Attn CRNA's & SRNA's: DNP/DNAP vs. MSN/MSNA - What pros and cons are there?

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Pros to entry into practice DNP program:

  1. Prepares you utilize more evidence based practice.
  2. Is becoming the standard degree for a career in academics.
  3. Shows the medical community your commitment to anesthesia.
  4. You wouldn't have to worry about going back for the DNP later if you completed a masters and decided later down the road that you wanted a doctorate.
  5. Maybe the coursework and/or clinical portion in the post-masters DNP is more time consuming than that of the entry level DNP programs. See number 18 of pros list.
  6. Most DNP curriculums are relatively new (Maybe not the CRNA School itself, but the change from MSN to DNP), maybe the programs will have some leniency and flexibility as the schools work out any issues involving a new curriculum, as not to overload the SRNA's.
  7. The costs of obtaining a post-masters DNP may be higher than that of the DNP courses in an entry level DNP program, this is due to a number of factors (e.g., University attended, number of credits required, charges per semester, application and transcript fees, etc.).
  8. Some people will have more satisfaction in knowing that they have the highest degree offered.
  9. Some MSN CRNA's deciding to obtain the DNP may not like being "supervised" during the clinical practicum portions of the post-masters DNP, whatever that may entail.
  10. Provides additional leadership training.
  11. Provides additional tools to research and utilize evidence-based practice.
  12. It's typically only an additional 8 months versus a minimum of 12 months for a post-masters DNP. See numbers 2 and 3 on the cons list for additional clarification.
  13. Psychologically, for some people, it may be less difficult to complete the front-loaded DNP schooling (Depending on the program) while working as a RN, rather than dragging yourself to complete the post-masters DNP coursework after having already gone through CRNA school (e.g., After graduating a MSN most people want to relax).
  14. There is some speculation of a slight hiring preference for DNP CRNA's.
  15. By 2025, it will be required that entry level of practice will be a DNP. In 30 years, a MSN will likely be viewed as the equivalent of a certificate in Nurse Anesthesia.
  16. Maybe there will be a preference given to DNP CRNA's in regards to COA accredited fellowship opportunities (e.g., Hamline University - Post-Graduate Advanced Pain Management Fellowship) - There will certainly be more fellowships to come! Perhaps we will see some cardiothoracic, pediatric, neurosurgical, regional, and/or obstetrical anesthesia fellowships in the near future!
  17. There is supposedly more clinical hours in DNP programs, but how many of these hours are clinical anesthesia?
  18. I think that most or all MSN programs require some sort of research paper or a capstone project? However, the DNP students may have the opportunity further enhance their research paper or capstone project that MSN students would be doing otherwise, thus the DNP capstone project may not be all that difficult and time consuming if that were the case?

Cons to entry into practice DNP program:

  1. Maybe the DNAP content would distract SRNA's from learning the core content of anesthesia?
  2. SRNA's enrolled in a 24-33 month MSN program are probably less likely to be burned out by graduation than SRNA's enrolled in a 36-42 month DNP program.
  3. You could always attend a post-masters MSN-DNP program and complete it on your time in 3-9 semesters (12-36 months).
  4. The 2 additional semesters that entry level DNP SRNA's must complete would take away many of the opportunities MSN SRNA's have over the DNP SRNA's. Some examples of these opportunities available to MSN students include a greater opportunity to save money, more time to gain additional ICU experience, more time to study CRNA material before classes start, etc. The aforementioned example is given a scenario of a DNP cohort starting in January and a MSN cohort starting in August of the same year. In the event that both the MSN and DNP cohorts start in the same semester, than the MSN SRNA would graduate 2 semesters sooner than the DNP SRNA and would thus forth be able to start working earlier.
  5. Missing out on the opportunity to simply be grandfathered in.
  6. Paying for a post-masters DNP program while making a CRNA income would be financially easier than paying for the doctoral classes in an entry level DNP program with loans and savings.
  7. The opportunity costs associated with either not working, or working less hours during the additional 2 semesters in a DNP program can be a deal breaker for some people. Opportunity costs are certainly a factor to consider.
  8. Less money going into CRNA school (e.g., MSN or DNP) for most people means more loans and more interest, plus add to this the extra 2 semesters of the DNP if you should choose that as your entry level of practice.
  9. From what it looks like, most of the DNP content is what many people would consider to be "nursing fluff" (e.g., Theory, Informatics, Professional Philosophy, etc.).
  10. Trying to balance completing the fluff, while studying for multiple exams, while learning new clinical procedures all in the same week.
  11. Counterstatements can be made to the pros list, pick out the statement and figure out if the counterstatement is valid and more practical for your purposes.

Some questions that could use some clarification:

· What is the residency in doctoral nursing practice? How about the capstone project? How involved are they? How involved are they in an entry level DNP vs a post-masters DNP? How valid is point number 18 from the pros list?

· How distracting is the DNP content while learning anesthesia in an entry level DNP program?

· How great is the hiring preference for DNP vs MSN CRNA's? Non-existent or Negligible? What are your thoughts about the future hiring preference? Do you think there will be a preference in the future similar to that of the ADN vs. BSN RN?

· Is there more clinical anesthesia hours in most DNP CRNA programs vs. the MSN CRNA programs?

· Which degree would you choose and why?

Keywords: MSN MSNA DNP DNAP MSN-DNP MSN-DNAP MSNA-DNP MSNA-DNAP CRNA SRNA Doctorate of Science in Nurse Anesthesia Doctor Masters AANA BSN BSN-MSN BSN-MSNA BSN-DNP BSN-DNAP DMPNA Doctor of Management Practice in Nurse Anesthesia MSN-DNP Program Anesthesiology Anesthetist MS Master of Health Science Biology PhD DNP-A Graduate Certificate Dual

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Bump TTT

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Great info on this thread!

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Specializes in CCU, MICU, and GMF Liver.

Hi, i'll jump in on the discussion. With any endeavor in life I need to know my "why" i.e. what's my motivation for waking up early, learning a new instrument, taking improv comedy classes, working out, and getting a DNP because this "why" is what pushes me during the inevitable tough times. When it comes to DNP vs MSN, I simply have no desire to obtain a DNP because I want to dedicate that time and energy to fulfilling other areas of my life.

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This is a very interesting thread and I'm interested to see how it goes. I started out as a NA worked my way up to an ADN RN and then a BSN. I had some issues finding a hospital that would hire me because I only had an associates degree. I personally only applied to DNP CRNA programs because I was afraid later on down the road they would only hire CRNA's with a DNP degree and not one with a MSN like they are doing now with the BSN and ADN nurses.

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