Skip to content
A graduate nursing student stands confidently with a stethoscope draping his shoulders.
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
  • Program entry points: 2
  • Post-baccalaureate options: 5
  • Fisher family:1

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

You may enroll in Fisher’s doctor of nursing practice (DNP) program as a holder of either a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree in nursing.

If you seek post-master's admission to the program, you must have an advanced-practice specialization as a nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified registered nurse anesthetist, or certified nurse midwife. Becoming a nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist is part of your studies should you follow the post-baccalaureate track.

The DNP program’s accelerated format provides both full- and part-time options for study. The program can be completed in six semesters of full-time study on the post-graduate track, while you should be willing to commit to three years if you are traveling the post-baccalaureate path full-time.


Join Us for a Virtual Information Session

Two nurses in white coats talking in a hallway

See Success at Fisher

Join us for a Zoom session to learn about Fisher's graduate nursing offerings, including the M.S. in nursing programs and the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP).

Upcoming Sessions


Program Overview

The format of the DNP program includes blended hybrid courses and the use of simulation, case studies, and seminars.

In the post-master's track, you will complete a minimum of 33 credit hours of coursework. If you are coming to the program with a bachelor’s-level degree in nursing, you are required to complete 62-72 credit hours to obtain your DNP.

In addition, whether you choose the post-master's or post-baccalaureate option, you will be expected to complete 1,000 hours of clinical practice.

Program Outcomes

At the completion of the program, the graduate will be prepared to:

  • Implement and evaluate clinical practice based on scientific knowledge.
  • Assume advanced practice nursing roles as an expert clinician.
  • Demonstrate advanced leadership skills necessary to meet the challenges of increasingly complex health care organizations.
  • Demonstrate analytical methodologies for the evaluation of clinical practice and the application of scientific evidence to improve professional practice.
  • Apply clinical scholarship methodologies for organizational quality improvement, evidence-based practice, and health care outcomes.
  • Use advanced skills to design, develop, and implement the use of contemporary technological information systems.
  • Demonstrate expertise in the analysis, formulation, and implementation of health care policy.
  • Collaborate with interdisciplinary teams necessary to meet health care needs of individuals and populations.
  • Apply ethical theories, legal and practice standards, and advocacy to decision-making in health care issues.
  • Apply population-based methodologies for health promotion and disease-prevention in advanced practice.

Rochester Regional Health's Preferred Education Partner

Rochester Regional Health employees are eligible for generous tuition discounts in addition to employer tuition assistance in our Wegmans School of Nursing graduate programs. Take advantage of the preferred education partnership today.

 Our DNP graduates are prepared to effect change and take on high-level roles in health systems, academia, and policy making, with the goal of improving health outcomes for individuals, communities, and the nation as a whole. ”


Tricia Gatlin
  • Tricia K. Gatlin
  • Dean, Wegmans School of Nursing