Our Online DNP Program

Recognizing the increasing complexity of our nation’s health care environment, Nursing@Simmons offers an online Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), for registered nurses who have earned their MSN. The Nursing@Simmons online DNP program integrates evidence-based practice with strong analytical and leadership principles to prepare nurses for the highest level of professional nursing practice.

The post-master’s online DNP program prepares nurses to advance their clinical practice through the implementation of evidence-based research. DNP-educated nurses are prepared as systems thinkers who become leaders in a variety of health care settings, transform health care systems and policies, and improve outcomes for patients and communities.

The Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Simmons University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

Offering the Support Nurses Need

Scholarships are available for qualified applicants admitted to the upcoming cohort.
The final deadline for the September 2024 cohort is July 22, 2024.

Apply Now

DNP Career Outcomes

The Nursing@Simmons online DNP program prepares students to:

  • Become leaders in organizations and health care systems and promote secure and efficient health care delivery to individuals and populations
  • Conduct practice-based research
  • Use informatics, data, and technology to improve processes and implement change in health care systems
  • Design and apply policies that affect health care financing, safety, quality, practice regulation, access to care, and efficacy of care
  • Collaborate with professionals and teams across disciplines to improve health outcomes for patients and populations
  • Create and establish evidence-based interventions that enhance population health and clinical prevention
Download the DNP Info Sheet

Earn Your DNP Online

Empowering and educating nurses since 1902, Simmons University offers an online doctoral program for registered nurses who have earned their MSN. Nursing@Simmons is designed to bring the Simmons on-campus experience to you through a dynamic, virtual platform.

As a Nursing@Simmons student, you will:

  • Enjoy live, face-to-face online classes with esteemed faculty members and peers from across the country
  • Balance your personal commitments with your education by enrolling on a part-time basis
  • Access your coursework 24/7 — at home or on the go — with our integrated mobile app
  • Learn in an intimate classroom environment with approximately 20 or fewer students per class
  • Have professional networking opportunities during the required immersion experience on the Simmons University campus in Boston, Massachusetts

Not sure if our DNP program is right for you? Click here to see our other program offerings.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • A DNP degree prepares board-certified nurse practitioners (NPs), who have earned their MSN degree, to reach the highest level of professional nursing practice. DNP-educated nurses have the advanced skills needed to assume leadership in a variety of health settings, to improve patient outcomes, and to enhance health care delivery systems. 

  • No. A nurse practitioner (NP) is a job title that refers to a nursing professional with graduate-level training. A DNP — or a Doctor of Nursing — is a terminal academic degree awarded to a nursing professional who has completed the highest level of training in nursing practice.

  • A DNP degree does not grant authority to write prescriptions. To write prescriptions in any of the 50 states, nurse practitioners (NPs) — some of whom hold an MSN while others hold a DNP — must be board-certified. (Note that in certain states, NPs must be supervised by a physician to write prescriptions.)

  • A DNP degree allows you to academically add the title of “Doctor” to your name. However, it does not give you the professionaltitle of “Doctor,” which is reserved to physicians/medical doctors. Some states have strict legislation about where and when a nurse can be referred to as a “doctor.”

  • This depends on your current experience level. Many DNP programs offer different paths of study — which can take under two to four years to complete — based on a candidate’s current credentials, such as an RN license, a BSN, or a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN).

  • No. Nurse practitioners (NPs) undergo a distinct nursing-focused training, averaging six to eight years of postsecondary education to obtain licensure and begin practicing. Medical doctors/physicians (MDs) undergo four years of medical school, which is followed by an accredited residency training program; their postsecondary education averages 11 years.1

Explore More About the DNP Program

Curriculum | Admission | Tuition & Fees | Which Degree Is Right for Me? | FAQs

1 Differences Between a Nurse Practitioner and a Doctor. NurseJournal. Retrieved May 6, 2022.