Applicants are required to provide information pertaining to their academic, intellectual, and professional abilities through college transcripts, personal references, and a writing sample.

MSN Graduate Program Admission Criteria

All official transcripts from previous undergraduate/graduate course work 
Current, unencumbered, unrestricted RN License in the State they complete field experiences
Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing from an accredited program
3.0 undergraduate GPA on a 4.0 scale
Undergraduate prerequisites: statistics and research methods 
Submit a 1 to 2 page summary that addresses a specific vision for your future and how an advanced nursing degree will support your goals.  Please incorporate 1) the strengths you currently bring to your practice, 2) a clinical situation you wish to improve, and 3) why you have chosen Capital University
Current resume
Two professional written references. Letters must speak to candidates’ readiness to take graduate level courses.
TOEFL score of 550 or above (for international students)

MSN Graduate Program Application Procedure

Prospective students are encouraged to apply within 8 weeks of the beginning of the next term. The following activities are included in the application process:

Complete the Application for Admission on the MSN website: www.capital.edu/msn/. Please contact the Admissions office at 614-236-6996 with any questions regarding the application procedure.
Request official transcripts from all previous colleges and universities.
Give 2 references that will may be contacted by the Associate Dean of the Nursing Graduate Program.

MSN Graduate Program Acceptance of Admission

Once an admission file is completed, it is reviewed by the Associate Dean of the Graduate Program and Dean of the Nursing School. 

Students will be notified in writing of their acceptance.

Following notification, the student is required to complete and return the Acceptance of Admission Form to the Admissions office within 10 days.
Once a student has accepted admission they can schedule classes through their assigned Academic Advisor.

At the time of admission, the student will be assigned a faculty adviser with whom they will meet with to establish a curriculum plan. 

MSN Graduate Program Provisional Acceptance

Candidates may be admitted provisionally until all entrance requirements are completed. The letter of admission states the specific conditions that need to be completed and the time frame allowed. Upon completion of these conditions by the dates indicated, full admission is granted. Students are to return the acceptance of provisional admission form within 10 days.

Students are to return the acceptance of provisional admission form within 10 days. 
Upon receipt of this form, course registration is initiated by the Admission staff.

Non-degree:

There are four categories of non-degree status:

Students enrolled in the traditional program junior level status, 3.5 GPA or higher, and approval of the Graduate Associate Dean.
BSN graduates who are interested in enriching their professional practice with Graduate courses.  These students can take up to 6 credits, which will count toward the MSN if they choose to apply for graduate study.
Masters prepared nurses with an interest in a concentrate focus. These individuals complete one or more concentrates as post-masters study.
BSN or MSN nurses who are enrolled in a certificate program offered by the School of Nursing

Dual Degree

Dual degree students must gain admission to and complete degree requirements for both programs.  Since each school admits students separately, admission to one program does not guarantee admission to the other program.

A student choosing a dual degree option must complete the appropriate dual degree application as a notice of intention to seek the dual degree.  For more information on the admission process, please contact the Admissions Office.

Undergraduate Fast Track to MSN: Undergraduate nursing majors who hold a GPA of 3.5 in the last year of their baccalaureate curriculum may earn up to nine hours of credit by enrolling in any of the following graduate courses:  NURS-500:  Applied Healthcare Statistics Advanced Healthcare Statistics; NURS-520:  Advanced Nursing Research and Evidence-Based Practice; or NURS-530: Healthcare Informatics and Technology.  Registration in courses is limited to space availability.  After the student is granted admission to the MSN program, courses are then used to fulfill graduate requirements.

Audits

Students may audit a course on a space available basis.  This requires completion of the Audit Request Form found online at the Registrar’s web page. The form requires the appropriate instructor’s signature and the signature the Associate Dean of the Graduate Nursing Program.  Candidates in the Nursing Program cannot audit any course required for degree credit.  Normally, an auditor is not required to submit assignments or take examinations.  The transcript does not reflect audited courses and no grade or credit is given.  To audit a course at the Law School, please contact the Law School directly.

The Graduate Program Focus

The organizing theme of the graduate curriculum is “leadership at the multidisciplinary frontier of health care.”  The MSN graduate program is designed to build on the strengths of the School of Nursing and university faculty, to offer students alternatives to practitioner programs, and to avoid duplication with the other graduate programs in Columbus.  An initial needs assessment, faculty beliefs about knowledge and skills, literature reviews, and professional standards influenced curriculum design.  Courses are reviewed annually and updated based upon on student need and feedback, community and national health care priorities, policy initiatives, and changes in accreditation standards.

