Karen Hande

Navigating DNP Student Needs: Faculty Advising Competencies and Effective Strategies for Development and Support.

Doctor of nursing practice (DNP) faculty advisers help students navigate academic challenges, professional development, and leadership opportunities while earning a DNP degree. Student needs during DNP education are unique from other programs and require careful advising to address common challenges. This article links student needs with advising competencies and presents strategies for faculty development and support.

Transforming a Curriculum to Progress the Associate Degree Nurse to Advanced Practice.

The educational preparation of associate degree nurses to the master’s level requires attainment of baccalaureate-level content. This preparation involves specialized curriculum and varied teaching techniques. Using adult learning theory and aspects of competency-based learning, students and faculty may participate in a gratifying and successful educational experience. The revision of an ongoing associate degree to baccalaureate-level curriculum is presented in this article.

Appreciative Advising: An Innovative Approach to Advising Doctor of Nursing Practice Students

Academic advising is broadly defined as an interactive process in which an adviser assists a student in developing and achieving goals. Historically, the dominant academic advising model was prescriptive advising. Communication within prescriptive academic advising is linear, with directives flowing from the adviser to an individual advisee. Appreciative advising (AA) has emerged as an alternative to prescriptive advising and allows faculty and students to develop shared goals. Appreciative advising includes both individual and group sessions to provide individual mentoring and a supportive community of peers. The AA model has been used successfully with undergraduate nursing students to improve student retention and performance. Doctor of nursing practice (DNP) students have unique needs when compared with undergraduate students but still require advice, scholarly support, and a peer community, congruent with the components of AA. In addition, group advising streamlines faculty effort while enhancing student engagement. The purpose of this article is to describe our adaption of the AA model for DNP students.