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Graduate Nursing

Graduate programs in nursing at York College of Pennsylvania include master’s nurse practitioner tracks, post-master’s certificate options, and a doctoral program for nurse anesthetists.  The Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program prepares graduates for advanced practice in the roles of adult-gerontology primary care nurse practitioner (AGNP), family nurse practitioner (FNP), and psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP). The program builds on undergraduate education and is intense and dynamic. Its aim is to guide students to develop advanced knowledge and expertise based on critique and application of theory, research, and evidence-based practice. The tracks are prescriptive regarding the progression of coursework within their respective curricula and are offered in an online format.

Accreditation

The master’s degree program in nursing and post-graduate APRN certificate programs at York College of Pennsylvania are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 2000, 202-877-6791. The programs are also approved by the Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing and the Pennsylvania Department of Education. 

The Doctor of Nursing Practice (BS-DNP) nurse anesthetist program is fully accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA). The entry to practice Doctor of Nursing Practice degree was approved by the COA in 2016.

Graduates are eligible to take the National Certification Exam (NCE) administered by the National Board of Certification and Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists  (NBCRNA) to be certified in every state as a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA).

Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs (COA)
10275 W. Higgins Rd., Suite 906,
Rosemont, IL 60018-5603

Main Number: (224) 275-9130
Email: accreditation@coacrna.org

Mission Statement

The mission of the York College of Pennsylvania Stabler Department of Nursing is for faculty to partner with students as they learn to provide evidence-based care to diverse populations through innovation, equity, and inclusion.

Graduate Program Goals

The program outcomes for the York College of Pennsylvania graduate nursing programs reflect the AACN Essentials Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education.  Upon completion of the program, graduates will be able to:

• Appraise, critique, and synthesize knowledge from the arts, sciences, humanities, and the evolving discipline of nursing to inform education, practice, and research.  (Domain 1 - Knowledge for Nursing Practice)
• Design, foster, and provide person-centered care that is holistic, individualized, just, respectful, compassionate, coordinated, evidence-based, and developmentally appropriate. (Domain 2 - Person-Centered Care)
• Develop, advocate, and coordinate the implementation of healthcare delivery that supports the improvement of health outcomes from preventive care to disease management.  (Domain 3 - Population Health)
• Initiate, implement and disseminate an advanced level of evidence synthesis related to nursing knowledge to improve patient health and transform nursing leadership.  (Domain 4 - Scholarship for the Nursing Discipline)
• Evaluate established principles of safety and lead in improvement science initiatives that minimize risk of harm to patients and providers.  (Domain 5 - Quality and Safety)
• Engage with other advanced professionals to foster an environment in which interprofessional collaboration promotes best interprofessional learning to benefit health related outcomes for diverse populations.  (Domain 6 - Interprofessional Partnership)
• Proactively advocate for and engage in quality improvement initiatives to enhance access, quality, and cost-effectiveness for diverse populations. (Domain 7 - Systems-Based Practice)
• Apply strategies to both reduce inequities in digital access across diverse populations and to advance innovative evidence-based strategies in accordance with regulatory standards. (Domain 8 - Informatics and Healthcare Technology)
• Model professional accountability and ethical behaviors in nursing practice and leadership roles. (Domain 9 - Professionalism)
• Advocate for and foster initiatives that support a culture of lifelong learning and ongoing leadership development to advance the profession of nursing.  (Domain 10 - Personal, Professional, and Leadership Development)

Application Procedures

Application for admission to the Graduate MSN Programs may be made for fall, spring, or summer sessions. To be considered for admission, applicants should submit their applications and all required supporting materials to the York College Graduate Admissions Office, via online application, at least 10 business days prior to the start of their anticipated entry semester. Applicants are admitted on a rolling basis.

Students who wish to enroll in the Doctor of Nursing Practice (BS-DNP) nurse anesthetist program must apply for admission and submit required supporting materials through the York College online application process.  All  supporting documents must be submitted by April 1 in the year before enrollment.  Interviews are conducted in the summer, the year before enrollment, and accepted students will start the program in the summer of the following year. The director, assistant director, other program clinical faculty members, and pertinent stakeholders comprise the Admissions Committee. This committee makes decisions regarding student acceptance to the program and notifies applicants after all interviews are complete.

