Continued Professional Development

CONTINUED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT 4

ContinuedProfessional Development

InstitutionAffiliation:

ContinuedProfessional Development

Inthe past, most nurses who were willing to continue with theireducation were pursuing Ph.D. as a traditional doctoral degree innursing. Eventually, when Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) wasintroduced, they had the option of deciding whether to do Ph.D. orDNP. Therefore, the main aim of the research paper is to examine thedifference between DNP and Ph.D. as applied in nursing.

Differencebetween DNP and PhD

Themain difference between Ph.D. and DNP can be seen with regards totheir objectives, for instance, Ph.D. prepare nurses for research,and they have the opportunity to gain new knowledge while DNP ispractice-oriented that equip nurses with clinical practice at ahigher level (Loomis, Willard &amp Cohen, 2007). Similarly, thesetwo degrees differ in career focus, for example, PhD students areresearch oriented, and they handle issues emerging in the nursing atvarious levels such as regional, national and international. On theother hand, DNP students are prepared for leadership roles within thefollowing department such as academia, health information technology,and management (Loomis etal.,2007).

PursuingDNP at doctoral level

Formy doctoral level, I have the desire to pursue DNP since it will giveme an opportunity to practice my leadership role within the clinicalsetting. Additionally, completing a DNP degree takes a shorter periodvarying between 2-3 years as compared to Ph.D. that last for about4-5 years (Loomis etal.,2007). Moreover, DNP degree is the most appropriate for professionaland personal objectives, and it will also help to increase the numberof nurses within the faculty, and it meets the expectations ofclinically oriented nurses (Loomis etal.,2007).

Conclusion

Ph.D.in nursing is very significant as far as research is concerned butDNP degree provides nurses with an opportunity to exercise theirleadership roles, and that helps to improve performance within thehospitals.

References

Loomis,J., Willard, B., &amp Cohen, J. (2007). Difficult professionalchoices: Deciding between the Ph.D. and the DNP in nursing. OnlineJournal of Issues in Nursing, 12(1).