DNP-Apply
Submission Of Materials
Students will submit their materials through the Nursing Centralized Application Service (CAS). Nursing CAS is a partner with AACN (American Association of Colleges of Nursing), and is a centralized application service for students applying to CCNE (Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education) accredited programs. Go to the Nursing CAS website (http://www.nursingcas.org) and click in the upper right-hand corner for a list of programs and click on Shepherd University. This link also provides a direct link to the application page: https://nursingcas.liaisoncas.com/applicant-ux/#/login
Applications for Fall 2025 will be accepted in NursingCAS from February 1, 2025 – June 1, 2025.
*Note: Post MSN applicants who wish to change their area of professional practice should use the BSN-DNP application found on the Nursing CAS website.
Admissions And Performance Standards
All applicants to the D.N.P. program will be evaluated individually based on prior educational work and current employment experience. Programs of study will be designed to include additional coursework, if necessary, to meet the educational objectives of the program.
Students applying to the post-baccalaureate option must have a B.S.N. from a Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) or National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission, Inc. (NLNAC) accredited program.
Admissions Criteria:
- Minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 for baccalaureate degree and a minimum of 3.00 on all work beyond the baccalaureate level. Students without the minimum GPA requirement may be admitted conditionally upon the recommendation of the Program Coordinator.
- Introductory courses in statistics, research, and pharmacology will be completed prior to starting the DNP program.
- Qualified applicants will be contacted for an interview.
- Professional Nursing License: All students in the post-baccalaureate option must have a current unencumbered license as a Professional Registered Nurse (RN) from the State of West Virginia or compact state prior to beginning their clinical practicum courses. Students may also need to have a valid nursing license for the state in which they will be completing the Internship and D.N.P. practicum courses.
- Submission of a résumé or curriculum vitae.
- Submission of official transcripts of all college and university coursework.
- A letter of intent that describes how the student envisions using the D.N.P. degree to enhance his or her personal and professional goals (limit 500 words).
- Two professional references, at least one of which is from a current or former clinical supervisor.
- Upon evaluation of the student transcript(s), post-M.S.N. applicants may need to verify clinical hours completed in order to enter the program. Applicants lacking in clinical hours will have the opportunity to take the Transition to Doctoral Practice course through Shepherd’s D.N.P. program.
Current and prospective students can get further information on policies and procedures for Shepherd’s DNP program in the DNP Handbook, located through the hyperlink found on several of the DNP and Graduate Studies web pages.