Graduate Health Sciences Degrees

Mission. The CMU graduate nursing program provides learners with an advanced understanding of the concepts, issues, and practices of the domain of nursing.  This requires the ability to think independently and generate new knowledge with a respect for the diversity among ideas, programs, and people.  Graduates develop expertise in a defined body of knowledge and are prepared to provide ethical leadership in the delivery of health services and education. Graduates, as nursing leaders, serve society while promoting and protecting the health of the individual, family, and public through clinical practice, administration, education, and research.

Philosophy. The graduate nursing programs support the overall mission of CMU. Furthermore, we believe the focus of nursing is defined by connecting science to the experience of human health and caring (Newman, 1991). Recognized ways of knowing in nursing include empirics, esthetics, ethics, and personal knowledge (Carper, 1978).  CMU’s graduate nursing programs honor scientific, theoretical, and nursing knowledge to advance the discipline.

Vision. Faculty, students, and alumni value the expansion of nursing science, knowledge, and practice. This entails nursing leadership in the delivery of care for individuals across the life span, communities, and populations.

Fall 2019

Fall 2018

Summer 2018

Fall 2017

December 2016

CMU's Graduate Nursing Program invites community members and healthcare leaders to serve on the Graduate Advisory Board (GAB). The GAB meets twice yearly over lunch to discuss issues related to the education of nurses for advanced practice in local, regional, national, and international communities. If you would like to participate on the GAB, please contact the Department of Health Sciences at 970-248-1235. 

The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, master's degree program in nursing, and Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Colorado Mesa University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street, NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20001, 202-887-6791.

The graduate nursing program follows multiple professional standards and national guidelines. These are listed below along with other related resources.

• Colorado State Board of Nursing (CSBON), located at https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/dora/Nursing_Laws
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)
  • MSN education, located at http://www.aacnnursing.org/Nursing-Education-Programs/Masters-Education
  • DNP education located at http://www.aacnnursing.org/Nursing-Education-Programs/DNP-Education
  • Standards for accreditation of baccalaureate and graduate degree nursing programs (2013), located at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/ccne-accreditation/standards-procedures-resources/baccalaureate-graduate/standards
  • Quality and safety education for advanced nursing practice (QSEN) (2012), located at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/faculty/qsen/competencies.pdf
  • Essentials series: The essentials of doctoral education for advanced nursing practice (2006), located at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/DNP/pdf/Essentials.pdf
  • Position statement on the practice doctorate in nursing, located at http://www.aacn.nche.edu/dnp/position-statement
• American Nurses’ Association (ANA) (2010). Nursing: Scope and standards of practice, located at http://www.nursingworld.org/scopeandstandardsofpractice
• American Association of Nurse Practitioners, located at https://www.aanp.org/education/student-resource-center/starting-your-career/9-education/1060-certification-for-entry-level-nps
• National League for Nursing (NLN) (2007). Nurse educator competencies: Creating an evidence-based practice for nurse educators
• Institute of Medicine (IOM) (2010). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health, located at http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12956
• National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) (2017).
  • Doctor of Nursing Practice Nurse Practitioner Clinical Scholar, located at https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.nonpf.org/resource/resmgr/docs/ClinicalScholarFINAL2016.pdf
  • Nurse practitioner core competencies, located at https://c.ymcdn.com/sites/nonpf.site-ym.com/resource/resmgr/competencies/2017_NPCoreComps_with_Curric.pdf
  • Criteria for evaluation of nurse practitioner programs (2012), located at https://cdn.ymaws.com/nonpf.site-ym.com/resource/resmgr/docs/ntfevalcriteria2012final.pdf
• National Task Force on Quality Nurse Practitioner Education (2012). Criteria for evaluation of nurse practitioner programs, 5th edition.
• Healthy People 2020, located at http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/default.aspx