A DNP (Doctor of Nursing) degree is meant to help registered nurses with a BSN or MSN achieve the highest clinical nursing education level. The DNP degree shows that nurses have reached the peak of education. Graduating with a DNP degree comes with multiple rewards. Discussed below are four reasons to get a DNP degree.
- Leadership opportunities
A DNP degree equips you with leadership skills that make you well-suited to take on advanced roles. Some of the leadership roles DNP graduates qualify for include:
- Nursing professor: Nursing professors teach in university/ college nursing programs and may also do research. Their leadership skills are vital in managing nursing school faculty shortages, assessing and reviewing curricula, and other key areas
- Chief nursing officer: Their primary responsibility is overseeing a healthcare institution’s professional nursing practice. A chief nursing officer uses their leadership skills in executing nursing initiatives, developing strategy, and more
Earning an online doctorate FNP degree also enables nursing professionals to pursue executive leadership roles, which include responsibilities such as:
- Strengthening population health
- Enhancing patient experience
- Cutting healthcare cost
- Establishing working relations with academic institutions
- A higher earning potential
Senior nursing roles come with high growth potential and pay. Earning a DNP degree elevates your nursing career while substantially influencing your salary. Since the Doctorate of Nursing Practice is the highest education level, it prepares you to qualify for non-clinical and clinical positions and pay that reflects a higher responsibility level. Based on the role, your median wage can be between $85,000 and $200,000. With a DNP degree, you can shift to more specialized roles, which empowers you to command better pay.
- More career opportunities
Earning a DNP degree prepares you for many different responsibilities and career paths, which are key in guaranteeing job security. Some of the career paths you can pursue with this degree include:
- Healthcare executive: An executive position allows you to work as a nurse executive or health service manager. A DNP degree equips you with leadership skills to ensure patients are getting top-quality care
- Certified nurse midwife: It’s a specialization option for more advanced practice nurses whose aim is to offer quality care from pre-conception all through to postpartum recovery
- Clinical researcher: The role involves collaborating with other medical experts to develop and do research to boost the knowledge body in the healthcare sector
- Nurse informaticist: In this position, you’ll work with data and come up with practical solutions to problems
- To become a specialized nursing professional
DNP programs provide specialties that nursing professionals can leverage to narrow down their focus and build a career of choice. With the help of your interests and goals, you can find a DNP specialty that provides you with the training necessary for your job. DNP specialties to consider when seeking to advance your education include:
- Health policy: It equips you with the knowledge and skills to develop policies for improving healthcare quality. A health policy specialty also prepares you to guide legal professionals and policymakers from a nursing angle to make better healthcare policies and laws
- Public health: It helps build the skills you need to assess community healthcare needs and offer the services they need
- Psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner: This specialty teaches you how to offer top-quality care for psychiatric patients
Endnote
Earning a DNP degree can help elevate your nursing career. Familiarize yourself with the reasons for getting a DNP degree to determine if it’s worth investing.
