Nursing, DNP Online

You should pursue a Doctor of Nursing Practice if:

You aspire to use your knowledge and talents to be a leader in health care.
You want to be adaptable in the face of a complex and ever-changing industry.
You are ready to elevate your level of patient care to meet the needs of underserved communities.
You are interested in bringing your experiences and insights to research projects and data analysis.

You'll be equipped to affect positive change in patient outcomes at every level, whether through providing care directly, researching new techniques, or implementing new policies based on evidence and data.

Cohorts begin each Fall. Apply by May 1 to enroll.

What to expect in the Doctor of Nursing Practice

What's Nursing, DNP Online Like?

Analytics
Health Care Policy
Leadership
Residency

$480

per-credit-hour

As an online student, you'll have access to flat-rate tuition whether you're down the bayou or across the country!

Learn more about our DNP curriculum

Why DNP Online

DNP graduate Martin Begnaud is pictured during commencement in UL Lafayette doctoral regalia.

Practice at the highest level.

Gain the insight to develop and influence healthcare policy while advancing as a practitioner.

Learn from the best.

Earn your Doctor of Nursing Practice from an R1 institution with highly qualified, specialized, award-winning faculty.

Excel with one-on-one support.

Access personalized support and resources at every step of the way, including a dedicated enrollment specialist, 24/7 online tutoring, and a specialized online student resource center.

Build your network.

Online faculty facilitate continuous and effective communication with and among students, so you can make lasting connections from wherever you are studying.

DNP online according to alumni

Applicable Flexible Connected Collaborative

Put your coursework to work.

It’s shown me some of my own capabilities — things I’d never done before. It’s also shown me this whole new world related to nursing that I was always interested in but was unsure how I could contribute to. Now that I’ve gotten a taste of that, I’m interested in how I can do more in the future.

Kaylee Ackel, 2021

Find your work-life-school balance.

I don’t think there’s any way I could do this program if it was not online. It would have just been something unachievable for me. I have a daughter; I’m a single mom. There’s no way to carve out time at someone else’s discretion of when I have to sit down and do everything; that’s one of the greatest parts of the online program.

Rheala "Shantel" Parker

Learn from peers as well as faculty.

The collaboration between the students and the graduate faculty at UL Lafayette is second to none. That is not the standard at other universities. The UL Lafayette faculty are paid to do this graduate instruction, but they're not paid to give the extra effort, heart, off-hours advice, and they do. That's what stands out to me the most is just the faculty, and I don't say that lightly at all.

Jason Jarrett, 2022

Careers with a DNP degree

Opportunities include:

Nursing Administrator
Nursing Professor
Clinical Practitioner
Health Care Researcher
Health Care Policy Advocate

Program Requirements

To be admitted to the Doctor of Nursing Practice program online, you must have:

Evidence of current, unencumbered U.S. nursing licensure (no restrictions.)
A master's degree from an accredited university in one of the following areas of advanced nursing practice:
- Nurse Educator
- Nurse Practitioner
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists
- Certified Nurse Midwife
- Nursing Administration/Leadership
An overall GPA of at least 3.3 on a 4.0 scale on all master's level coursework.

Students should be proficient with methodologies used in online education and must possess computer equipment and technology compatible with University learning management systems and technology.

To complete your application, you'll need to provide the following. With the exception of transcripts, all documents can be submitted through the online application portal.

Application fee ($25).
Official transcripts from all universities attended.
Three letters of recommendation from individuals who can attest to the applicant's capacity for doctoral study.
- One recommendation must be from a former faculty member in a nursing program, a current or former nursing supervisor or nursing leader.
- One recommendation must be from someone who can attest to the competencies and expertise of the applicant at the Advanced Practice level.
- The third recommendation may be from an individual of the applicant's choice; however, the letter should address the applicant's ability to successfully complete doctoral education in nursing.
Current resume or curriculum vitae.
A formal statement of purpose (typed, double-spaced, 12-point Times New Roman font, no longer than 3 pages in length) addressed to the DNP Program Coordinator that provides the following:
- The applicant's goals for doctoral study which are congruent with DNP Program goals.
- Focused area of interest for synthesis project.
- Statements reflecting how acquiring the DNP is important to fulfillment of the applicant's career goals.
- The applicant’s potential contributions to the DNP program.

Applicants should also prepare for:

A telephone interview with the DNP Program coordinator.
Prior to enrollment in residency courses, students will be required to submit to background checks, drug and alcohol screening, and must meet program health requirements. These screenings will be conducted at the student's expense.
Prior to NURS 801 - Biostatistics, students must provide evidence of completion of a graduate level statistics course. This graduate level statistics course must be both current and approved by the DNP Program Coordinator.

Transcripts must be submitted from your previous institution directly to the Graduate School at gradschool@louisiana.edu or by mail at:

UL Lafayette Graduate School
Martin Hall Suite 332
PO Box 43716
Lafayette, LA 70504-3716

All Doctor of Nursing Practice students must:

satisfactorily complete a DNP Synthesis Project
attain a minimum of 1,000 hours of post-baccalaureate supervised academic program practice hours in DNP residency courses
earn no less than a "B" grade in all coursework
Note: Students who earn less than a "B" grade in a course will be required to repeat that course. A course may be repeated only once. Courses with a grade of "C" may not be applied toward the degree requirements.
Complete a minimum of 39 graduate credit hours in the DNP program

Courses for the Doctor of Nursing Practice are offered online in Fall and Spring semesters with practica (a minimum of 420 residency hours) occurring in the students' specialty area of practice.

Coursework can be completed in as little as two years.

Learn more about the DNP curriculum in the catalog.

Because courses in this program will only be available online, the program may not be available to all applicants. The University of Louisiana at Lafayette and its online programs must be in compliance in every state where a student is located. International students also may not be eligible. According to U.S. immigration regulations, F-1 students cannot pursue online degrees; international students in other visa categories (i.e., H-4, L2) are exempt from this restriction.

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