Practice Doctorate Resource Center

NONPF Perspective

Frequently Asked Questions

Submit your questions about the Practice Doctorate, and NONPF will seek to provide you answers.  Please submit questions to NONPF.  Check back for FAQ answer postings.

   Question: Was the AACN Position Statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing (October 2004) prepared jointly with or endorsed by NONPF?   
        Answer: No. That statement and its recommendations were prepared by an AACN task force and approved by the AACN membership in October. Although NONPF did have a consultant to the AACN task force, the AACN statement and recommendations do not reflect all of the recommendations or perspective of NONPF. At this time, NONPF does not endorse all the recommendations put forth by AACN.                                                                                                                             
   Question: Is 2015 supported by NONPF as the date for implementation of the practice doctorate across all NP programs?
     Answer: No. NONPF has not taken a position on any specified date for implementation across all programs.

   Question: I am a faculty member in an institution that does not have a doctoral program. How would we be able to offer a practice doctorate?
     Answer: Your institution might need to look at collaborating with a school near you that does have a doctoral program. If no school in your area has a doctoral program, your state might need to address this issue.

   Question: Will the practice doctorate hurt the research-based doctorate of nursing?
     Answer: No. The number of people seeking a PhD may decline initially as more doctorate options become available to clinicians. Yet there will be a clearer delineation between the traditional research and the practice-focused degrees. See the President's Point in Vol. 16, Number 1 of The Mentor for further discussion of this topic.

  Question: I spent a lot of time looking for a NP program and am currently enrolled in a Master's NP program. Should I drop out and seek a doctorate program?
    Answer: No. We are sure that you did a thoughtful selection process to identify a program that will prepare you for national certification in your chosen NP specialty area. You should continue with your program and could consider opportunities in the future to articulate to the practice doctorate degree.

You may wish also to check the FAQ postings on the AACN Web site - http//www.aacn.nche.edu/DNP/DNPFAQ.htm.