School of Nursing faculty members recognize that multidisciplinary nursing education and practice offer the potential for achieving the most efficient and effective health care outcomes if the strengths of each discipline can be integrated and implemented by individuals with a knowledge base in more than one discipline. Multidisciplinary education at the master’s level prepares students to assume leadership roles to effectively work with health care teams in acute and long-term health care settings, corporate settings and complex organizations, the community, and in independent practice.

The School of Nursing faculty and the graduate curriculum emphasize the development of holistic practitioners who have the empiric and ethical-political knowledge and skills as well as the personal self-reflective ability and aesthetic appreciation to provide mindful leadership that empowers clients and co-workers.

Goals of the Graduate Program

Our nation is experiencing a crisis in health care-cost, access, and quality of care all demand urgent attention.  America needs holistic practitioners who can think critically, reflect deeply and who can balance economic realities with the human need for compassion and service. Leadership in creating the health care system of the future necessitates commitment to holistic care and teamwork in order to solve human health problems in complex systems with declining resources.  Self-responsibility and self-care are fundamental to the development of this leadership capacity and thus integral to program goals. Similarly, engagement in cultural and political advocacy is essential to holistic care.

At Capital University, the academic disciplines of nursing, business, and law are uniquely positioned to provide leadership at the multidisciplinary frontier of health care in addressing the pressing health needs of the community in the 21st century.  Thus, this unique graduate program will blend the holistic perspective of nursing with the legal, business, ethical, educational and spiritually grounded expertise already present within the university community.

At the completion of MSN graduate program, the student will be prepared to accomplish the following behaviors and achieve the related outcomes:

MSN Outcome 1: Analyze the theoretical foundations of nursing and related science relevant to advanced holistic nursing practice / education / administration. Outcomes: Design direct care/educational or other programming for individual and community populations based on social determinants of health, and sciences relevant to specific concentrate of study (caring, organizational, educational, other); and Apply appropriate theory and frameworks to guide practice.

MSN Outcome 2: Demonstrate leadership of Interprofessional teams to plan, implement and evaluate system initiatives that improve clinical, educational or organizational outcomes. Outcomes: Identify problems relevant to area of practice/ concentrate; Synthesize and communicate current research and practice evidence / knowledge related to identified problems; Use a team based approach to program development and implementation as appropriate; Apply leadership principles to implement changes that improve quality of clinical and educational outcomes; and Demonstrate behavior that is culturally responsive, safe, timely, effective, efficient, equitable, and patient / student centered.

MSN Outcome 3: Use the best available evidence to guide practice decisions. Outcomes: Actively and ethically participate in research to improve area of clinical / practice expertise; Address social determinants of health to plan and evaluate health care/ educational interventions as appropriate; Evaluate ethical implications of evidence based practice decisions for individual clients / aggregate populations and recommended program changes; Identify specific databases and current research relevant to a defined clinical / educational / organizational problem; Perform rigorous critique of current research and disseminate meaningful evidence to improve practice outcomes; and Apply holistic framework when evaluating research and clinical evidence to implement practice changes within concentrate of study.

MSN Outcome 4: Apply the concepts of information exchange, nursing informatics and systems theory to the advanced practice role.  Outcomes: Analyze databases to answer clinical / educational / administrative questions; Identify ethical principles for health information management systems and practices; and Integrate and coordinate current and emerging technologies to improve patient care systems and health education as appropriate to concentrate.  

MSN Outcome 5: Integrate health policy processes to promote safety and quality of health delivery systems and advocate for social issues of health disparity and equality. Outcomes: Participate in policy development at the institutional, local, state and/ or federal levels to improve health / educational outcomes related to discipline / practice of nursing and healthcare; Develop advocacy strategies to influence health care; Analyze how policies influence the structure and financing of health care practice and health outcomes; and examine legal and regulatory processes related to individual and system practice that reflect ethics of caring.