Requirements for Admission for AGNP, FNP, or PMHNP

Applicants must submit evidence of the following criteria for admission:

• Completion of a baccalaureate degree in nursing from a CNEA or CCNE-accredited program at a regionally accredited institution, or an equivalent institution, as determined by The Stabler Department of Nursing graduate faculty.
• Grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) or higher in all levels of undergraduate (AA, ASN, RN-BSN) nursing programs. (Applicants not meeting this grade point average requirement may be admitted on the recommendation of the Admissions Committee.)
• Official transcripts from all previously attended institutions of higher education.
• Current unencumbered active RN licensure in Pennsylvania or another state in which clinical experience is being offered (currently PA or MD).
• Minimum of one year of relevant RN level clinical practice experience.
• Two letters of recommendation, preferably from professional nurses with graduate degrees, regarding the applicantʼs practice and the potential for success in graduate work.
• Successful completion of the following courses: a statistics course that covered descriptive and inferential statistics, a physical assessment course, and a nursing research course.
• A goal statement (minimum 3-4 paragraphs) indicating goals for graduate nursing education.
• A current curriculum vitae (CV) or resume.

Requirements for Admission for Nurse Anesthetist BS-DNP

• Completion of a baccalaureate degree with a major in nursing from a program with CNEA (formerly known as NLNAC) or CCNE­-accreditation at a regionally accredited institution, or the equivalent, as determined by the graduate faculty of The Stabler Department of Nursing.
• Grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) or higher. (Applicants not meeting this grade point average requirement may be admitted on the recommendation of the admissions committee.)
• Official transcripts from all previously attended institutions of higher education (post K-12).  ** Transcripts should be sent electronically to: graduateadmissions@ycp.edu
• Current unencumbered RN licensure in Pennsylvania upon acceptance; current home state licensure for application process is acceptable. If you are invited to interview and then accepted into the program, a Pennsylvania nursing license must be submitted to Stacey Holtzman (sholtzman@ycp.edu) by July 15 of the year you begin the program.
• Three completed recommendation forms: One of the three recommendations for the Nurse Anesthetist program must be from a nurse anesthetist. In order to ensure this recommendation is a true reflection on the abilities of the student, the following are required:
  • To obtain a recommendation from a nurse anesthetist the applicant should:
    • Establish over time (60­-90 days minimum), a professional relationship, and
    • The CRNA should be familiar with the studentʼs abilities and potential: while this MAY be the person whom they shadow in the operating room, that is not a requirement.
• CRNA Shadow log: Each applicant will maintain a log of his or her visits to the operating room. The log should contain (at a minimum) the hours they were there, with whom they spent time, and what they saw. If the applicant is invited to interview, this log will be sent to the admissions committee for their review and evaluation. The minimum time requirement for this shadowing experience is eight hours.
• Personal statement of academic goals may not exceed 400 words. This personal statement should be submitted separately from the online application.
• Evidence of successful completion of all of the following undergraduate courses:
  • Statistics course that covered descriptive and inferential statistics
  • Physical assessment course
  • Nursing research course
• Current CV with confirmation of critical care experience including evidence of at least one-year experience as a registered nurse in a critical care/intensive care unit (highlighted on your current CV). A minimum of one year of critical care experience in the role of a Registered Nurse, defined as experience in personally caring for patients with invasive monitoring devices (arterial line, central venous pressure line, and pulmonary artery occlusion catheters), vasoactive infusions, ECG interpretation, and caring for mechanically ventilated patients.
• Copy of current BLS, ACLS, CCRN, and PALS certifications.
• If the PALS certification is not mandatory at your current place of employment, it may be submitted later. If you are invited to interview and then accepted into the program, certification verification for PALS must be submitted to the Nurse Anesthesia Office within 90 days of acceptance, or prior to enrolling in any course at York College of Pennsylvania, whichever comes first. ACLS and BLS are mandatory for the application documentation packet submission.
• International Students Please contact the graduate office for additional requirements.

Program Contact Information

The Graduate Programs office is located in 223 Diehl Hall on West Campus.  Inquiries for any of the master’s programs or post-master’s certificate tracks should be directed to the Graduate Programs office at 717-815-1791 or emailed to kmarch@ycp.edu.

The office for the BS-DNP Nurse Anesthesia program is also located on the second floor in Diehl Hall on West Campus. All BS-DNP inquiries should be directed to this office by phone at 717-815-6550 or by e-mail at CRNA@ycp.edu. The mailing address is:

York College of Pennsylvania
Nurse Anesthetist Program
441 Country Club Road
Diehl Hall
York, PA 17403

Instructional Modalities

The master’s degree programs are designed for working professionals. The following tracks are administered in an online modality (including core and program-specific courses). Terms are 7 or 15 weeks depending on the course.

• Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner, M.S.N and Post Master’s Certificate.
• Family Nurse Practitioner, M.S.N. and Post Master’s Certificate
• Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, M.S.N. and Post Master’s Certificate

The BS-DNP nurse anesthetist program is delivered in the conventional classroom.  A few of the core courses are exceptions in that they are delivered in a hybrid or online format. 

Academic Policies

Master’s tracks (AGNP and FNP) are offered online and can be completed in as little as two years (6 semesters) while PMHNP can be completed in as little as 8 semesters. All courses must be completed for all tracks within 5 years. 

Post-master’s tracks (AGNP and FNP) are offered online and can be completed in as little as one year, while PMHNP post-master’s certificate, also offered online, requires at least 5 semesters.  All post-master’s certificate programs must be completed within 3 years. 

The nurse anesthetist (BS-DNP) track is only offered as a full-time program. Students will be continuously enrolled as full-time graduate students until the program is completed.

Grading, Progress, and Dismissal

• Candidates for graduate degrees (MSN or BS-DNP) in nursing are required to earn at least a B (3.0) in every course in order to progress through the curriculum and graduate. Courses in which the student earns less than a B (3.0) must be repeated. The student is allowed to repeat a course one time only. A student with a grade less than a B (3.0) in any course must repeat that course in the next semester that it is offered in order to maintain status as a graduate student. A grade of B (3.0) must be earned in order to progress. A second grade of less than a B (3.0) results in automatic dismissal from the program. If a course is repeated, both grades will appear on the transcript, but only the highest grade will be used in calculating the grade point average.
• Students in any graduate track who earn less than a B (3.0) in any course will not be eligible to progress to the courses planned for the following semester. Since some courses may only be offered once per year, this may effectively add one year to the program of study.
• Professors may give a course grade of incomplete (“INC”) if circumstances justify an extension of time required to complete course requirements. A student with an “INC” grade in any course that is a prerequisite to another course will not be allowed to progress in the subsequent course until the “INC” in the prerequisite course has been removed and replaced by a B (3.0) or better. Students with two “INC’s” may not progress to any subsequent course. All “INC” must be resolved within 60 days or the “INC” automatically converts to a failure (0.0) according to college policy. As courses may, in some cases, only be offered once per year, having to repeat any course may effectively add one year to the program of study.
• Failure of a clinical portion of any course results in dismissal from the program.
• Conduct consistent with the ethical and professional standards of the discipline is  required. Violation of these standards is grounds for dismissal.

Program of Study

Upon admission to York College Graduate Programs in Nursing, students will be assigned to an academic advisor who will work with them to determine their individual program of study. Suggested curriculum sequences are available for all master’s (AGNP, FNP, and PMHNP) and doctoral (BS-DNP nurse anesthesia) tracks.

At the master’s level, the curriculum is designed so that students are free to schedule graduate core courses as they are able to take them with some exceptions. Clinical courses in all MSN tracks must be taken sequentially in the order listed in the Catalog.  For example, the AGNP clinical courses – Diagnosis and Management of Clinical Problems Adults/Older Adults I, Diagnosis and Management of Clinical Problems Adults/Older Adults II, Comprehensive Care of Older Adults, and Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner Seminar are taken in the order listed.   FNP and PMHNP clinical courses must also be completed in the order written in the Catalog.

The adult-gerontology primary care nurse practitioner program (AGNP) consists of 46 credits preparing graduates for the adult-gerontology nurse practitioner certification examination through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP).  A post-master’s certificate can be earned in the adult-gerontology nurse practitioner (AGNP) track.

Consisting of 47 credits, the family nurse practitioner program (FNP) prepares graduates for the family nurse practitioner certification examination through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP).  A post-master’s certificate can be earned in the family nurse practitioner (FNP) track.

Students pursuing the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) role will complete 50 credits of coursework and will be eligible to sit for the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner certification exam through American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). A post-master’s certificate can be earned in the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) track.

MSN coursework in the various tracks can be completed in as few as two years to a maximum of five years. Post-master’s coursework may be completed in as little as one year to a maximum of three years.

At the doctoral level, the BS-DNP nurse anesthesia curriculum course sequence is more prescriptive.  The program is a full-time, 36 month BS-DNP requiring successful completion of 102 credits.

Preparing for Clinical Experience

Graduate nursing students receive information regarding clinical, background checks, immunizations, and health and dental paperwork from the Clinical Placement Director beginning about six to twelve months before their anticipated entry into clinical.

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