NURSING AND BUSINESS LEADERSHIP, M.S.

Cohort-dependent Program

The following is designated as a cohort-dependent program. For maximum student learning, a minimum of seven students is required.

 

Contact: Carol Cogen | Program Coordinator

301-891-4062 | ccogen@wau.edu

 

The Master of Science (M.S.) in Nursing is a professional program designed to prepare students to acquire essential knowledge for practice in an advanced nursing specialty role as defined by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (ACCN) in “The Essentials of Master’s Education in Nursing” (Master’s Essentials) (2011).

There is an emphasis on integrating scholarship into practice, master’s level nursing practice, population health, organizational and systems leadership, health policy, quality improvement and safety, interprofessional collaboration, and informatics and health care technologies.

• All core courses must be completed with a “B” or better in order to progress into a concentration.
• All specialty courses must be completed with a “B” or better.
• Once the core courses are completed, students choose a concentration in either Nursing Education  or Nursing and Business Leadership.

Graduates are prepared to teach nurses and patients in a variety of academic and health care settings, or to work as a nurse administrator in a hospital or other health care agency. All M.S. in Nursing students will complete a research thesis or project prior to graduation.

Applications for the M.S. in Nursing degree programs are processed by the School of Graduate and Professional Studies.

Admission

Admission to the Master of Science in Nursing program is based on:

1. Completion of a B.S. in Nursing degree program with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher from an institutionally accredited (formerly known as regionally accredited) undergraduate program.
   Students who do not meet the 3.0 GPA or institutionally accredited undergraduate program requirement will be required to make an appointment at the Department of Nursing for a personal interview. Such applicants will be evaluated for acceptable evidence of professional potential, shown through recent academic performance and experiential background. They may be granted probationary admission with the expectation that they will maintain a GPA of 3.0 for the first two semesters of study.
2. Current nursing license in Maryland or a Nursing Licensure Compact State or non-compact state.
3. Current professional resume.
4. Written statement of intent describing career goals in an advanced nursing specialty role.
5. Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or its equivalent may be required if English is not the applicant’s primary language.
6. Submission of application and transcripts directly to the Office of Admissions.

Goal of Master’s Program

The goal of the master’s program is to prepare skilled, competent nurses who will pursue excellence and professional growth through lifelong learning; lead change to improve quality outcomes and safety of health care delivery systems; design innovative, evidence-based nursing practices; and serve as collaborative partners of the health care team in an advanced specialty nursing practice.

Expected Student Outcomes

Upon completion of their degree, graduates of Washington Adventist University’s M.S. in Nursing program will be able to:

1. Demonstrate organizational and systems leadership that will improve quality and safety outcomes in nursing education or health care organizations.
2. Conduct and/or evaluate nursing research and evidence-based practices to improve the health of individuals, families, communities, and populations.
3. Synthesize knowledge of ethical, safe, and legal practices in assessing, providing, evaluating, and improving the quality and safety of patient care.
4. Evaluate current knowledge, skills, and attitudes of health promotion, disease and injury prevention and management in order to improve the health of individuals, groups, communities and populations.
5. Apply principles of social justice and health policies that improve the health of the public.
6. Analyze the political, social, organizational, cultural, and economic systems that impact health and health care.
7. Demonstrate the ability to communicate, collaborate, lead, and consult with others in an advanced nursing practice specialty role.
8. Design health care management systems and/or educational programs for patients, students, families, communities, and populations using evidence-based practice, informatics, and health care technologies.
9. Demonstrate the ability to provide humanistic care in an advanced specialty nursing practice, respectful of a client’s cultural, spiritual, ethnic, and gender diversity, within an increasingly global, multicultural society.
10. Synthesize knowledge from the organizational sciences, humanities, and informatics to improve the quality and delivery of advanced nursing care in complex educational or health care systems.
11. Design strategies for improved quality and safety outcomes in nursing education and health care systems that employ informatics and effective leadership and management principles.
12. Demonstrate attributes supportive of spirituality within a multicultural, multi-faith environment to facilitate self-awareness and meet spiritual needs of clients and self.

 

Students will have the opportunity to develop advanced nursing administration and management skills through the study of quality safety and risk management, health care management economics, and information systems management. They will be prepared to act to improve health outcomes by serving as leaders and change agents in hospitals or community health settings.