MSN Outcome 6: Apply holistic philosophy to enact advanced practice role. Outcomes: Value unitary science as foundational to development of advanced practice role; Identify the ethics of caring and its contribution to unity of self, others, nature and life forces as central to holistic nursing; Integrate ethical, aesthetic, empiric and personal ways of knowing into practice and educational decision-making; Explore and adopt holistic self-care practices to achieve balance in personal well-being and professional life; Participate in reflective practice to improve clinical practice, clinical leadership, learning   and personal well-being; and Use selected integrative therapies in current practice/ educational settings.

Learning Outcomes by Concentrate

Each concentrate has specific anticipated outcomes beyond the general outcomes for graduate study.  By concentrate, these include:

Nursing Administration Concentrate Outcomes               

The graduate will:

ADM Outcome 1: Demonstrate basic knowledge of the business functions of marketing, accounting, finance, operations and human resources.
ADM Outcome 2: Recognize the importance of organizational behavior in impacting the delivery of nursing care in health care systems.

ADM Outcome 3: Stimulate and effectively cope with change in health care systems.
ADM Outcome 4: Utilize analytical and critical thinking to address workforce issues.

Nursing Legal Concentrate Outcomes         

The graduate will:

LEGAL Outcome 1: Understand the basic concepts of the legal system in the United States.
LEGAL Outcome 2: Analyze the impact and influence of the legal system on health care and nursing policy and practice in the United States.
LEGAL Outcome 3: Influence the development and implementation of health care policy and health care law.
LEGAL Outcome 4: Facilitate an understanding of the law and health policy for individuals and organizations.

Nursing Education Concentrate Outcomes 

The graduate will:

ED Outcome 1: Assume the role of professional nurse educator for academic settings, continuing education, or staff development.
ED Outcome 2: Apply selected teaching-learning theories for the preparation and continuing development of nurses.
ED Outcome 3: Implement a variety of teaching-learning strategies in diverse learning experiences.

ED Outcome 4: Evaluate the effectiveness of the teaching-learning process.
ED Outcome 5: Critically examine trends and issues in nursing education.

Nursing Quality and Safety Concentrate Outcomes

The graduate will:

Q&S Outcome 1: Lead the strategic integration of quality and safety into the structure, processes, and culture of the organization to achieve system level outcome objectives.
Q&S Outcome 2: Participate in surveillance, improvement, evaluation, and reporting activities aimed at performance enhancement and compliance with internal and external policy, regulatory, and accreditation requirements.
Q&S Outcome 3: Utilize data and advance the organization’s analytical environment to inform quality improvement decision-making, initiatives, and evaluation.
Q&S Outcome 4: Collaborate and facilitate team effectiveness in the development, implementation, and evaluation of performance and process initiatives, methods, education and training directed towards quality and safety improvement across various settings and populations.
Q&S Outcome 5: Cultivate a safe healthcare environment using risk management assessments and best practice strategies to detect, mitigate, or prevent harm.
Q&S Outcome 6: Advance equitable health policies and regulations that reduce health risk, promote patient advocacy, and assure financial stewardship.

Organization of the Graduate Curriculum

The curriculum content is arranged into four areas quadrants:  the MSN core, the advanced nursing core, the concentrate core, and synthesis work.  The specific credit hour requirement varies depending upon the concentrate. Specialization comes through the courses and clinical work students select in the concentrate and in the student’s use of the acquired skills and knowledge in the application/synthesis work.  (See Figure 1).  Students’ progress through the MSN core and the advanced nursing core before beginning coursework in the area of concentration. The concentrate core should be completed before the synthesis and application work is begun.   Full time students may enroll in concentrate and synthesis courses concurrently.

Basic Curriculum Plan for the MSN

Total Hours: 44

MSN Core (18 credit hours)

Advanced Nursing Core (9 credit hours)

Concentrate Core (10 credit hours)

Synthesis (7 credit hours)

MSN Core (18 credit hours)

Courses in the MSN core are designed to provide students the content and skills required for leadership in an advanced practice role and to engage the student in active learning to develop their critical thinking. The courses are conducted with an interdisciplinary focus to help students appreciate more fully the complexity of health care leadership. NURS 500 examines statistical applications for health care research and evidence based practice, NURS 505 examines philosophical and theoretical foundations of nursing, NURS 520 studies advanced research and evidence based practice, NURS 530 examines healthcare technology and informatics, MBA 613 focuses on organization behavior and NURS 650 looks at ethical and policy issues in contemporary nursing.

