Department website: https://www.atu.edu/nursing

Nursing Administration and Emergency Management

This program may be completed online.

The Master of Science in Nursing is designed to offer students a program of study to serve the educational needs of professional nurses actively engaged in or planning to enter professions related to emergency management administration in a variety of health care settings. The curriculum will utilize a multidisciplinary approach to integrate principles of nursing administration, including planning, organizing, directing, and evaluating, with principles of emergency management, including preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery.

The core curriculum includes twenty-four (27) semester hours of coursework in research design and methods, theoretical perspectives, legal and ethical issues, current trends in healthcare, healthcare administrator role, principles of hazards and emergency management, and research thesis/project. An additional nine (6) semester credit hours will be completed in either the nursing administration or emergency management specialty concentration areas.

Students who complete the program will be able to do the following:

1. Demonstrate the ability to assume administrative roles in health care settings.
2. Evaluate system level planning, decision-making, and evaluation for disasters and public health emergencies
3. Formulate solutions to critical issues pertinent to the nursing profession through analysis, synthesis, and application of current research.
4. Address opportunities for innovation or development of new/revised policy in the practice of health care.

Academic Advisors

The MSN Program Director serves as the advisor to each student admitted to the Nursing degree program.The advisor will assist the student in the design of a curriculum of study that leads to the fulfillment of degree requirements. Additionally, the academic advisor and the Graduate College will monitor the student's progress. It remains, however, the student's responsibility to understand and to satisfy all degree requirements. RNs with a bachelor's degree in a field other than nursing will be required to complete NURN 4003 Scope of Professional Practice, NURN 4024 Population and Community Health Nursing, and NURN 4034 Leadership and Management in Professional Practice.

Unconditional Admission

Students are eligible to apply for unconditional admission to the Master of Science in Nursing degree program if they meet all the following requirements:

1. Applicants must meet the admission requirements for Graduate College.
2. Applicants must hold an earned bachelor’s degree or equivalent from an U.S. college or university accredited by a regional accrediting agency (or equivalent), or an equivalent degree from a foreign college or university. The bachelor’s degree must be substantially equivalent to a bachelor’s degree granted by ATU.
3. Applicants must have a cumulative undergraduate grade point average of 3.00.
4. Applicants must have an unencumbered U.S. license to practice as a registered nurse without a history of disciplinary action of any kind.
5. RNs with a bachelor's degree in a field other than nursing will be required to complete NURN 4003 Scope of Professional Practice, NURN 4024 Population and Community Health Nursing, and NURN 4034 Leadership and Management in Professional Practice.

Conditional Admission

Applicants who fail to meet the above requirements may be admitted conditionally by the Graduate Admissions Committee to earn a maximum of twelve (12) graduate credit hours. If a student was admitted conditionally based on grade point average, the condition will be met if upon completion of twelve (12) semester hours a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or better is achieved.

The Master of Science in Nursing program is approved by the Arkansas State Board of Nursing and the Arkansas Department of Higher Education. The program is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing.

Degree Requirements

Thirty-three credit hours are required for completion of the Master of Science in Nursing Degree. Twenty-seven hours shall be completed in a professional core component, including three (3) hours of research methods and 3-6 hours of research thesis/project (application). Nine (9) hours shall be completed in one of two specialty concentration areas: Nursing Administration (including six [6] hours of practicum) or Emergency Management (including three [3] hours of practice).

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
CORE CURRICULUM
EMHS 6063	Principles of Emergency Management	3
NUR 6103	Theoretical Perspectives	3
NUR 6203	Research Design and Methods	3
NUR 6303	Law, Ethics, and Policy in Healthcare	3
NUR 6313	Role of the Healthcare Administrator	3
NUR 6503	Organizational Behavior in Healthcare	3
Three hours of 5000-6000 Level EMHS Electives		3
Select one of the following options:		6
Option 1
NUR 6403	Non-Thesis Project
Three hours of Electives
Option 2
NUR 6993	Research Thesis
NUR 6993	Research Thesis
Select one of the following concentration areas:		6
NURSING ADMINISTRATION CONCENTRATION AREA
NUR 6526	Nursing Administration Practicum
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT CONCENTRATION AREA
EMHS 6526	Emergency Management Practicum in Health Care
Total Hours		33

• Twenty-Seven hours of graduate work must be taken while in residence at Arkansas Tech University.

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Students who complete the program will be able to do the following:

1. Demonstrate the ability to assume administrative roles in health care settings.
2. Evaluate system level planning, decision-making, and evaluation for disasters and public health emergencies
3. Formulate solutions to critical issues pertinent to the nursing profession through analysis, synthesis, and application of current research.
4. Address opportunities for innovation or development of new/revised policy in the practice of health care.

For program assessment visit: https://www.atu.edu/assessment/program_assessment.php