Advanced Nursing Core (9 credit hours)

The advanced nursing core comprises of the advanced nursing practice concepts of the MSN Program: Advanced Health Assessment (NURS 525), Advanced Pathophysiology (NURS 601), and Clinical Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nurses (NURS 610). These courses were designed such that they can be taken with either MSN Core courses or Concentrate core courses. NURS 601 is a pre-requisite to NURS 525. NURS 525 currently has 50 clinical hours integrated into the course and has an added clinical fee.

Concentrate Core (10 credit hours)

The concentrate provides students with the opportunity to study in an area of their selected interest.  The number of credit hours required in the concentrates varies, as do the degree of elective versus required courses and prerequisites.  Students whose concentrate courses are provided by another unit outside of the School of Nursing register with their academic adviser in the School of Nursing and with guidance from their adviser in the respective concentrate area.  The student is billed at the rate of the unit offering the course.

Synthesis (7 credit hours)

Synthesis courses are completed at the end of the MSN curriculum and NURS 722  Capstone Practicum is completed in the final semester prior to graduation. All synthesis courses have a minimum of 150 clinical hours each. 

The School of Nursing faculty encourages students from the School of Management and Leadership, and the Law School who wish to focus on health care applications to cross-enroll in the graduate nursing core courses. The holistic perspective of nursing as a care-giving discipline enhances today’s business, law, and seminary curricula. The learning experience and competency of graduate students with diverse backgrounds, expertise, interests, and goals is enriched through such interdisciplinary interaction.

Learning Focus in Concentrates

The four MSN concentrates address students’ diverse career needs.  A student may complete more than one concentrate.

MSN with a Concentrate in Administration

Offered in cooperation with the School of Management & Leadership, this concentrate prepares the student for a first or middle-management position in nursing administration. Concentrate courses support knowledge and skills in the areas of finance and accounting (management of $2-3 million budgets), personnel (hiring, staff development, salary administration), ethical, legal and policy concerns (e.g., living wills, discharge against medical advice, controversial procedures) and organizational life (the policies of institutional life, interdisciplinary service, strategic planning). Upon completion of this concentrate, the student will have completed the requisite course work to take the certification examination for advanced nursing administration through the America Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or the American Organization of Nurse Leaders (AONL).

The following courses are required in the Administration concentration: MBA Essentials (MBA 500), MBA-Managerial Economics (MBA 612) or Managerial Accounting (MBA 614), and Evidence Based Nursing Administration Part 1 (NURS 640) and NUR 641 Evidence Based Nursing Administration II. Both NUR 640 and NUR 641 require 150 hours of field experience.

Required additional MBA courses for students enrolled in the MSN/MBA dual degree option include: Managerial Economics (MBA 612), Managerial Accounting (MBA 614), Management Marketing (MBA 710), Financial Management (MBA 720) and Business, Policy and Strategy (MBA 900). Evidence Based Nursing Administration Part 2 (NURS 641) is a required synthesis course and also has 150 clinical hours. All students take NURS 722 Capstone Practicum during their last enrolled semester.

Students must meet the prerequisites for each MBA course in the concentration as identified in the “Prerequisites” section of this handbook, as well as in the MBA Student Handbook. Students interested in the MSN/MBA must apply to the MBA Program while enrolled in MBA-500. More information about the admission process can be found on the MBA website.

MSN with a Concentrate in Legal Studies

The concentrate in legal studies, offered in cooperation with the Law School, emphasizes the legal aspects of health care. Students may direct their career development toward work in quality assurance programs, risk management, peer review, and outcomes assessment. Preparation in advanced nursing science, which includes legal studies, enhances the graduate’s ability to contribute to interdisciplinary problem-solving teams in health care. 

The legal studies concentrate consists of 10 semester credit hours of course work. NURS-670: Legal Concepts in Health Care, a three-hour foundation course covering torts, contracts, and constitutional law; NURS 640: Evidence Based Nursing Administration Part 1 or NURS 641 Evidence Based Nursing Administration Part 2; and LAW-822: Health Law; are required courses. Students may choose 1 law elective to supplement their concentrate.

MSN with a Concentrate in Nursing Education

This concentrate prepares the nurse for the role of educator in either the academic or clinical setting. Concentrate course work gives the student the necessary knowledge and skills to teach and develop curricular materials. In the synthesis core, students identify their preferred setting for teaching and have field placements accordingly.

The nursing education concentrate consists of NURS 607: Education Foundations; NURS 608: Teaching Strategies; and NURS 609: Evaluation: Individual to Program. NURS 720: Clinical and Laboratory Teaching is a synthesis course in the Education concentrate. Both NURS 608 and NURS 720 require 150 clinical hours each. 

MSN with a Concentrate in Quality and Safety

Becoming an expert in Quality and Safety is essential in all areas of the nursing profession. This MSN concentration gives you the critical knowledge and hands-on experience to use data to examine trends in global health to lead change initiatives that will impact patient care and enhance healthcare. Our program gives you the opportunity to work with interdisciplinary experts in performance and process improvement (PPI) projects and gain advanced experience in healthcare Quality and Safety.

The following courses are required in the Quality and Safety concentrate: Health Data Analytics (NURS 655), Performance Enhancement in Healthcare (NURS 661), and Leadership in Healthcare Quality (NURS 690). Synthesis courses include both Healthcare Quality and Safety Practicum (NURS 711) and Capstone Practicum (NURS 722). Courses with clinical hours include: NURS 690, NURS 711, and NURS 722.

Multiple Concentrates of Study

A student establishes competencies in a selected concentration through the completion of a number of learning opportunities. Graduation with a dual concentrate of study requires:

Completion of the designated courses in the secondary concentration.
Completion of NURS 722 Capstone Practicum or a course equivalent with field experience in the practice area relevant to each concentration. NURS 722 must be taken in the last semester of the MSN curriculum.

Students are permitted to take courses in a concentration other than the designated concentration if prerequisites for each course are met.  This will be considered elective credit. If a student wishes to complete more than one concentrate, in addition to the coursework in the additional concentrate, one hour of independent study must be taken with a faculty person from the School of Nursing. This independent study should reflect a 50 hour field experience that provides opportunity for application of concentrate coursework and role development.

Dual Degree Programs

Students have the opportunity to pursue dual degrees in the School of Nursing and Capital University Law School or the Capital University School of Management and Leadership. In each case, the course work selected for the concentration is applied toward the course work required in the second degree. For example, an MSN student who completes the legal studies concentrate is able to apply that course work as elective credit toward the Juris Doctorate degree in the Law School. Students pursuing a dual degree must complete a minimum of 53 semester hours for the MSN/MBA and 102 semester hours for the MSN/JD.

Descriptions of graduate courses offered by the School of Nursing are listed in this handbook. Dual degree students should consult the MBA Student Handbook or the Law School Bulletin for complete descriptions of non-nursing courses identified in the dual degree curriculum plans. 

Basic Curriculum Plan for the Dual Degree

Total Hours: 59-118 hours (Minimum)  

MSN Core

18 semester hours

Advanced Nursing Core

9 semester hours

Second Degree

MBA = 12-21 additional hours

JD = 74 additional hours

Concentrate & Synthesis

17 semester hours

(minimum)

To pursue a dual degree, students must meet prerequisites and gain admission to each program.  Each dual degree option provides students with the opportunity to complete both degrees with a substantial reduction in total credit hours.  To obtain information about the application, admission, enrollment, the program of study, and definition and operation of a dual degree credit in each program, students should consult the Dual Degree Program Statements for the MSN/JD and MSN/MBA degrees.

Certificate Program: Nursing Education

Contact the Associate Dean of the Nursing Graduate Program for more information on certification.

Research Review

Any research, which involves human subjects, must be reviewed by the Capital University Research Review Committee prior to contact with subjects and/or data collection.  The student, in consultation with faculty, submits a Research Review Proposal to the Chair of the Research Review Committee.  The Application form is available through the University here.

Student Academic Grievance Resolution

Students have the right to appeal grades, involuntary withdrawal action or other academic issues by filing a written request within one semester of the occurrence.  The written appeal must include supporting data and go first to the course professor, the Associate Dean of the Graduate Nursing Program, to the Dean of Nursing and then, if the student wishes, to the Provost of Capital University.  In some cases, the Associate Dean of the Graduate Nursing Program may ask the Nursing Faculty to review the appeal.  Graduate students will follow the same appeal process as undergraduates. 